Abstract:

It is certainly a vital question to ask, whether business executives are really interested in the outcome of the research projects they commission; and yet this question is seldom if ever raised among market researchers. Is it perhaps that researchers shy away from the realisation that their work is not always put to use, let alone to good use? It would certainly explain why the subject of client-researcher communications is notably absent at researchers' conferences, in researchers' periodicals, even in private discussions. It is a taboo subject, and he who dares speak about it, risks to loose his friends and perhaps his shirt as well. To tackle the question at once: It is certainly not self-evident to say that, since a company is prepared to put up the money for research, it must of necessity be interested in the outcome. There is more to market research than fact-finding, and the want for marketing knowledge is not the only and certainly not the strongest motive force behind research assignments.