There were some great discussions that stemmed from my previous post about the “Limiting Adjective of ‘Marketing’ Research.” Some really insightful responses that exhibited multiple perspectives on the topic! The conversation also led to a question being asked in the GreenBook Research Industry Trends (GRIT) study, and early results showed that 42% said “yes, we need to develop a new term that is more reflective of what our business is today.” Even though this is not the majority, it does indicate a divide in how our industry views itself. I’m excited to continue the ride and see how things progress over the next few years. Continue reading »

Recently, we were asked by a research supplier to define “getting the business”. What do clients mean by this and how should research companies act to show that they really do “get it”? Well, here are a few thoughts. Continue reading »

MRWeb reported today about the positive news contained within the Honomichl Report about the recovery of the Global 25, and as I pointed out previously the story is mixed at best, with some true organic growth but most recovering to 2009 levels, and a few declining further. I love the work that Jack and Larry do, but I am reminded once again that this is only a snapshot of a segment of the MR space and although helpful, it is incomplete. Continue reading »

In conjunction with other forward-thinking research companies (BrainJuicer, Mesh Planning, and KL Communications) and an advertising agency (GSD&M), we have submitted a panel idea for SXSWi 2012. SXSW has received 3,600 submissions and only 500 panels can make it to the event. So this post is to request your individual vote to make sure that this Market Research Panel makes it to this high-profile event. Continue reading »

Once a quarter I talk to new employees as part of our company orientation process. I tell them that this is an exciting time to be in MR and a key part of that excitement is the explosion of new methodologies that we have seen over about the last three or four years. I tell them that it’s too soon to sort out the winners from the losers but it’s our job to stay abreast of all them and figure out which of them might work for our clients. Continue reading »

Wrapping up my “newsmaker” interview series is a discussion with Jeffrey Henning, CMO of Affinnova. Jeffrey made news a while back when he left Vovici for Affinnova, and then again when it was announced that Text Analytics firm Verint had acquired EFM provider Vovici, the company that he had helped lead for so many years. Enterprise Feedback Management is a great example of the convergence of the market research and business intelligence industries so it’s a topic that I and other industry observers follow closely; the recent wave of consolidation in that space is indicative of what we may see happening in other segments in the future. Since Jeffrey is arguably one of the most respected thought leaders in the industry on EFM, I feel pretty lucky that I had a chance to talk with him in-depth about it. Continue reading »

As promised, the presentations from the 2nd International Conference on Market Research in the Mobile World are now available!

Here is how to access them:

Go to the MRGA 365 platform by clicking this link: http://www.marketplace365.com/Default.aspx Continue reading »

The great response to my interview with Jill Chiara of Forrester made me think that a “trilogy” of interviews with thought leaders in the market research space who have also been in the news recently might be interesting. Lucky for me two people whom I respect immensely, have had the opportunity to collaborate with, and also like very much fit that description: Ray Poynter and Jeffrey Henning. Today I’m publishing the interview with Ray, and tomorrow I’ll post the interview with Jeffrey. Continue reading »

I just completed a survey (as a respondent). I honestly have no idea how the client is going to get any valid data from the mish-mash of garbage I just had to wade through in order to complete the study. As a respondent, I felt this was a frustrating abuse of my time. As a researcher, I felt this was a frustrating abuse of our industry. There is enough of this nonsense going on in research that it’s time we stand up and call out the worst offenders, and use them as examples of what not to do. Because it’s hurting the end users of the research, and it’s hurting the professionals who actually know and care what they’re doing. Continue reading »

The Survey Geek recently posted a highly sarcastic (and highly entertaining) blog entitled How to write a mobile research pitch piece. It labels mobile research as largely “hype,” questions the significance and usefulness of mobile as a data collection platform, and postulates that most researchers who pitch mobile to their clients lack proof of its effectiveness. While a very entertaining read, this blog post is somewhat misleading and certainly one-sided. As the leading provider of mobile market research software solutions, Kinesis naturally feels the need to offer a counterpoint. Continue reading »