The Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 was designed to protect consumers against unwanted telemarketing calls.  It imposes a variety of restrictions on the hours telemarketers are allowed to dial, and requires that solicitors adhere to federal do-not-call legislation as well as maintaining DNC lists of their own. These limitations do not impact market research companies because the intention of our telephone calls is not a solicitation.  High quality call centers already limit the hours they make calls to consumers, and honor every do not call request they receive.

A cursory glance at today's market research news makes it immediately clear that big data and advanced analytics are hot topics So why all the hoopla? What is big data in the context of market research and what are some working examples? What is the real promise of big data market research (Big Data MR)? And most importantly, what immediate next steps can you take to harvest some near-term Big Data MR benefits?

Many companies aspire to grow and maintain their brand loyalists—the customers who purchase their products time and time again. After all, this small segment of heavy users often accounts for the majority of a company’s sales. But within this group of loyalists, there’s an even smaller—and more powerful—segment of consumers that is often overlooked. This group, known as “Super Consumers,” might just hold the secret to success for your company. 

When you have a bad experience with a company, what’s the first thing you do? If you’re like a lot of consumers, you probably tell your friends and family about it. This scenario can be a nightmare for a company if it happens with a large number of customers on a frequent basis. But the good news is that by taking the time to understand customers, those negative reviews can be turned into positive ones. That’s where Net Promoter Score (NPS®) comes in. What is NPS?

At this year’s 2013 TSE Services Member Satisfaction Summit we heard how electric utility cooperative members use customer satisfaction research to more fully engage with consumers and improve their products and services. Member engagement, member satisfaction and best practices were trending topics for speakers at the summit as different cooperatives shared the challenges they face and how those issues are being resolved. Here's what some companies are saying about customer satisfaction research:

After attending the 2013 EMACS and my 5th Chartwell conference, the trending strategies for utilities is becoming clear: Listen. Connect. Understand. Participants at the conference show us how they're doing this: Listening leads to better business.

Editor’s note: this post is by guest blogger, Corey Dall, who served as marketing manager for FGI Research for 2 years before starting her tenure as the digital marketing manager for a local bank. This is her reflection on her time here and some of the lessons she learned from our industry thought leaders.

We’ve already blogged about the challenges life insurance marketers will face this year, and how these insurers can effectively reach untouched consumer segments (e.g. low to middle markets) and adapt to changing consumer bases. Since then, FGI surveyed over 1,500 consumers about their perceptions of life insurance (LI) coverage. From this data, we discovered consumer attitudes towards purchasing LI and found common patterns among those who do and don’t choose coverage. Below is an overview of some key findings.

The competitive landscape in the grocery industry just keeps getting stiffer. Why? One important factor is that shoppers don’t rely on a single store anymore for all their needs. Instead, they are buying specialty items at one store, and more basic ones at another. (Read this article from the StarTribune that inspired this post.) Additionally, “value” has taken on a new meaning for them. Not only is the price of groceries taken into account, but so is time and gas money.

If you would like to see more results from our study, you can sign up for a walk through. Find out how the insured and uninsured compare, and get suggestions on how to reach the "not right now, but someday" consumers.