For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Case Study: How Fox And Microsoft Used Mobile Research To Measure Movie Advertising Impact

Mobile Research Helped Gain Insight In The Buildup Of Movie Promotion

by Reineke Reitsma, November 10, 2009

Fox and Microsoft Advertising collaborated on a project at the end of 2008 to better understand the impact of and the interaction between the different media channels used to promote movies. They used MESH Planning's mobile research methodology, called . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

The Marketing Of Market Research: Successful Communication Builds Influence

by Reineke Reitsma, November 4, 2009

One of the biggest challenges that market researchers face is to show the added value of market research to the company and to gain influence at the executive level. To increase visibility, market researchers need to communicate constantly, consistently, . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Do B2B Customer Satisfaction Right In Tech

Implementing Four Key Disciplines Will Save You Time And Money

by Brad Bortner, October 27, 2009

Business-to-business (B2B) customer satisfaction research is not some sort of rare, exotic research. The same benefits of highly satisfied consumer customers will come to those who execute on actionable B2B customer satisfaction research, including enhanced . . .

For Technology Sales Enablement Professionals

Help Sales Teams Connect With Buyers By Mining Quantitative Survey Data

How Surveys Like Forrester's Business Data Services Can Inform One-On-One Sales Conversations

by Eric G. Brown, Emily Van Metre, June 11, 2009

Sales teams know plenty about your offering and capabilities — and little about the people they try to sell them to. Valuable sales conversations, the kind that your top salespeople have that bring in the lion's share of your revenue, start with a good . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Market Researchers Demand High Panel Quality

New Initiatives Can Help With Quality — Particularly With B2B Sample

by Brad Bortner, April 3, 2009

The rapid embrace of online panels as a primary method of quantitative research in the US and Europe is a Faustian bargain. Online panels enable cheap, fast insights, but the quality of respondents is a concern. This concern is exacerbated for B2B, where . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

A Consumer Market Researcher's Introduction To Product Strategists' Segmentation Best Practices

by Reineke Reitsma, March 10, 2009

In most companies, the development of a customer segmentation is the responsibility of the market research department. A good segmentation is used by the whole organization and especially guides product managers, developers, and marketers. To increase . . .

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

The Consumer Product Strategist's Guide To Segmentation Analysis

Don't Leave Segmentation To The Market Research Department Alone

by J.P. Gownder, January 15, 2009

Segmentation analysis is the hardest task in market research — and it's the most important research that consumer product strategy professionals will use. Segmentation means not treating consumers as one unified market with identical needs, desires, and . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Past, Present, And Future Of Market Research

Current Trends Shape Future Market Research Environment In Europe

by Reineke Reitsma, January 7, 2009

Over the past 10 years, the Internet has changed the role of market research agencies, survey respondents, and consumer market researchers. Overall, the market research industry has seen steady revenue growth year-over-year, and offline research in Europe . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Role Insights: Market Researchers Struggle For Strategic Relevance

Align With Internal Clients' Business Needs And Prove Value To Be Valued

by Heidi Lo, Brad Bortner, January 7, 2009

Results from Forrester's Q2 2008 Global Market Research Organizing For Influence Online Survey show that many market researchers have not been able to position their market research groups as strategic partners within their organizations. Market research . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Market Researchers: A Compass In The Financial Sandstorm

A List Of Must-Read Research To Help You

by Brad Bortner, November 17, 2008

Things are not looking good for the economy: Although the first half of 2008 showed a steady pace of technology spending, that pace is not continuing. In a down economy, businesses face tough decisions and inevitably look to cut spending. For market researchers, . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

The Verizon Information Research Network Utilizes Technology For Strategic Impact

by TJ Keitt, Brad Bortner, October 17, 2008

The challenge of managing numerous research requests with a small staff is one that affects many market research organizations. Verizon's repository of secondary research, managed by the Verizon Information Research Network (VIRN), has adopted a robust . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

CSC's ResearchNetwork Provides A Road Map To Becoming A Strategic Partner

by TJ Keitt, Brad Bortner, October 8, 2008

Becoming a strategic player within the company is a problem that plagues many business-to-business (B2B) market researchers. Computer Sciences Corporation's (CSC's) ResearchNetwork is a group that has successfully made the transition from tactical entity . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Best Practices: Enhance Customer Satisfaction's Impact

Fix Satisfaction Problems, Don't Just Report Them!

by Brad Bortner, September 5, 2008

Satisfaction studies often cost a lot and consume vast research resources without ultimately improving business results. Why? The market intelligence organizations that conduct the research often take just a "reporting" approach, while the business units . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Inquiry Insights: Why Do So Many Roles Have Market Research Questions?

Market Research Professionals Should Take Heed Or Risk Losing Relevance

by Brad Bortner, June 30, 2008

Forrester receives a significant number of inquiries about market research from its clients. These range from best practices to the implications of technology for research approaches. Strangely, less than one-third of these inquiries come from clients . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Ten Ways To Recession-Proof Market Research

Focus On Business Outcomes — Starting With Revenue — To Retain Budget

by Ted Schadler, March 19, 2008

Market researchers should act quickly to establish their business relevance and preserve their budgets before recession fears start affecting budgets and spending. We have identified 10 ways that consumer and business-to-business (B2B) market research . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Big Changes Are Ahead For The SIM Marketplace

by Paul Stamp, February 27, 2008

More than one-third of enterprises plan to have adopted SIM technology by mid-2008. Interestingly, most of them are driven by compliance mandates more than a desire to create a world-class security operations center or to improve investigative capabilities. . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Professional Survey Takers: Still A Threat!

How To Reduce Corruption Risk From Voracious Online Survey Takers

by Brad Bortner, January 22, 2008

Professional survey takers (PSTs) are the potential Achilles' heel of the online panel industry. This issue was thrust into the awareness of the market research community almost three years ago when comScore indicated that its behavioral tracking panel . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Segmentation: The Allure And The Risk

Seven Ways Segmentations Fail, And The Best Practices To Avoid Them

by Brad Bortner, January 10, 2008

Savvy market research professionals understand the great promise of organization alignment and marketplace success that segmentations provide. Unfortunately, Forrester hears of many segmentations that fail. This occurs when organizations either fail to . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

The Untold Truth About Hispanic Online Panels

If You Think Hispanic Online Research Is Easy, Think Again

by Tamara Barber, November 30, 2007

Fielding Hispanic online surveys is tricky business. Misguided by their experience with general market panels, consumer market researchers see online surveys as a panacea for their critical Hispanic research needs — and at a fraction of the cost of traditional . . .

For B2B Market Research Professionals

Integrate Buying Behavior In B2B Segmentations

Ignoring Buying Dynamics Courts Failure: Use These Five Dynamics To Succeed

by Brad Bortner, November 28, 2007

Savvy business-to-business (B2B) market researchers use market segmentations to drive go-to-market planning. However, these segmentations can woefully under-deliver if they do not address the buying dynamics of the target market — such as who holds the . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Inquiry Insights: What's Bugging Market Researchers, Q4 2007?

Streamlining Operations And Creating Strategic Value Top The List

by Brad Bortner, November 6, 2007

Market research professionals top the list of roles that ask Forrester the greatest number of inquiries. While the bulk of inquiries are in the markets in which market researchers do business — new types of inquiries are showing up. In a flat or declining . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Make Yourself An Indispensable Market Researcher

Use Business Language, Analytics And Market Yourself

by Brad Bortner, September 13, 2007

As a business-focused market research professional, you must provide compelling proof that you are delivering value to the organization's bottom line. Given the complexity and diversity of market research deliverables, a single value metric just doesn't . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Five Keys To Success With Online Panels

How To Research Effectively In A Market Of Hard-To-Assess Panel Quality

by Brad Bortner, July 19, 2007

Market research professionals assume significant risk when designing studies to drive business decisions. Bogus study findings can lead to bad decisions, and research will run aground if the surveyed population is not representative of your market. Online . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

How To Effectively Outsource Market Research

Clear Expectations Make For More Successful Projects

by Brad Bortner, July 18, 2007

Market research professionals are big on outsourcing their primary research. Unfortunately, the research vendor market is not efficient. It lacks both universally accepted measurements of quality for vendors and comprehensive lists of qualified vendors. . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Best Practices In SOHO Research

Maximize The Precision And Usefulness Of Small Office/Home Office Studies

by J.P. Gownder, May 14, 2007

Market researchers often ask Forrester about how to precisely measure the market opportunity for their products among small office/home office (SOHO) buyers. The best approach? Disaggregate into five subgroups: consumers who work from home, formal telecommuters, . . .