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Card Score

Rate items across multiple criteria - drag cards onto scales, see where they sit relative to each other, and add the reasoning behind every score. Ranked comparison with depth: the numbers tell you what wins; the reasoning tells you why.

Card Score activity showing cards positioned on rating scales with participant scores and reasoning visible alongside each item

How it works

Ranked preference, with the reasoning behind it.

Define your cards and criteria

Researchers create a set of cards - products, concepts, brands, messages, or any stimulus - and define the criteria each card will be rated on. Criteria can be anything: appeal, relevance, uniqueness, likelihood to purchase, fit with brand, and so on.

Participants drag cards onto scales

Cards are presented in a pile. For each rating scale (appeal, relevance, fit with my life, and so on), participants drag each card to its position along the scale - seeing where they've already placed other cards as they go. Each dimension is worked through in turn.

Mean scores and ranked comparison, automatically

Qualzy calculates mean and median scores per card across all dimensions - enabling direct ranked comparison across the full set. Results are available per participant and aggregated across the sample, with visualisation tools to surface the patterns.

Participant experience

Drag, place, explain - on any device.

Participants see the full card set in a pile and work through each rating scale in turn - dragging cards to their position, with other cards already placed visible for comparison. The visual format makes scoring intuitive and comparative.

After each scale, participants can add open-ended reasoning explaining their placements - so researchers get the number and the story behind it in a single activity, without a separate follow-up.

1
Opens in browser

Participant accesses Card Score via a link on any device - mobile, tablet, or desktop. No app to install.

2
Reviews all cards

Sees the full card set - text, images, or both - before beginning to place them on the first rating scale.

3
Drags cards onto the first scale

Places each card on the rating scale for the first dimension - appeal, relevance, or whatever the researcher has defined. Cards already placed are visible, enabling comparison.

4
Adds reasoning for that scale

Optionally explains their placements for that dimension - why certain cards rated high or low, what they noticed. Captured per scale alongside the scores.

5
Repeats for each scale

Works through each rating dimension in turn. Qualzy calculates mean and median scores per card across all scales once complete.

Results & analysis

Ranked scores, with the reasoning behind them.

Card Score produces mean and median scores per card across every dimension — with participant reasoning captured alongside. Maizy Chat lets you interrogate that reasoning conversationally at any point during or after fieldwork.

Scores & Rankings

Mean and median scores per card, per participant and in aggregate

Qualzy surfaces the ranked output automatically — which concept or product scored highest on each dimension, how scores vary by segment, and where the largest gaps between items appear.

Open Reasoning

The thinking behind every score, in participants' own words

Participants add open-ended reasoning alongside their scores for each dimension — explaining why certain cards rated high or low and what drove their placement. All reasoning is captured verbatim and available to review per participant or across the full sample.

Maizy Chat

Ask Maizy to explain any score

Use Maizy Chat during or after fieldwork to interrogate the dataset: "What drives high appeal scores for Concept A?" or "Why do participants rate Concept C low on relevance?" Conversational queries across the full sample's reasoning.

Reporting

Turn any two ratings
into a quadrant — instantly.

Card Score rates every item across as many criteria as the study needs — appeal, premium feel, relevance, purchase intent, or anything else. Each criterion gives you an individual ranked score.

The reporting goes further: pick any two of those criteria and Qualzy plots all rated items in a two-axis matrix. Change either axis and the view updates immediately — so you can explore every possible two-way comparison without any pre-defined grid. Appeal versus premium feel. Relevance versus uniqueness. Likelihood to purchase versus brand fit. The same scores, infinite perspectives.

Card Score dynamic matrix showing rated items plotted across two selectable rating dimensions, with items positioned in quadrants based on their scores

Use cases

Where Card Score works hardest

Concept Testing

Multi-concept Evaluation

Test multiple product or service concepts simultaneously - scoring each on appeal, relevance, uniqueness, and purchase likelihood. Qualzy produces a ranked output with the reasoning behind every score, giving clients a defensible recommendation rather than a preference vote.

Message Testing

Advertising & Message Scoring

Rate advertising concepts, slogans, or campaign messages across dimensions such as clarity, emotional resonance, brand fit, and motivating power. Identify which message lands - and understand which element of the brief it nails or misses.

Packaging Research

Pack Design Evaluation

Score pack designs on shelf standout, premium perception, information clarity, and purchase intent. Multi-criteria scoring surfaces where a design excels and where it loses people - moving beyond "which pack do you prefer?" to "what's driving that preference?"

Brand Research

Brand or Competitor Profiling

Rate a set of brands across attribute dimensions - innovation, trust, value, quality, accessibility. Map where each brand sits in participants' minds across multiple measures, and identify white space or competitive vulnerability.

Get started

See Card Score in action

Book a discovery call and we'll walk you through Card Score in a real study design — from criteria setup and card creation through to weighted scores and participant reasoning.

Related activity types

Combine Card Score with these for richer concept and preference research