Business perceptions of local data centres

What is shaping internet services

Broadband providers, platforms and digital businesses depend on adoption, experience and trust. Usage patterns differ widely by city tier, age and language.

• New users are coming online in smaller towns and local languages
• Experience and reliability drive loyalty
• Trust and safety concerns shape usage

A cloud and data centre provider, working in Switzerland, Germany & France. Client identity is withheld to protect confidentiality.

Organisation

A cloud and data centre provider

Sector

Internet services

Team engaged

Market Research

Services

Business panel, Qualitative research, Research consultancy

The provider wanted to understand demand for local data hosting. Global hyperscalers offered lower prices, and the provider needed to know where it could compete. The provider had opened local data centres but was still losing deals to global hyperscalers.

• Deliver on the brief: business perceptions of local data centres.
• Uncover the motivations and barriers people do not state in a survey.
• Give the client evidence it can act on within 6 weeks.

Scope: 30 interviews.

Audiences we typically reach in internet services

Broadband and app usersNew internet usersSmall businesses onlineContent creatorsParents and educators

Coverage: Switzerland, Germany & France. Markets: Switzerland, Germany and France.

• Switzerland
• Germany
• France

A qualitative design, built to uncover motivations, decision processes and the language people actually use.

1. 1Brief
2. 2IT leader interviews
3. 3Insight

We interviewed IT leaders about data residency, compliance and provider choice. Interviews were conducted in German, French and English with IT and compliance leaders in banking, healthcare and the public sector. We also reviewed procurement requirements in banking, healthcare and public sector tenders.

Business panelQualitative researchResearch consultancy

• Business respondents were screened on role, company size and involvement in the decision before being invited.
• Online respondents were drawn from verified panel members who matched the screening criteria, with quotas on key profile attributes.
• Qualitative participants were recruited purposively to cover the full range of experiences that mattered, rather than for statistical representation.

interviews

30

• The online survey was mobile-friendly and offered in respondents' languages.
• Interviews and discussions were led by experienced moderators using a guide agreed with the client.

• Digital fingerprinting and duplicate checks
• Attention, speed and straight-lining checks
• Review of open-ended answers
• Recordings and transcripts for every session
• Re-screening of qualitative recruits
• Logic and range checks on the final data
• Work carried out under our ISO 20252 quality procedures

• Thematic coding of interviews and discussions
• Journey and decision mapping

• Data residency and certifications were decisive.
• Its sales materials were rewritten around compliance requirements in each country.

Compliance drove hosting choices.

• Build on the core insight: compliance drove hosting choices.
• Focus effort where the evidence was strongest: data residency and certifications were decisive.
• Re-measure after the changes to confirm the effect.

• The provider emphasised local compliance.
• The provider focused sales on regulated sectors and won several contracts where data residency was required.

What changed in the business as a result of the work. Impact is described qualitatively.

• Insight report and management presentation
• Cleaned data file and data tables
• Interview summaries and key verbatims

• Repeat the measure after changes are in place to track progress.
• A natural follow-on question: how do users rate their broadband?