Is marketing research only about markets and marketing? (page 2 of 2)

To address the real dynamics in business today, MR organisations need to acquire a new range of skills and expertise - ones which are not just concerned with the marketing space. This has led to several structural and organisational innovations within leading MR groups such as TNS. Such innovations include :

1. Sector Expertise: To deliver meaningful and relevant recommendations, the analysis and interpretation of research data today demands a clear understanding of the business context. Sector expertise has thus become crucial and TNS has already invested in building special resources in sectors such as HealthCare, Telecoms and ITES, Finance and Banking, Automotive etc, in addition to the FMCG skills already available within the company. This has led to a relatively more intimate knowledge of the client's business issues and objectives, and competitive realities in the business sector. The focus is thus on delivering 'strategic solutions', rather than just findings and recommendations.

2. Business Solutions Champions: All leading MR companies have a range of proprietary methods and models. It is now fundamentally important to constantly re-visit and adapt these to changing market and economic realities. A continuous commitment to "R&D" investments, constantly re-visiting and re-examining the philosophical as well as practical aspects of the business solutions portfolio is now more of the rule than the exception.

3. Account Management: The demand from clients for MR companies to move from being data and information suppliers, to Decision Support System partners, has also led to a closer, more intensive engagement with clients. This emphasis moves the focus from being a 'project' led to a 'goals' driven relationship.

The Future

The relevance of MR companies in the new paradigm will thus be determined by an ability to marry their 'bread and butter' research skills to the imperatives of the organisational "triad" mentioned above. Not as easy as it sounds....it needs a mind shift from pure project management to a more matrix-type approach to management of client needs. And one that brings sectoral expertise, the business solutions portfolio and an altogether more intimate client/agency relationship, together in a more relevant and effective manner.

In such a scenario, familiar structural frameworks such as geographical units etc may well become hindrances rather than facilitators. This is already apparent, given the connectivity that modern technology provides.

Old notions such as client exclusivity may also need to be re-visited. After all, by very definition, sectoral expertise calls for wide exposure to the sector. The challenge here will be to ensure the confidentiality that clients must have, while being able to deliver the benefits of a more indepth sector knowledge.