News3 October 2011

Pulse focuses on Asia as West falls flat

MALAYSIA— Digital research agency Pulse Group has posted a ‘marginal’ net loss and a fall in revenue and operating profit for the year ending 31 May.

News30 September 2011

$20m funding for social analytics firm Networked Insights

US— Social analytics firm Networked Insights has raised $20m to fund the continued development of its SocialSense platform, used by companies including Samsung, MTV and Kraft.

News30 September 2011

If it's in the game, EA's measuring it

US— Games publisher EA is rolling out an analytics suite next week, built on nPario software, to provide campaign and audience insights to brands that advertise within its mobile, social, online and console games.

News30 September 2011

ESPN becomes Touchpoints charter subscriber

US— Sports broadcaster ESPN has signed on as the charter subscriber to Media Behaviour Institute’s ( MBI) US version of the Touchpoints media usage survey.

News30 September 2011

Alterian reviews its business but is 'not for sale'

UK— Marketing analytics software firm Alterian has said it is not considering a sale, as it reviews its business in the wake of disappointing results and the resignation of its CEO.

News30 September 2011

Google Analytics goes premium

US— A paid-for version of Google Analytics has been made available at $150,000 a year.

News29 September 2011

Voxco reshapes European leadership

PARIS— Survey software firm Voxco has announced two senior management appointments in Europe.

News29 September 2011

Canadian newspaper body to track print and online readership

CANADA— Nadbank, the body that provides audience research to the Canadian newspaper industry, is teaming up with Nielsen to measure print and online audiences.

News29 September 2011

Agencies appointed for outdoor media study

UK— Advertising trade body The Outdoor Media Centre has appointed ICM and On Device Research to carry out a study into how outdoor advertising affects purchase behaviour.

News29 September 2011

Australian online measurement system nears launch

AUSTRALIA— IAB Australia has said that the country’s new online audience measurement system is close to launch, after completing an independent audit of its data.

News29 September 2011

Ipsos completes €200m share issue

FRANCE— Ipsos has completed a €200m share issue which will provide part of the funding for its takeover of Synovate.

News29 September 2011

SSI hires UK client development manager

UK— Sample supplier SSI has appointed Monika Szyszko as client development manager for the UK.

News29 September 2011

Revenue fall and $7m loss make for 'disappointing' year at Harris

US— Troubled online researcher Harris Interactive has reported a $7m operating loss and a 2% fall in revenue in the year ended 30 June 2011.

Opinion29 September 2011

Me, myself and I

You might have cringed at Stuart ‘The Brand’ Baggs on The Apprentice, but personal branding is all the rage. Social networks allow us to cultivate our identities and the products we own can be tailored to reflect them too. Pete Comley introduces a trend he calls ‘My Self’.

News28 September 2011

Mobile tech firm TxtEagle becomes Jana

US— TxtEagle, which uses text messaging to gather information for research and marketing services in developing countries, has changed its name to Jana.

News28 September 2011

OgilvyRED appoints BrandZ 100 creator as president

US— Joanna Seddon has been appointed to the newly created role of president at OgilvyRED, the Ogilvy-owned global branding consultancy.

News28 September 2011

Congressmen push for FTC probe of 'super cookies'

US— Two congressmen have joined consumer groups in pushing the Federal Trade Commission ( FTC) to investigate the use of so-called ‘super cookies’ – web technologies that can allow companies to circumvent user privacy expectations.

News28 September 2011

Video trio sign up with KN Dimestore

US— Three new clients have signed up to use KN Dimestore’s online ad optimisation service, that uses real-time survey data to help users improve internet-based campaigns.

News28 September 2011

Maxwell swaps Razorfish research for Starcom role

US— Media agency Starcom USA has hired Chad Maxwell from interactive agency Razorfish, a sister company within Publicis, as senior vice president and research intelligence director.

News28 September 2011

iCrossing appoints Doug Bryan to head analytics

US— Digital marketing agency iCrossing has appointed former Amazon product manager Doug Bryan as vice president of analytics.

News28 September 2011

Skopos brings mystery shopping service to UK

UK— Skopos has launched its NEKXT mystery shopping and point of sale optimisation service in the UK.

Feature28 September 2011

David McCandless on MR and information design

The data visualisation expert behind Information is Beautiful has been hired by Kantar to help advise and train on the presentation of data. We spoke to him about what he hopes to teach researchers, and what he’s learning from them.

News27 September 2011

Social media monitor Spredfast gets $12m investment

US— Social media monitoring firm Spredfast has secured $12m in a Series B funding round led by InterWest Partners.

News27 September 2011

WorldOne hires Richard Hall as COO

US— Healthcare fieldwork provider WorldOne has hired Richard Hall as chief operating officer.

News27 September 2011

Court denies TRA an injunction against Kantar's RapidView

US— TRA has been denied a preliminary injunction to block Kantar from making and selling its media planning tool, RapidView for Retail, which TRA accuses of infringing on its patents.

News27 September 2011

Engage Research names Mullally as director

UK— Moira Mullally has been appointed director at Engage Research to work on new product development projects, particularly concept and product testing.

News27 September 2011

Vision Critical appoints chief technology officer

CANADA— Vision Critical has hired tech industry veteran Donna Braaten as its new chief technology officer, responsible for growing the firm’s software offerings.

News27 September 2011

ForeSee to measure House of Fraser customer satisfaction

UK— Retailer House of Fraser has hired ForeSee to measure and analyse customer experience in stores, online and in its call centre.

News27 September 2011

The Punch and Judy social media show

Through the medium of puppetry, Graeme Lawrence and Pete Comley of Join the Dots present a tale of social media, police brutality and sausages.

Feature27 September 2011

More than a game

Experiments by Engage Research and GMI show how gamification can help researchers improve feedback from online surveys. Engage’s Deborah Sleep reports.

News27 September 2011

BritainThinks' Ashton joins Brunswick in Hong Kong

HONG KONG— David Ashton has swapped BritainThinks for Asian communications, taking up the role of account director in Hong Kong for Brunswick Research.

News27 September 2011

Virtual shopping deal for in-store marketing firm

US— InContext Solutions has struck up a partnership with IMI Merchandising to road test in-store marketing programmes within InContext’s virtual shopping software.

News26 September 2011

Kurt Knapton returns to E-Rewards as president and CEO

US— Kurt Knapton has been named the new president and CEO of E-Rewards, the owner of online panel firm Research Now, following the resignation of Chris Havemann.

News26 September 2011

Former Nielen Bases MD joins Ipsos Marketing

UK— Susan Malcolm has been named managing director at Ipsos Marketing, part of Ipsos Mori in the UK.

News26 September 2011

GfK investing in Turkey scan panel

TURKEY— GfK is making a “multi-million Euro investment” in establishing an in-home scanning panel to track consumer purchases in Turkey.

News26 September 2011

De Souza set to lead Readership Studies Council of India

INDIA— Lintas Media Group’s chairman and CEO Lynn de Souza is set to be named the first chairperson of the Readership Studies Council of India ( RSCI), according to reports.

News26 September 2011

Market Force ups funding figure to $15m

US— Customer intelligence firm Market Force Information has secured $15m in additional funding from a mix of investors and lenders.

News26 September 2011

Clayton takes over as Kadence MD in Singapore

SINGAPORE— Kadence International has named Greg Clayton as managing director in Singapore, replacing Piers Lee who has left the company to set up a new joint venture.

Opinion26 September 2011

Trials and triangulations

Jeffrey Henning reports from the Association of Survey Computing conference where the focus is on balancing the possibilities of technology, the expectations of clients and the requirements of respondents.

News26 September 2011

Essential deal adds 'challenger brand' to SPA line-up

UK— SPA Future Thinking CEO Jon Priest has described Essential Research, the company’s latest acquisition, as “a challenger brand”, bringing some youthful exuberance to the group’s offering.

Opinion26 September 2011

Starting to pay off

Crawford Hollingworth reviews some of the recent work of the UK government’s Behavioural Insights Team – which includes figuring out ways to get people to pay more tax.

News23 September 2011

iPhone app data sharing complaint dismissed

US— A lawsuit accusing Apple and iPhone app developers of collecting and sharing personal information with advertisers without users’ permission has been dismissed by a California District Court judge.

News23 September 2011

IPA to help Chinese brands launch in the UK

UK— The Institute of Practitioners in Advertising has launched a research and development service for Chinese brand owners looking to go global.

News23 September 2011

BrainJuicer hands Ewing role of digital culture officer

UK— Tom Ewing is taking up the post of digital culture officer at BrainJuicer, he has announced on his final day at Kantar Operations.

News23 September 2011

Millward Brown 'pioneer' Tony Copeland dies aged 66

UK— Former Millward Brown managing director Tony Copeland has died of cancer, aged 66.

Feature23 September 2011

How I ended up in research

Two research professionals on how they ended up doing what they do – one who made a decision to get a job in research, and one who started doing it quite by accident.

News23 September 2011

Nielsen system glitch: impact overestimated

US— News yesterday of a Nielsen system glitch and the potential fallout from incorrect TV viewing data was overplayed, the company has said – issuing a statement to clarify that currency measurements have not been affected.

News23 September 2011

St Ives Group acquires insight agency Pragma

UK— Marketing services and print group St Ives has acquired retail and consumer insight firm Pragma in a deal worth £3.3m initially, followed by a further £2.7m if Pragma hits earnings targets.

News22 September 2011

Scarborough SVP Kathy Pilhuj dead at 61

US— Kathy Pilhuj, Scarborough Research’s senior vice president of data collection has died aged 61. She had been hospitalised since the end of July, the firm said.

News22 September 2011

Kantar Media launches central audience research unit

UK/US— Kantar Media is setting up a new central research unit for its audience research activities.

News22 September 2011

Smart meters could be used to spy on TV viewing, say researchers

GERMANY— Smart electricity meters could be used to monitor what appliances are being used in individual homes, and even what programmes are being watched on TV, researchers have warned.

News22 September 2011

Glitch in Nielsen systems 'overestimates TV viewing figures'

US— Nielsen is reported to have told its clients that a glitch in its technology might have caused the firm to produce inflated TV viewing figures for most of the year.

News22 September 2011

Twitter acquires social media analytics firm Julpan

US— Twitter has acquired Julpan, a firm whose technology analyses social media activity for search purposes.

News22 September 2011

$13m more in funding for Visible Measures

US— Online video measurement firm Visible Measures has secured $13m in Series D funding led by existing investor DAG Ventures, bringing the amount of financing the company has received to more than $45m.

Opinion22 September 2011

Why policy research is more important than ever

Good research is not cheap, but neither are failed policies, warns Sue Duncan, former chief government social researcher, as social surveys face up to a time of austerity.

Opinion22 September 2011

Under siege

Ben Toombs asks: If social surveys are so important, why are they being rounded on by people inside and outside government?

Opinion22 September 2011

Here's to the next ten years

Penny Young considers the future of the government social survey.

Opinion22 September 2011

Government social surveys at 70

Four articles marking the 70th anniversary of the first UK government social survey. Our writers reflect on the contributions made over the decades, the challenges brought on by austerity and the future for what many consider to be a crucial component of democracy.

News22 September 2011

Market Force Information raises $9m

US— Customer intelligence firm Market Force Information has raised $9m through an equity sale, according to regulatory reports filed by the company.

News22 September 2011

Indian readership studies complete merger

INDIA— The National Readership Survey and the Indian Readership Survey have completed their merger to create a new print measurement organisation in the country, the Readership Studies Council of India ( RSCI).

News21 September 2011

Innerscope closes final $2m tranche of series A funding

US— Biometric measurement firm Innerscope has closed the final $2m tranche of a $9.4m series A financing round, which dates back three years.

News21 September 2011

GutCheck interviewing service goes mobile

US— DIY online qual research service GutCheck has evolved its technology to allow clients to log in and interview consumers using their web-enabled mobile devices.

News21 September 2011

Vision Critical unveils customer experience management tool

US— Vision Critical has launched a new customer experience management platform that collects and integrates data from customer surveys, CRM, transactional databases and social media to provide companies with a “real-time overview” of the service they are providing.

News21 September 2011

SPA Future Thinking makes Essential purchase

UK— SPA Future Thinking has acquired full-service agency Essential Research, a firm specialising in media, communications, technology and entertainment.

News21 September 2011

Six agencies form shopper insights network

US— A group of six marketing strategy and research agencies have clubbed together to cross-sell shopper insight services.

News21 September 2011

P&G's Lewis calls for shift away from traditional methods

NETHERLANDS— Procter & Gamble’s global consumer and market knowledge leader has warned that the research industry is not moving fast enough away from traditional research methods.

News21 September 2011

P&G's Lewis calls for shift away from traditional methods

NETHERLANDS— Procter & Gamble’s global consumer and market knowledge leader has warned that the research industry is not moving fast enough away from traditional research methods.

News21 September 2011

Kantar's Ewing set to join BrainJuicer

UK— Tom Ewing, Kantar Operations social knowledge leader, is set to join BrainJuicer, Research has learned.

News20 September 2011

Post Office's Liz Lamb takes up Asda role

UK— Supermarket chain Asda has appointed former Post Office and Debenhams researcher Liz Lamb as head of insight planning.

News20 September 2011

GKA adds consumer, b2b arm Angelfish

UK— Medical fieldwork agency Gillian Kenny Associates ( GKA) is launching a new consumer and b2b-focused company called Angelfish.

Feature20 September 2011

Overseas shopping a big draw for Market Force/Retail Eyes

Retail Eyes CEO Tim Ogle sheds some light on what’s next for the firm and its new owner, Market Force Information, following yesterday’s acquisition announcement.

News20 September 2011

Added Value names new MD after management reshuffle

AUSTRALIA— Brand consultancy Added Value has moved managing director Melissa Cary to the new role of client development director and promoted deputy MD James Pike to take her place.

News20 September 2011

EmSense future uncertain – company in 'a sales process'

US— The future of EmSense, a neuromarketing research firm, looks uncertain with chief analytics officer Elissa Moses taking to Twitter to declare that the company “is not dead ( yet)”.

News20 September 2011

Liquid takes stake in employee engagement firm Evviva Brands

US— Branding agency Liquid is to acquire 20% of California-based employee engagement and employer branding firm Evviva Brands.

News20 September 2011

Former IAB UK research head joins ComScore

UK— ComScore has appointed Laurence Bird, former head of strategic planning and research at IAB UK, to the newly created position of senior research director for the EMEA region.

Opinion20 September 2011

Failed experiments

Everyone likes to talk about the successes of their research techniques and methodologies, but we often tend to brush the failures under the carpet. Not GMI Interactive’s Jon Puleston – here he lays bare his survey design mistakes.

News19 September 2011

MRIA responds to Ipsos Reid attack on Canadian press

CANADA— The Marketing Research and Intelligence Association ( MRIA) has responded to the open letter sent to the press by Ipsos Reid leaders, which urged journalists to take greater care when choosing which polls to publish in the run-up to regional elections in Ontario.

News19 September 2011

Spedding becomes domain CEO at P\S\L Group

US— Synovate’s CEO of geographies Michael Spedding has left to join pharma and healthcare information firm P\S\L Group as domain CEO.

News19 September 2011

NICE deal for FizzBack, worth $80m

UK— NICE, an Israeli firm that develops customer feedback management and analytics tools, has acquired UK rival FizzBack for $80m in cash.

News19 September 2011

TNS Gallup wins Danish TV contract extension

DENMARK— The Danish TV audience measurement steering committee has extended its contract with TNS Gallup by three years, meaning the firm will carry on reporting audience figures until the end of 2015.

Feature19 September 2011

The illusion and reality of research

Richard Wiseman told Esomar Congress today that asking people to predict their behaviour tends to be a waste of time. We caught up with him after the talk to find out more.

News19 September 2011

Market Force Information buys Retail Eyes

UK— Customer intelligence firm Market Force Information, based in the US, has acquired UK mystery shopping company Retail Eyes.

News16 September 2011

People on the move

News16 September 2011

Dialego signs up Kinesis for mobile and web survey software

GERMANY— Online research agency Dialego has named Kinesis Survey Technologies as its exclusive survey software provider.

News16 September 2011

MTM London plans syndicated study of connected devices

UK— Strategic consultancy MTM London is to launch a six-month syndicated research project that examines commercial opportunities for media owners in the connected devices sector, which includes smartphones, tablets and connected TVs.

Feature16 September 2011

Hobbled by Murphy's Law?

European e-Privacy regulations are causing headaches for firms – on both sides of the Atlantic. Howard Fienberg listens in as US congressional representatives debate the impact the rules are having on the digital economy.

News16 September 2011

Ipsos pollsters rap journalists for publishing 'dodgy' polls

CANADA— The two men at the helm of Ipsos Reid’s political polling work have called on journalists to stop publishing misleading polls in the build up to the Ontario provincial election.

News16 September 2011

Esomar to survey industry use of cookies and tracking technology

NETHERLANDS— Esomar is asking online research companies to take part in a survey about their use of cookies and other online tracking technologies as legislators look to tighten regulations in response to concerns about online privacy.

News16 September 2011

Post Office's Pam Clark named Chime research director

UK— The Post Office’s former head of customer strategy Pam Clark has joined Chime’s Insight and Engagement Group as a research director.

News15 September 2011

Toluna connects PanelPortal platform with Facebook

UK— Toluna has integrated its research community management platform with Facebook to allow brands to build and run fan panels from within the social networking site.

News15 September 2011

Spectrum wins Cranfield social media analysis contract

UK— Online and social media analysis firm Spectrum Consulting has won a contract with Cranfield School of Management to evaluate perceptions of its MBA courses.

News15 September 2011

Paradigm Sample gets investment for mobile data expansion

US— Paradigm Sample has received an undislcosed amount of private equity investment that it says will help it grow its mobile data collection and sample resale businesses.

News15 September 2011

Kantar Ops social media guru quits for mystery role

UK— Kantar Operations social knowledge leader Tom Ewing is leaving the firm next week, he has announced.

News15 September 2011

Foreman picked to build Insight Asia business in Europe

UK— Insight Asia has appointed Dan Foreman as CEO of European operations, trading in the region as Insight International.

News15 September 2011

Market Force lands Wingstop deal

US— Wingstop, a chain of chicken restaurants, has appointed Market Force International to carry out a nationwide mystery shopping programme.

News15 September 2011

Google agrees privacy changes to analytics tool in Germany

GERMANY— Website owners in Germany who use Google Analytics will have to delete their accounts and open new ones in order to comply with data protection rules, regulators said today.

News15 September 2011

Genpact to acquire EmPower Research

US— Business process management firm Genpact has signed a deal to acquire media and business research agency EmPower Research.

News14 September 2011

Twitter converts BackType into new analytics tool

US— Twitter has launched a new analytics service to help publishers measure the amount of traffic the microblogging site pushes towards their websites.

News14 September 2011

SPA Future Thinking spins out analytics company

UK— SPA Future Thinking has launched a new company, The Analytics Hub, to offer data and statistical services to market research and branding agencies that do not have their own analytics capabilities.

News14 September 2011

Physician research rivals ImpactRx and TargetRx merge

US— ImpactRx has bought TargetRx, a rival in the field of physician survey research. The two firms will merge under the ImpactRx banner.

News14 September 2011

Watchdog criticises Osborne's stance on stats access

UK— The UK Statistics Authority has hit out at Chancellor George Osborne for resisting calls to reduce the advance access that ministers get to official figures.

News14 September 2011

OneRiot added to Walmart's social media tech team

US— The social media technology arm of retailer Walmart has acquired the Colorado firm OneRiot, which targets mobile advertising at people based on social media activity.

Opinion14 September 2011

GfK – the Asia question

If you are a GfK investor there’s little to be upset about in its business performance – but the agency is underweight in customised research in Asia. John Wigglesworth looks at what the company can do to bulk up.

News14 September 2011

Weber Shandwick appoints measurement and analytics EVP

US— Public relations firm Weber Shandwick has appointed Allyson Hugley as executive vice president of its measurement and analytics practice, which is based in New York.

News14 September 2011

ICM founder joins Populus as special adviser

UK— Populus has appointed ICM founder and pollster Nick Sparrow as a special adviser, where he will provide guidance on issues including business growth and methodological innovation.

News13 September 2011

Tremor Video lands $37m funding for analytics buys

US— Online video ad targeting firm Tremor Video has secured $37m funding in an investment round led by W Capital.

News13 September 2011

Converseon snaps up Social Graphiti

US— Social media monitoring and strategy firm Converseon has acquired social commerce and marketing technology provider Social Graphiti.

News13 September 2011

Investors plough $5m into app analytics firm Apsalar

US— Mobile analytics and behavioural targeting platform Apsalar has been awarded $5m in a funding round led by Thomvest Ventures, which it will use to grow its development team, expand its product portfolio and increase sales and marketing efforts.

News13 September 2011

George Street director blames high costs of bidding for liquidation

UK— One of the directors of newly-defunct George Street Research has cited rising costs involved with competing for public sector work as one of the main reasons the firm failed.

News13 September 2011

Global MR industry grew 2.8% in 2010, says Esomar

NETHERLANDS— The global research industry returned to growth last year with a 2.8% increase in revenue, according to industry association Esomar.

News13 September 2011

Cint strikes partnership with Japan's Borders

JAPAN— Research software and services supplier Cint has opened a new office in Japan and formed a strategic alliance with local research technology provider Borders.

News13 September 2011

Cello reports 'robust' profit performance in research

UK— The research and consulting division at marketing services group Cello has seen “robust” growth in gross and operating profit for the first six months of the year, but revenue fell 1.3%.

News13 September 2011

Strong US performance drives first-half growth at BrainJuicer

UK— BrainJuicer has reported 26% revenue growth in the first half of the year, driven by a strong performance in the US.

News12 September 2011

TAM to consider ratings switch – if TV industry agrees

INDIA— TAM Media Research has said it will consider changing the way it reports TV viewing figures from a weekly to a monthly basis following a request from the News Broadcasters Association – but only if the rest of the industry agrees to the switch.

News12 September 2011

Ipsos upgrades MediaCell radio listening test panel

UK— Ipsos MediaCT has scaled up the test panel for its MediaCell radio audience measurement tool to 350 respondents.

News12 September 2011

Indian smartphone use probed by Nielsen and Informate

INDIA— Nielsen is working with mobile meter developer Informate Mobile Intelligence on a new programme of research into consumer use of smartphones.

News12 September 2011

Red C moves panel from Newvista to PDS

IRELAND— Red C Research and Marketing is switching suppliers for its online research panel, moving away from Creston-owned Newvista to Populus Data Solutions ( PDS).

News12 September 2011

Liquidation for George Street Research in Scotland

UK— Scottish market research and fieldwork agency George Street Research has gone into liquidation, Research has learned.

News12 September 2011

AIP and M3 to collaborate on Asian physician panels

JAPAN— Panel firms AIP and M3 have formed an alliance to jointly develop panels of healthcare professionals in southeast Asia.

News9 September 2011

Vizu adds benchmarking data to online ad research tool

US— Vizu has added benchmarking data to its Ad Catalyst tool so that online advertisers can see how their ad is performing on key brand metrics compared to other similar ads.

News9 September 2011

TV Genius uses GfK data to hone on-demand TV platform

UK— TV Genius, which makes technology for video-on-demand services, has teamed up with GfK Media to help TV operators deliver targeted content and recommendations.

News9 September 2011

YouGov gears up for Libya polling

LIBYA— YouGov Siraj CEO Sundip Chahal says the firm plans to start polling in Libya as soon as possible after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime.

News9 September 2011

Hollywood duo launch movie script pre-testing firm

US— The son of Oscar-winning film director Oliver Stone has co-founded a new company that is using crowdsourcing to pre-test TV and movie projects seeking financing.

Feature9 September 2011

Lightspeed's David Day on merging with GMI

WPP’s research division Kantar announced this week that it had acquired panel provider GMI and would be combining it with Lightspeed Research. We spoke to Lightspeed’s CEO David Day about what it means for the companies, their clients and employees.

News8 September 2011

Revenue up 50% at The Sound Research

CANADA— The Sound Research has reported record revenue for its 2010-2011 financial year with revenue up 50% to $6.4m.

News8 September 2011

NatCen to meet rioters for government research

UK— Discussion groups are taking place with young people who took part in the riots that affected parts of London and other English cities.

News8 September 2011

Zinio and Affinity to study digital mag ad response

US— Digital magazine publisher Zinio is partnering with research firm Affinity on a series of projects to understand consumer use and reaction to magazine content delivered through its web and mobile device platform.

News8 September 2011

CIMM adds new members A+E and Scripps

US— TV broadcasters A+E Networks and Scripps Networks have joined the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement, the group of media owners, agencies and advertisers focused on finding the best way to measure media audiences.

News8 September 2011

Ipsos preps €200m share issue to fund Synovate buy

FRANCE— Ipsos is preparing to issue new shares worth €200m to part-fund its takeover of Synovate, which was agreed in July.

News8 September 2011

Kennet to fuel WorldOne expansion with $25m investment

US— Private equity firm Kennet Partners has invested $25m in healthcare data collection firm WorldOne that the firm will use to speed up its global expansion and development of new business lines.

News7 September 2011

Nielsen gains MRC accreditation for online ad rating system

US— Media measurement auditor the Media Rating Council ( MRC) has accredited Nielsen’s new online ad campaign ratings system, which was unveiled last month.

News7 September 2011

People on the move

The latest appointments and promotions in the global market research and consumer insight industry. This week: Shoppercentric, Chadwick Martin Bailey, Defender Direct, Join the Dots, Harte-Hanks, MarketVision and Takasogo Flavours

News7 September 2011

Face to face with the future

In August, Research invited six young researchers to join a round table discussion about what it’s like coming into the industry. We asked them to talk about their first jobs in the business, what they love about the work and to share some words of advice for this year’s intake of graduates.

Feature7 September 2011

A new generation speaks out

These are the research leaders of tomorrow: six graduates who have decided to pursue a career in MR. Brian Tarran hears first hand what it’s like taking those first steps in the industry.

News7 September 2011

TNS invites clients to jump on the ChatterBus

UK— TNS Omnibus has launched an online discussion tool, the ChatterBus, with respondents recruited through its CAPI omnibus survey.

News7 September 2011

Grey Group and Eastern Advertising forge strategic alliance

SINGAPORE— Grey Group has formed a strategic alliance with market research, strategic planning and digital marketing agency Eastern Advertising to strengthen its position across Asia Pacific.

News7 September 2011

GMI's panels to merge with Lightspeed following Kantar buy

UK— WPP’s research division Kantar has acquired online panel and survey technology provider GMI, with its panel operations becoming part of Lightspeed Research.

News7 September 2011

Confirmit embraces mobile with Techneos buy

CANADA— Research software maker Confirmit has acquired mobile survey specialist Techneos Systems.

News6 September 2011

Vision Critical in Australian panel partnership with Nine Rewards

AUSTRALIA— Vision Critical has expanded its panel reach into Australia and New Zealand through a partnership with local firm Nine Rewards.

Opinion6 September 2011

Sun, sea and social norms

Crawford Hollingworth looks at how travel companies use concepts from behavioural economics to nudge us towards splashing out on a holiday.

News6 September 2011

Consumer intelligence specialist named Emap CEO

UK— B2B publisher Emap has appointed customer intelligence specialist Duncan Painter as its new chief executive

News6 September 2011

Indian readership surveys set to merge at last – report

INDIA— A merger of the National Readership Survey ( NRS) and the Indian Readership Survey ( IRS) – in the planning since 2009 – is set to become a reality in the next two weeks, according to a local media report.

News6 September 2011

Maritz acquires German loyalty research firm Imagin

GERMANY— Maritz Research has struck a deal to acquire stakeholder-feedback management firm Imagin and its call centre subsidiary Customer Care International.

News6 September 2011

YouGov promotes Britton to EMEA ops chief

UK— YouGov has promoted UK CEO Tim Britton to the role of chief operating officer for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

News5 September 2011

Philip Morris seeks raw results from teen smoking study

UK— Tobacco giant Philip Morris International is using freedom of information laws to try to get hold of primary data and researchers’ notes from academic studies on smoking among teenagers.

News5 September 2011

Standard Life delays research after IFAs complain

UK— Standard Life has been forced to delay research with customers who use independent financial advisers ( IFAs), after advisers complained that they had not been given time to let their clients opt out.

Opinion5 September 2011

The riots: Lessons for the pollsters

Opinion polls are an invaluable tool, says Westminster City Council’s Neil Wholey, but the surveys that followed the riots in England last month showed that pollsters could do better.

News5 September 2011

International growth fuels 37% revenue rise for Kadence

UK— Kadence International has reported a 37% increase in global revenue, reaching US$17.5m in the year ended June 2011.

News2 September 2011

Heineken and InSites co-create club concept

BELGIUM— Heineken is looking to co-create a nightclub concept for next year’s Milan Design Week, with input coming from an online community run by InSites Consulting.

News2 September 2011

Panel provider Respondi opens UK office

UK— German online panel provider Respondi has opened its first UK office in London.

News2 September 2011

Mystery shoppers reveal public sector procurement problems

UK— The difficulties faced by SMEs bidding for public sector work have been highlighted in a mystery shopping exercise.

News2 September 2011

Councils told to cut down on ‘intrusive’ questionnaires

UK— Local authorities have been told they don’t need to conduct “lifestyle or diversity” questionnaires of their residents, after some councils were criticised for asking too many questions about race, religion and sexual orientation.

News1 September 2011

NORC and AP team up for public affairs research centre

US— The Associated Press and the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Centre ( NORC) have joined together to launch a centre focusing on public affairs research.

News1 September 2011

Razor names Arnold and Atton as directors

UK— Razor Research has hired Quadrangle’s former head of qual Matt Arnold ( pictured) as a director while promoting Elle Atton to the same role.

News1 September 2011

Raspberry adds TNS's Ryan to team

AUSTRALIA— Lee Ryan has joined Raspberry Innovation Research & Strategy in Melbourne following an 11-year run with TNS.

News1 September 2011

Behavioural targeting code in force for IAB members

US— New rules governing online behavioural advertising have come into force for members of the Interactive Advertising Bureau.

News1 September 2011

TNS director to lead Ipsos digital strategy in Asia

SINGAPORE— Ipsos has appointed former TNS director Bernice Klaassen as regional director for digital in Asia Pacific.

News1 September 2011

Crowdbooster promises social media analytics plus advice

US—Social media management firm Crowdbooster launched a dashboard this week that mixes analytics data with recommendations for what content brand owners should share, when and with whom.

Feature1 September 2011

A leading solution for clarity optimisation...

Tim Phillips on why you should stop using meaningless management jargon and business speak and start saying what you really mean.

Feature1 September 2011

Perfected by the people

From yoghurt pots to iPhone apps, we take a look at how consumer input has helped clients generate, hone and test new ideas.

Feature1 September 2011

A week in the life of a clientside researcher

Crunching data, meeting shoppers, briefing the board – and rubbing shoulders with pop singers? It’s all part of the job for Phil Tysoe, insight and analysis manager at Argos.

Feature1 September 2011

Face the music

As the way we listen to music changes, record labels are learning to listen back. Robert Bain asks research boss Hanna Chalmers how Universal Music is bringing the customer’s voice into decision-making.

Feature1 September 2011

Learning on the job

Teachers can’t tell you everything you need to know. James Verrinder asks researchers to share the things they had to discover for themselves.

Feature1 September 2011

What it takes...

There are many career paths to explore in research. Four experts dicuss the routes they took – and the skills you will need – to get where they are.

Feature1 September 2011

Working at the speed of silicon

Good research requires man and machine to work in harmony. Tim Macer offers advice for getting the most out of technology.

Feature1 September 2011

Hear me out: Let's seek out super-respondents

Ever had an idea that you know is genius, but everybody else thinks is crazy? Here is your chance to share it with the world of research. This month, John Griffiths of Spring Research argues that we should choose respondents for their abilities – not for what they represent.

Feature1 September 2011

Ups and downs – Barry Ooi

Research professionals tell us about the highs and lows of their careers. This month, Kadence Malaysia’s Barry Ooi on why he wants more insight experts to take the top jobs in client companies.