Whitepaper key market research challenges

Be Different.Be faster.Think QuestBack

whitepaper:

Key Market Research Challenges &the power of the right technology platform

2Be Different. Be Faster. Think QuestBack: Key Market Research Challenges & the power of the right technology platform

whiTepaper:www.think-questback.com

the power of the right platform: Faster, more cost-effective market research without compromising on quality and innovation

Within the context of widespread corporate cost reduction initiatives, proving the validity and value of market research is increasingly important, in order to protect its status as an essential strategic business tool.

For more than a decade, QuestBack has been at the forefront of helping market research agencies and corporate research teams do just that. This white paper provides QuestBack’s perspective on the challenges facing the market research industry as it strives to deliver high quality and actionable insight under increasing cost and time pressures. It then explains how the right technology tools and partnerships can help research organizations meet these challenges and help them differerentiate, while accelerating and increasing the cost-effectiveness of the research process.

Be Different. Be faster. Think QuestBack



DeliveRing aCTionaBle insighT, QuiCKly: Today, opinions change, and new products and services appear almost overnight. Waiting weeks or

months for survey results and analysis that influence business decisions is not an option. The Research

industry Trends report (gRiT, 2014) confirms that timely results are now even more important

than cost when selecting research methodologies.

ReDuCing opeRaTional CosTs anD eliMinaTing Manual TasKs

Managing research projects manually using multiple disconnected platforms, data sources and

partners is expensive and time-consuming for the researcher, and delivers results too slowly for the

client. The training required to ensure proficiency in multiple research systems and methodologies

only exacerbates the problem. streamlined research project processes and execution are therefore

essential to ensure research budgets can be aligned with the widespread cost-cutting programs being

implemented by many organizations.

DiFFeRenTiaTion againsT CoMpeTiToRs

The market research industry has seen a significant degree of consolidation in recent years. at the

same time, the number and variety of organizations outside of the traditional market research sector,

including management consultancies and other ‘insight’ providers, has expanded significantly. Both

of these factors make differentiation for research suppliers more of a priority. This reality has been

validated recently by the work of Ron sellers of grey Matter Research. Commenting on his survey of

client perceptions about market research vendors, published in esoMaR’s 2013 annual report, sellers

says, “There is very little feeling that research vendors have differentiated brands. some clients tended

to differentiate a few vendors by size, methodology or specialty, but the brands themselves generally

had little real meaning to clients.”

MaKing sense oF MulTiple Types oF DaTa, geneRaTeD FRoM a gRoWing nuMBeR oF inCReasingly DiveRse souRCes according to sintef, a scandinavian research center, 90% of all the data ever produced by humans

was generated in the last 2 years, driven by the dramatic rise in popularity of smart mobile devices

and social media. and, unlike the data generated by traditional surveys, much of it is unstructured and

therefore more difficult to process. as a result, Big Data has not yet produced a representative volume

of ‘Big insight’. To deliver maximum value to clients, market researchers must decide how to address

that imbalance while continuing to harness the potential of new data sources.

the KeY Challenges facing market research agencies & professionals



haRMonizing a FRagMenTeD ReseaRCh soFTWaRe lanDsCape Whether bought, developed or inherited through mergers and acquisitions, many research agencies

and corporate research departments have multiple software-based survey tools. in addition to the

expense of purchasing or developing them, they create additional ongoing support, maintenance

and training costs. integrating the data held in them is also time-consuming and expensive, and the

manual tasks involved create multiple opportunities for error, reducing data quality. Moreover, the

speed of technological change means that tools developed in-house are particularly vulnerable to

obsolescence, because companies lack the resources to update them.

all of these factors significantly increase research-reporting complexity and make it harder to

automate. This hinders the ability of researchers to deliver the insight and speed of service that

client organizations demand.

ensuRing DaTa seCuRiTy The number and sophistication of threats to data security within businesses increases daily.

Furthermore, the introduction of laws such as the us patriot act, which allows data stored in

the us to be accessed without the consent of the data owner, creates additional risk. as a result,

market research agencies and corporate researchers must have verifiable answers when clients or

respondents ask them how and where their data is being used and stored - otherwise they must fear

for their credibility.

expansion inTo neW/eMeRging MaRKeTs in 2013, esoMaR reported that the european research market, which accounts for 40% of global

market research revenues, declined by 1.2% from 2011 to 2012. By contrast, market revenue grew

by 6.9% in asia pacific, 11.7% in latin america, and 11.8% in africa over the same period. This makes

it essential for market agencies to expand into these high-growth markets, as their clients do the

same. But it also presents them with new challenges as they seek to ensure consistent research

methodologies, data quality and insight value across borders.

the KeY Challenges facing market research agencies & professionals

“For clients,...competitive pricing, unique insights and even the novelty factor mean that their range

of suppliers has expanded. To them, it doesn’t matter what you call it (research). What matters is

how much it achieves and at what price.”

esoMaR report 2013

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seleCT an inTegRaTeD, auToMaTeD “one-sTop shop” plaTFoRM FoR all online DaTa ColleCTion MeThoDologies one way of enabling researchers to integrate data from multiple sources more easily and interpret it

more quickly, is the replacement of research tool-, process- and data siloes with a single, integrated

research technology platform. an effective solution should allow survey generation, analysis and

insight distribution via a single system, as well as additional functionality such as survey panel setup. it

should also be modular, to allow different components to be combined and switched. in other words,

the platform should still be flexible enough to fit specific survey requirements, such as the inclusion of

different question types or quota steering. a consolidated, automated platform also enables faster, less

expensive survey execution and results delivery, as well as lower training, maintenance and support

costs. But perhaps most importantly, integrating different types of structured and unstructured data

from a wide range of customer touch-points and channels, including websites, social media, mobile

devices and CRM or eRp systems, also becomes easier, faster and cheaper. This can drive research

service innovation in the voice of the customer and customer experience segments in particular, by

providing a more complete picture of respondents’ behavior.

CReaTe a uniQue oFFeRing To DiFFeRenTiaTe youR agenCy processing a variety of data from a range of different sources on a single platform generates

opportunities to provide new insights through the analysis of data combined reliably and in new

ways. For example, it becomes possible to manage and combine the responses from many different

types of survey based on different question types, including multimedia, in the same place –

regardless of whether the feedback is generated through a survey, a chat engine, a forum or other

channels. This kind of flexible technology platform enables the development of new, standardized

research instruments that require virtually no manual intervention, and which can help research

agencies build truly innovative product and service portfolios.

CoMBine inTeRnaTional DaTa ConsisTenCy WiTh loCal DaTa seCuRiTy Today’s most advanced research technology platforms support multiple languages, helping to

ensure process and data generation consistency across borders. They also make it easy to analyze

data quantitative and qualitative data from different countries and markets, that may reveal new

and meaningful insights. The ability to stagger the execution of multinational surveys according

to different time zones also helps generate directly comparable responses. however, international

expansion can also expose data to attack or misuse by criminals, or to unauthorized access by

foreign governments. it’s therefore vital for researchers that partners holding or processing data on

their behalf operate to the highest security standards, and store data outside the reach of foreign

legislation. Built-in data access rights management provides additional protection.

smart solUtions for high-quality, cost-effective research innovation



esTaBlish sTRaTegiC paRTneRships To FRee up ResouRCes, While ReDuCing ouTsouRCing CoMplexiTyleading platform providers can offer the technology, training and professional services required

to create an optimal partnership with research agencies and corporate research teams. This gives

them the flexibility to decide how much of the research process they want to outsource, without

increasing supplier network complexity.

a close partnership with a single partner also makes it easier to work with them to develop the

platform according to specific agency and client needs. This helps to future-proof the solution within

the context of constantly evolving technology.

DeManD Responsive Design ThaT aCCoMMoDaTes eFFeCTive, os-agnosTiC MoBile ReseaRChincreasing mobile web usage makes effective mobile research essential. Many platform providers

offer surveys that are pre-programmed to function on a specific browser. however, a more efficient

solution is to use a survey platform that optimizes surveys for different devices, operating systems

and browsers automatically. This maximizes usability, response rates, and the immediacy of response,

especially among categories of respondents that are otherwise hard to reach. These can include

frequent travellers and mobile internet users in emerging economies where fixed line broadband

connections are less available, and laptop or desktop computers are too expensive.

enaBle Real-TiMe analysis anD RepoRTsas highlighted elsewhere in this document, generating results quickly is an increasingly important

priority for all market researchers. The best research tools facilitate this by enabling results to be

processed as they come in, rather than after the completion of the survey. This allows the survey to

be continuously optimized, based on the latest information.

Rapid interpretation of results can be further enabled and enhanced through access to easy-to-use

dashboards. They make it easy to absorb and distribute the most important information in the most

relevant format for the intended audience, such as research colleagues or business decision makers.

smart solUtions for high-quality, cost-effective research innovation

“Technology providers that serve both market research agencies and final research users….design,

create and apply technological processes that help companies to gather information from which they

can extract insights. Their platforms are also being used by research agencies, which can then focus on

what they do best – analyzing the information and extracting valuable insights for their clients. Thus,

their innovation is being applied at many points along the research “production” process.”

global Market Research 2013 report, esoMaR

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Key aTTRiBuTes oF an innovaTion-ReaDy MaRKeT ReseaRCh plaTFoRM

for research agencies for Corporate insight teams

an innovative, competitive service portfolio based on the ability to combine data sets from multiple sources in new ways.

lower total Cost of ownership with a single automated system for data collection, alerting, panel management, community management, data analysis and dashboard distribution.

reduced total Cost of ownership through a high degree of automation and a reduction in training, support, maintenance and error correction costs compared with using multiple platforms.

elimination of data and system siloes creating easier, better quality surveys that provide more reliable results.

increased speed of execution through process automation, the ability to start analyzing data as soon as it comes in and adjust the survey accordingly, and access to real-time reporting.

a simplified supplier landscape, improving data compatibility, increasing data quality and streamlining processes.

high quality, consistent results thanks to the elimination of manual processing errors and consolidation of data and processes within a single system.

higher quality, more innovative research completed more quickly and with less effort using web-based interfaces.

increased profitability through a reduced cost base and new revenues generated by portfolio innovation.

increased internal stakeholder satisfaction and better business decisions based on faster delivery of more accurate results.

easier expansion into new markets through standardization, and support for multiple languages and time zones.

greater control over projects with optional local professional services and support from the platform provider.

more resources for adding value through the elimination of manual processing tasks and outsourcing of as much or as little of the survey process as required.

simplified compliance fulfillment through the local storage of data to the highest security standards.

offering customers the highest security standards through local data storage.

Deeper customer understanding through the ‘joined up’ analysis of data from multiple sources that provides a broader, deeper and more rounded view of respondent behavior/opinion.

a higher return on research budgets through lower costs and better decision making, based on higher quality, more complete and more reliable data.

increased customer satisfaction through service improvements implemented more quickly as the result of accelerated survey execution.

enhanced employee satisfaction through the elimination of tedious manual tasks, freeing more time for innovation, analysis and value adding.

a Vision of sUCCess

Be Different. Be faster. Think QuestBack

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anD languages, QuesTBaCK is The BiggesT FeeDBaCK anD MaRKeT ReseaRCh venDoR

in euRope WiTh annual TuRnoveR oF 50M usD.

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Whitepaper key market research challenges