Feature30 November 2023

Keeping up with the Code: Maintaining standards

Julie Corney

For more than 60 years, the MRS Code of Conduct has been the foundation of good research. What are the professional standards that all research practitioners must maintain?

News30 November 2023

Accenture acquires Thai digital experience agency

Professional services business Accenture has agreed to acquire Bangkok-based creative and digital experience agency Rabbit’s Tale for an undisclosed amount.

News30 November 2023

WPP opens Brussels campus

Advertising firm WPP has opened a new campus in Brussels that will bring together nine of the company’s agencies and house 600 staff.

News30 November 2023

Ideally hires head of Australian operations

Customer insights platform Ideally has appointed Simon Gawn to lead its Australian operations, effective immediately.

News30 November 2023

Green TV ads no more engaging than average

Television adverts with an environmental message are no more emotionally engaging than the average commercial, according to an analysis by System1.

News30 November 2023

Bakamo hires research director

Social intelligence research business Bakamo has appointed Ipsita Bandyopadhyay as research director.

News29 November 2023

Regulation a 'precondition' for AI adoption, AI minister says

Liam Kay-McClean

Regulation is a “necessary precondition to innovation” in the development of generative artificial intelligence, a government minister has told a House of Lords Select Committee.

News29 November 2023

Swift Research shifts to employee ownership

Yorkshire-based market research agency Swift Research has become 100% employee-owned after 38 years in business.

News29 November 2023

Plan for the long term to sell businesses, hears conference

Liam Kay-McClean

Research agencies should plan carefully before looking for a buyer for the business and take a long-term approach to growth and expansion, the Market Research Society’s agency owners and leaders conference has heard.

Feature29 November 2023

Pulling the strings: Is our relationship with algorithms evolving?

Katie McQuater

Algorithms have a huge influence on what we see online. Now, some people are consciously adapting their behaviour to regain control. 

News29 November 2023

Signoi develops AI persona research offer

Research analysis software company Signoi has launched a tool aimed at changing data into ‘lifelike personas’.

News29 November 2023

Demos establishes public service reform initiative

Think tank Demos has launched a cross-party taskforce to produce a public service reform strategy for central government. 

News28 November 2023

Altiant makes executive appointments

Stockholm-headquartered luxury and wealth quantitative research business Altiant AB has appointed Meryam Schneider as chief marketing officer and Lyndsey Denyer, vice-president of client services.

News28 November 2023

Marketers comfortable with rise of AI, finds Kantar

Two-thirds ( 67%) of marketers are positive about the potential impact of generative artificial intelligence, according to Kantar.

News28 November 2023

Flywheel partners with Microsoft on AI

Medical imaging artificial intelligence ( AI) development platform Flywheel has launched a software-as-a-service ( SaaS) data management tool on Microsoft Azure.

Feature28 November 2023

What’s in a name? Creating successful advertising

Liam Kay-McClean

Television adverts are more successful if they show the product first and brand name later, according to research examining which creative factors are most likely to be effective.

News28 November 2023

Dovetail appoints head of technology

Sydney and San Francisco-based customer research platform Dovetail has promoted Kate Andrews to the role of head of technology as part of additions to its senior team.

News28 November 2023

Majority of teens using generative AI, finds Ofcom

Four in five ( 79%) of online teenagers aged 13 to 17 use generative artificial intelligence ( AI) tools, with a significant number of younger children also familiar with the technology, according to research from Ofcom.

Opinion27 November 2023

‘AI will disrupt every phase of research’: Views from the ASC conference

James Turner

Generative AI was the focus of last week’s Association for Survey Computing ( ASC) conference. JT Turner offers an outline of the day's perspectives.

News27 November 2023

Accenture, Avanade and Microsoft partner on reporting and data insights

Management consultancy Accenture and digital, cloud and advisory services business Avanade have partnered with Microsoft to extend its AI analytics platform with the aim of ‘making insights more accessible’.

News27 November 2023

Unilever launches AI research lab in Toronto

Katie McQuater

Unilever has opened an artificial intelligence ( AI) lab in Toronto with the aim of generating new AI concepts, designs and projects that can be used across the business.

News27 November 2023

Livepanel hires Ben Leet as adviser

Research technology business Livepanel has appointed Ben Leet, formerly CEO at Delineate, as a strategic adviser.

News27 November 2023

Marc Leimann rejoins Norstat Germany

Data collection business Norstat has appointed Marc Leimann as managing director for Norstat Germany, succeeding Sebastian Sorger, who is leaving the business.

News24 November 2023

Wavemaker hires global performance lead

Media and technology company Wavemaker, part of GroupM, WPP’s global media investment management company, has named Chris Worsley as global performance lead.

News24 November 2023

AppsFlyer acquires Devtodev

Marketing measurement, attribution and data analytics company AppsFlyer has acquired Devtodev, a data analytics firm for game and app developers, for an undisclosed amount.

News24 November 2023

Six-point rise in consumer confidence in November

Consumer confidence has rebounded by six points to an overall score of -24 in November compared with the previous month, according to the latest GfK consumer confidence index.

News24 November 2023

NatCen appoints international advisory board member

The National Centre for Social Research ( NatCen) has appointed Molly Schultz Hafid to its international advisory board.

News24 November 2023

Audiencerate names new CEO and opens Milan office

Identity hub for data-driven advertising Audiencerate has appointed Marco Del Tongo as chief executive and has opened a new office in Italy.

Opinion23 November 2023

Researchers will help clients win: here's how

In challenging times for marketing teams, research specialists should focus on helping clients to take more nuanced approaches to their data, says Sarah Sanderson.

News23 November 2023

Autumn Statement: Small businesses respond to late payments and self-employed tax action

The Federation for Small Businesses ( FSB) has welcomed Treasury decisions on late payments and self-employed taxes announced in yesterday’s Autumn Statement, but the British Retail Consortium criticised the approach to business rates.

News23 November 2023

Fluency and Amazon to work on AI and machine learning

Fluency, the data and technology division of M&C Saatchi Group, has partnered with Amazon Web Services on scaling artificial intelligence, machine learning and generative AI.

News23 November 2023

Four new hires at Nexxt Intelligence

Toronto-based research technology company Nexxt Intelligence has made four appointments within its Inca conversational AI business.

News23 November 2023

Edit acquires CustomerKind

Data marketing business Edit Agency Ltd, part of The Salocin Group, has acquired customer engagement and data strategy company CustomerKind.

News23 November 2023

MetaBrain Labs appoints COO to lead growth

Neuroscience health technology company MetaBrain Labs has appointed Mark Hammond as chief operating officer ( COO), effective from 1st November.

News22 November 2023

MRS publishes AI guidance

Liam Kay-McClean

Researchers should not assume that AI is the automatic answer to research questions, according to guidance published by the Market Research Society.

News22 November 2023

Companies warned over website cookies

The Information Commissioner’s Office ( ICO) has written to businesses running some of the most visited websites in the UK to give them 30 days to ensure their websites comply with the law.

News22 November 2023

A greater understanding: Financial services and the consumer duty

Liam Kay-McClean

Understanding customers, implementing the new consumer duty, the cost-of-living crisis and improving financial literacy were all big themes at last week's Market Research Society financial services research conference.

News22 November 2023

Karen Fraser takes non-exec role at Mesh Experience

Customer experience measurement business Mesh Experience has appointed Karen Fraser as a non-executive director.

News22 November 2023

Rep Data makes senior finance and sales hires

Data collection and fraud prevention business Rep Data has appointed Karen Gardner as chief financial officer and Riley Croft as vice-president of sales.

News22 November 2023

Barb sets out timescales for CFlight testing and launch

Television audience measurement body Barb has set out a timetable for its upgrade to its traded audiences assessment platform CFlight.

Opinion21 November 2023

Crawford Hollingworth: Eyes wide open

Crawford Hollingworth

The Impact columnist examines the impact of 'sludge' and other negative uses of behavioural science and how researchers can keep sludge at bay.

News21 November 2023

Bounce Insights launches AI tool

Research company Bounce Insights has released an artificial intelligence tool to help analyse data sets.

News21 November 2023

Global brand growth slows as Apple tops brand value list

Brand growth is slowing globally with total brand value up 5.7% in 2023 compared with 16% the previous year, according to Interbrand’s Best Global Brands Ranking.

News21 November 2023

SurveyMonkey expands AI survey tool globally

Online survey company SurveyMonkey has released its artificial intelligence ( AI) survey creation feature Build with AI internationally.

News21 November 2023

DVJ Insights hires marketing head

Marketing research and analytics company DVJ Insights has appointed Dijana Justic as global director marketing communications.

News21 November 2023

Norstat names Estonia MD

Data collection firm Norstat has appointed Birgit Aasmäe as managing director for Norstat Estonia.

Feature20 November 2023

Mhairi Aitken in seven

Mhairi Aitken, ethics fellow in the Public Policy Programme at The Alan Turing Institute, discusses the risks and benefits of artificial intelligence and introducing ethical data practices.

News20 November 2023

New leadership at OpenAI as Sam Altman joins Microsoft

Liam Kay-McClean

Sam Altman has departed as chief executive at ChatGPT owner OpenAI and has taken up an artificial intelligence ( AI) role at Microsoft, with Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear to become the new OpenAI CEO.

News20 November 2023

RealityMine to partner on US launch of streaming measurement tool

 Manchester-based media measurement firm RealityMine has partnered with Bruce Friend, founder and chief executive at Friends Consulting, on the US launch of its streaming measurement platform.

News20 November 2023

University of Birmingham launches new Dubai research centres

The University of Birmingham Dubai has created three new research centres for addressing regional and global challenges in areas such as health, finance and inclusion.

News20 November 2023

Intrusive advertising makes consumers less likely to buy from brands

Seven in 10 people find digital advertising ‘annoying and unpleasant’ while 71% state that intrusive advertising makes them less likely to purchase from a brand, according to research from media platform Picnic and YouGov.

News17 November 2023

Lucid partners with Amazon Ads

Research technology business Lucid, part of digital insights firm Cint, has achieved verified partner status with Amazon Ads.

News17 November 2023

Verian to work with Faculty on AI in social research

Independent public policy research and communications agency Verian, formerly Kantar Public, has entered into a formal partnership with artificial intelligence ( AI) business Faculty.

News17 November 2023

Insights Association names senior director

The Insights Association, the US representative body for the market research industry, has appointed Shannon Danzy as senior director, research strategy.

News17 November 2023

Kantar launches ad attention measurement tool

Kantar has created a new attention framework designed to use facial coding to examine advertising effectiveness.

News17 November 2023

Remote moderation could increase focus group discussion, finds study

Focus groups could generate more open interaction and discussion within groups if moderators are not present, according to research from the University of Bath’s School of Management.

News16 November 2023

OMD UK hires CEO

Media agency Omnicom Media Group ( OMG) has named Suzy Ryder as chief executive officer at OMD UK, effective immediately.

News16 November 2023

Verve launches AI personas for research

Cultural, human and artificial intelligence company Verve has introduced a new product for its AI consultancy to build customised personas for clients.

Feature16 November 2023

Spreading the word: Tackling gender-based violence

Liam Kay-McClean

BBC Media Action research has focused on the outcomes of efforts to tackle gender-based violence in Zambia using radio.

News16 November 2023

Disrupt Insight names director

Insight agency Disrupt has appointed Holliday Fitch-Peyton as director.

News15 November 2023

Echo Research partners with All About Brands in UAE

Reputation research specialist Echo Research has formed a strategic partnership with United Arab Emirates-based branding and creative communications consultancy All About Brands. 

News15 November 2023

Route Research makes two strategic hires

Out-of-home audience research body Route Research has appointed Aidan West as data engineer and Eda Incekara as marketing and insight manager.

News15 November 2023

Kepler integrates YouGov consumer data for brand campaigns

Digital marketing agency Kepler has partnered with YouGov to allow brands to integrate consumer sentiment and behavioural trend information into their digital campaigns.

News15 November 2023

Demos merges with Engage Britain

Katie McQuater

Cross-party think tank Demos and Engage Britain, a charity focusing on participatory policymaking, have merged.

Feature15 November 2023

Executive decision: Study highlights role of AI in leaders' choices

Katie McQuater

Generative AI is impacting the calls leaders make, research from IBM has found.

News15 November 2023

New hires at Potentia

London-headquartered digital research company Potentia Insight has expanded its project management and data processing teams with two appointments.

News15 November 2023

Ipsos to track anti-obesity medications

Ipsos has launched three syndicated studies to monitor the wider impact of anti-obesity medications, covering patients, healthcare professionals, public attitudes and market sizing.

News15 November 2023

SightX develops generative AI offer

Research technology company SightX has launched a generative AI tool.

Opinion14 November 2023

How do brands help consumers chase their dreams?

In a world of greater financial pressures, how can brands help consumers fulfil their hopes and desires?

News14 November 2023

The Data City hires chief financial officer

Global data company The Data City has appointed Emma Dickinson as chief financial officer.

News14 November 2023

Fuelius expands to US

UK-based digital transformation, marketing automation and customer relationship management company Fuelius has launched in the US.

News14 November 2023

Stylist Group launches insights agency

Stylist Group, publisher of media brand Stylist, has formed an insights agency, Think Stylist.

News14 November 2023

Accelerant Research buys Voccii

North Carolina-based Accelerant Research has acquired boutique research consultancy Voccii.

Advertisement feature13 November 2023

Combating fraud

Data quality will differentiate agencies and suppliers. 

Opinion13 November 2023

Why is Black History Month so important?

To coincide with Black History Month in October, research from Walnut tracked awareness of black history and perceptions of racial discrimination and inequality. 

News13 November 2023

New analytics head at Kantar

Kantar has appointed Mark Standley as managing director of its UK analytics practice.

News13 November 2023

MEL Research hires Sutton to develop operations

Social research business MEL Research has appointed Paul Sutton, formerly of the National Centre for Social Research, as fieldwork operations manager.

News13 November 2023

UN smart cities report produced by Napier researchers

Researchers at Edinburgh Napier University have produced guidance on managing ‘smart city’ governance for the United Nations.

News13 November 2023

Freemavens makes senior analytics hires

MSQ-owned insight and analytics consultancy Freemavens has bolstered its analytics practice with the appointment of Lauren Warnock as director and practice lead, and Stephanie Holt as senior consultant.

News10 November 2023

Bilendi & respondi expands offering with “Niche Sampling”

Market research digital services company Bilendi & respondi has expanded its portfolio with a tool which will allow clients to reach difficult to reach target groups.

News10 November 2023

ESRC to boost UK behavioural research with £17m investment

The Economic and Social Research Council ( ESRC) is to invest £17m in expanding the UK’s behavioural research capacity, as it looks to address social challenges by researching human behaviour.

News10 November 2023

Advertisers to splash out whopping £9.5bn over Christmas

 Advertisers are to spend a record £9.5bn over Christmas, trumping all previous records.

News10 November 2023

Virtual Incentives hires former Ipsos exec as market research lead

Incentives, rewards and payments business Virtual Incentives has hired former Ipsos, Kantar and Nielsen executive Frank Kelly ( pictured) as its market research practice lead.

News9 November 2023

Be aware of biases in social media content, hears MRS event

Liam Kay-McClean

Researchers should carefully evaluate the biases inherent in each social media platform before analysing data gathered in social listening exercises, speakers at a recent Market Research Society event have said.

News9 November 2023

Researchers positive about AI, says Qualtrics study

The vast majority ( 87%) of researchers are confident in their job security and more than half believe artificial intelligence ( AI) will lead to faster analysis and insights, according to research by experience management company Qualtrics.

News9 November 2023

Kantar Public changes name to Verian

Liam Kay-McClean

Government and public sector research and communications firm Kantar Public has rebranded as Verian with immediate effect.

Opinion9 November 2023

Lorna Tilbian: How to turn acorns into oak trees

Want to advise on building a business? Want to turn acorns into oak trees? Want to stack the odds in your favour? Take these seven guiding principles – or pillars of wisdom – and adhere to them with zeal.

News9 November 2023

GroupM to use ESG data in media planning and buying

WPP-owned media agency GroupM has established an environmental, social and corporate governance ( ESG) data partnership with the aim of integrating ESG insights into its media planning and buying in the UK.

News9 November 2023

Strat7 launches AI tool

Strategic insight and customer analytics group Strat7 has created a generative artificial intelligence ( AI) tool for use by consultants across the business.

News9 November 2023

WPP and Sprinklr team up on AI CX tool

WPP has partnered with customer experience management platform Sprinklr to develop a joint CX offer.

News8 November 2023

UK risking being 'left behind' on AI regulation without new laws

Liam Kay-McClean

The lack of proposals to regulate artificial intelligence ( AI) in the King’s Speech risks the UK being ‘left behind’ other jurisdictions in governing the emerging technology, according to the Ada Lovelace Institute.

Opinion8 November 2023

How to have more impact

Putting a foot in the door for key meetings, making time for strategy and even a new job title can help client-side insight managers to be more influential within their organisations.

News8 November 2023

Comscore revenues fall in Q3 but delivers net income

Media evaluation company Comscore saw a slight drop in revenues but returned a net income of $2.6m in the third quarter of 2023, according to the firm’s latest financial results.

News8 November 2023

Senior team changes at Ipsos India

INDIA – Ipsos has made several senior role changes and promotions within its team in India, including appointing Balaji Pandiaraj to lead customer experience. 

News8 November 2023

MMR Research hires innovation director

Consumer and sensory research agency MMR Research has appointed Ansie Collier as global innovation director.

News8 November 2023

UK customer satisfaction drops in 2023

Katie McQuater

Customer satisfaction in the UK has declined to pre-pandemic levels due to brands cutting costs, according to a study by KPMG.

News7 November 2023

Majority concerned by disinformation, finds Unesco and Ipsos poll

A majority of citizens ( 85%) are worried about the impact of online disinformation, according to a survey commissioned by Unesco, conducted by Ipsos in 16 countries.

News7 November 2023

Verve promotes Lydia Martin to research director

Cultural, human and artificial intelligence insight company Verve has named Lydia Martin as research director, among a raft of promotions in the business’ research team.

News7 November 2023

UK advertising exports hit £15.6bn

There was a 15.5% year-on-year rise in UK advertising export figures to reach a total £15.6bn in 2022, according to data published by advertising industry think tank Credos.

News7 November 2023

Research agency Electrify Research established

Former YouthSight chief executive Ben Marks has launched Electrify Research, with a focus on tracking the attitudes of homeowners towards home electrification.

News7 November 2023

Toluna makes senior team changes

Liam Kay-McClean

Global insights technology and panel business Toluna has reshuffled its leadership team in the wake of its acquisition of MetrixLab earlier this year.

Opinion7 November 2023

Rory Sutherland: Don't overlook the basics

Rory Sutherland

The Impact columnist finds plenty of room for innovation in commercial decisions that don't change the product, but change how it is consumed.

Opinion6 November 2023

How do you motivate client teams to find growth?

The market is slowing, traditional consultative selling is less effective, yet targets continue to rise. David Das looks at how to help client and expert teams consistently find growth.

News6 November 2023

Rise in humorous TV adverts, finds Kantar research

The majority of television advertisements are using humour, upending a trend of more serious TV adverts in recent years, according to research from Kantar.

News6 November 2023

Delineate promotes five

Brand and campaign tracking firm Delineate has promoted Steffan Evans to production director in its technology and operations centre based in Wales.

News6 November 2023

Rise in SVOD subscriptions in the UK

There was an increase in the number of UK homes that have access to subscription video-on-demand ( SVOD) in the third quarter of 2023, according to television audience measurement body Barb.

News6 November 2023

Majority of Brits to cut Christmas spending in 2023

Almost six in 10 people in Britain are preparing to cut spending for the Christmas period, according to research from data and insights company Pureprofile.

News6 November 2023

UKRI invests £117m in AI doctoral training

UK Research and Innovation ( UKRI) has provided funding of £117m for 12 centres for doctoral training ( CDTs) in artificial intelligence ( AI) at 16 universities.

News3 November 2023

UK immigration attitudes grow more positive, finds study

Liam Kay-McClean

Attitudes towards immigration in the UK became more positive in 2022, according to the latest European Social Survey.

News3 November 2023

AYTM names Emea and APAC client director

Agile consumer insights platform Ask Your Target Market ( AYTM) has appointed Johnny Caldwell as client director, Europe, Middle East and Africa ( Emea) and Asia-Pacific.

News3 November 2023

Unstereotype Alliance and Kantar launch new ad metric

The Unstereotype Alliance, an industry-led coalition convened by UN Women to eradicate stereotypes in advertising, has developed a new metric for progressive representation in partnership with Kantar.

News3 November 2023

Nielsen and GWI partner on audience insight

Nielsen and consumer research business GWI have partnered on an audience insights tool.

News3 November 2023

MediaRadar acquires Vivvix from Kantar

Kantar has sold its North American advertising intelligence unit Vivvix to advertising intelligence and sales platform MediaRadar for an undisclosed amount.

News2 November 2023

Greater levels of attention 'not achievable' for adverts

It is “not achievable” to get more attention for advertising and many of the metrics used to measure attention are less effective than presumed, a Walnut Unlimited event has heard.

Feature2 November 2023

Finding your own people: What do fans think?

Paul White

Fandoms offer people space to indulge their interests and find belonging and joy, research from BAMM has found.

News2 November 2023

UKRI suspends diversity panel over researchers' social media posts

Liam Kay-McClean

UKRI has suspended its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Group after accusations from the UK secretary of state for science, innovation and technology Michelle Donelan about comments posted on social media about the Israel/Hamas war.

News2 November 2023

MHP Group forms brand strategy team

Communications group MHP Group has launched a brand strategy division that will focus on behavioural insight, strategy, design and employee engagement. 

News2 November 2023

Harlow Consulting makes two senior hires

Research and consulting services business Harlow Consulting has appointed Carolyn Black and James Legard as associate directors.

News2 November 2023

Serendipity2 names new MD

Data insights and marketing consultancy Serendipity2 has promoted Harriett Type to managing director.

News1 November 2023

IPA and ISBA create principles for ethical AI use in advertising

The IPA and the ISBA have published 12 principles governing the use of generative artificial intelligence ( AI) in advertising.

News1 November 2023

Proximic by Comscore partners with Cadent

Television advertising tool provider Cadent and audience and content targeting business Proximic by Comscore have agreed a partnership.

News1 November 2023

The Forge hires brand strategy director

Strategy consultancy The Forge has appointed Laura Halliday as a director in its brand strategy practice.

News1 November 2023

Ipsos acquires New Zealand public sector research firm

Ipsos has acquired New Zealand-based public sector research business CBG Health Research Ltd ( CBG) from parent company Reach Aotearoa for an undisclosed amount.

News1 November 2023

AI regulation needed to support innovation, says DMA

The UK government should introduce measures to regulate artificial intelligence ( AI) to encourage more innovation among small and medium enterprises ( SMEs), according to the Data & Marketing Association ( DMA).