Working for marketing research's survival

“Marketing rules are not research rules and vice versa. Privacy is a big issue for us. The people we rely on for information need to be aware of what research comprises and how we go about it and how we protect their privacy. The lack of distinction between marketing and research is causing research to lose the trust of consumers and this is making our jobs so much harder,” says Leonie Vorster, Southern African Marketing Research Association (SAMRA) chief executive officer.

We cannot wait for Protection for Personal Information (POPI) to become a reality, she adds. “While the industry’s Code of Conduct for privacy is much stricter than legislation, POPI ensures everyone does what we have been doing for years.”

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Vorster was talking to Bizcommunity at the SAMRA conference, which gives the industry the opportunity to come together for two days and put their heads together, recap on the year past and examine the melting pot of challenges and opportunities going forward, explains Vorster.

The two days take delegates out of their own work space and silos into an environment where they can hear about new trends and bounce ideas off each other. The conference serves to energise the industry in this way.

The delegates comprise not only researchers but also clients and suppliers, which she says adds to the dynamic of the conference.

Apart from the economic pressure and client budget constraints and the knock on effect of that being felt in all industries, the research industry’s biggest challenge is selling itself. Vorster adds that researchers have been doing what the new data scientists have been doing since the 60s and that as an industry, we need to market our strengths more.

What has impacted positively on the industry is technology. “Technology is giving us the opportunity to do more in a shorter timeframe, assists with the process of finding sources, the type of analysis and the scope of the dissemination.”

This is not without its challenges in the southern African context. “But technology still helps more than it hampers and even with the challenges technology is having a big impact on our industry providing fantastic opportunities.”

While she says South Africa’s research industry is on par with the global industry, the way the two generate revenue is very different. “In South Africa and Africa the revenue generated by online research is three percent, as opposed to 90% in Japan. This is not because the industry is not able to undertake digital research, but rather it is a case of the market and consumer not being ready.”

People do not always believe us, but we know what is coming. “Our industry is very predictive. In the future, people are going to put more and more emphasis on decisions based on evidence, rather than winging it.”