Your product genuinely outperforms the competition. Your formulation team knows it, your quality control confirms it, and early feedback from buyers suggests consumers notice the difference. The problem is that none of that matters on-shelf unless you can say it publicly, and saying it publicly without proper substantiation is a fast track to regulatory trouble and wasted marketing spend.
Product claim support transforms what you know internally into statements you can confidently put on packaging, in advertising, and across every consumer touchpoint. The difference between a product that sits quietly on shelf and one that actively converts browsers into buyers often comes down to whether you have the evidence to make claims that catch attention and build trust.
How Product Claim Support Builds Commercial Advantage
The commercial logic behind claim support is straightforward. With approximately 85% of household shopping coming from repeat purchases, convincing consumers to switch from their current preferences requires a compelling reason. A substantiated claim provides exactly that reason, giving shoppers evidence-based justification to try something new rather than defaulting to familiar choices.
Product Claims vs Competitive Claims
Understanding the distinction between claim types helps you identify which approach delivers the most value for your specific market position.
Product claims highlight your product’s strengths in isolation. Statements like “8 out of 10 consumers found this product delicious” or “proven to keep you fuller for longer” focus attention on what your product delivers without directly referencing competitors. These claims work well when you are establishing category credentials or communicating functional benefits that matter to your target audience.
Competitive claims take a more aggressive approach by directly comparing your product against market leaders. When you can substantiate that “84% of consumers preferred this product over the leading brand” you are giving shoppers a direct reason to switch. These claims carry particular weight in categories where consumers assume established brands are automatically superior, because they challenge that assumption with evidence.
The choice between approaches depends on your market position, your competitive landscape, and what testing reveals about where your product genuinely excels. Some brands discover through taste testing that their products significantly outperform competitors on specific attributes, making competitive claims the obvious choice. Others find their strengths lie in functional benefits that warrant product-focused messaging.
Why Methodology Determines Whether Claims Stand or Fall
The Advertising Standards Authority maintains strict requirements around claim substantiation, and claims built on flawed methodology get rejected regardless of whether the underlying product performance is genuine. This is where the research design becomes as important as the research findings.
Robust claim support methodology addresses several critical factors that determine whether your evidence will withstand scrutiny. Panel demographics must accurately reflect your target consumer base, because claims tested on the wrong audience lack validity for the market you actually serve. Sample sizes need sufficient statistical power to support the specific claims you want to make. Preparation methods must mirror real-world usage conditions, because claims validated under artificial circumstances fail to represent genuine consumer experience.
Testing location and conditions also matter significantly. Central location testing provides controlled environments where variables can be managed and comparisons made fairly, whilst home use testing captures how products perform in realistic usage situations over time. The right approach depends on what you are trying to claim and how consumers will actually interact with your product.
At Wirral Sensory Services, we work with Clearcast and the CPTA to ensure methodologies meet the standards required for broadcast advertising and regulatory compliance. When we put our name behind a claim, we stand alongside clients if that claim faces a challenge, because the methodology is designed to withstand exactly that scrutiny.
What Effective Claim Support Research Actually Involves
The process of building substantiated claims follows a logical sequence, though the specific research design varies considerably depending on your product category, competitive context, and the claims you want to make.
Initial scoping identifies which attributes genuinely matter to purchase decisions in your category. There is no value in substantiating claims about attributes consumers do not care about, so understanding what drives preference in your specific market shapes everything that follows. This often involves preliminary consumer research through questionnaires or focus groups to map the decision factors that influence your target audience.
Testing then evaluates your product against those critical attributes, either in isolation for product claims or alongside competitors for comparative claims. The research generates quantifiable data showing how consumers respond to your product on the dimensions that matter commercially.
Results translate into claim language that accurately represents the findings whilst maximising marketing impact. The gap between what research shows and what you can legitimately claim is often narrower than brands expect, but it requires careful interpretation to ensure statements remain defensible.
Key elements that strengthen claim support evidence include:
- Consumer panels recruited to match your actual target market demographics
- Sample sizes calculated to deliver statistical significance for your intended claims
- Blind testing protocols that remove brand bias from product evaluation
- Standardised preparation and presentation matching real usage conditions
- Clear documentation of methodology for regulatory submission if required
The difference between claims that hold up and claims that get challenged often comes down to these methodological details. Cutting corners on research design to save costs frequently results in evidence that cannot support the claims you want to make, which defeats the entire purpose of the investment.
Turning Claim Support Into Sustained Commercial Results
Substantiated claims only deliver value when consumers actually encounter them. This seems obvious, but brands regularly invest in building robust claim support evidence then underutilise it across their marketing and packaging.
On-pack claims influence decisions at the precise moment consumers are choosing between products, making packaging one of the highest-impact applications for substantiated statements. Packaging research is one method that can help you understand how to present claims for maximum visibility and persuasive impact, ensuring your evidence translates into shelf standout rather than getting lost in design elements.
Beyond packaging, claim support evidence strengthens retailer conversations by providing objective data showing your product outperforms current listings. Buyers respond to evidence that predicts consumer preference, because their job is to stock products that sell. Walking into a listing meeting with substantiated claims that demonstrate superiority over incumbent products changes the nature of that conversation entirely.
For functional products where performance matters, efficacy testing provides the foundation for claims about how products actually work. Whether you are claiming longer-lasting freshness, improved skin feel, or enhanced cleaning power, efficacy evidence substantiates those functional promises in ways that protect you from regulatory challenge whilst giving consumers genuine reasons to choose your product.
Building Claims That Drive Purchase Decisions
Product claim support represents one of the most direct connections between research investment and commercial return. When you can substantiate that your product tastes better, performs longer, or delivers more satisfaction than alternatives, you have created marketing assets that work continuously across every consumer touchpoint.
At Wirral Sensory Services, we have been helping brands build substantiated product claims for nearly three decades, developing methodologies that satisfy regulatory requirements whilst generating evidence with genuine commercial impact. Whether you need product claims that highlight your strengths or competitive claims that demonstrate superiority over market leaders, our experienced team can design research that delivers defensible, powerful statements.
If you want to discuss claim support for a new product launch, a reformulation, or an existing product that deserves stronger marketing, call us on +44 (0)151 346 2999 or email info@wssintl.com.
