Abstract:

The author’s main proposition is that market research is of limited value unless steps are taken to develop the market research remit, client side. This should embrace joint accountability for post survey analysis work in addition to primary accountability for all stages of a research project from problem definition or situation analysis, to competitive tender, questionnaire design, reporting and overall control of the project. All of these elements still need to have the close involvement of the internal customer (and agency)! This is to ensure the research project answers the right questions and that internal customers feel ownership of the findings. However, it is considered wrong to truncate the accountability of the client’s market research team at the "final" report stage. This is when they should be at their most active! The strength of the proposed Fact Inference Conclusion Recommendation (FICR) technique lies in the ability to: - demonstrate to the most senior of managers how research is turned into action; - provide a trail of facts and inferences that lead to conclusions and recommendations, removing doubt about the process that led to the recommendation of (strategic) action. The technique raises some questions that have implications for the client, agency and market research industry. The paper will outline these implications but in essence they are: - the post survey analytical skills of market research personnel; - the extent to which the experience and training of internal customers should go; - the accountability of market research organisations in developing a greater focus on post survey analysis work and providing various frameworks and training to facilitate the change. This paper is divided into three main sections. The first section outlines the customer service research programme, upon which the study is based. The survey consists of the measurement of customers’ expectation of service levels as well as the quantification of the experiences of customers recently in contact with London Electricity.