GAINING CONSUMER INSIGHTS:

MARKETING RESEARCH
IN INDIA
Marketing Research: The quest
for the real consumer
Hindustan Unilevers Ltd.: Studying
brushing habits in rural India.

Technique used: Ethnographic research

Marico: What is the ‘ideal relationship’
with spouse amongst middle class Indian
housewives.
Technique used: Collages.
Pepsi: Wanted to develop an advertising concept
for ‘daring’ for the age group 19-22.
Technique: Gave video cameras to youngsters
and asked them to shoot pictures of what
they thought was daring.
 Hindustan Unilevers Ltd.
The Issue: Wanted to understand ageing in
women
Technique: Asked women to put together the
story of their lives in pictures (photo-diaries),
giving it a better idea of how they aged over
the years
HSBC: Credit Cards-from temptress to
friend. Technique used: Projective
techniques
Ranbaxy: What is ‘health’ and ‘being
healthy’. Technique used: Collages,
dyads and triads
“Traditional consumer insight models
are insufficient to gauge consumer
attitudes and choices at a micro level,"
says B.V. Pradeep, President, Market
Research Society of India (MRSI).
 Marketing Research in India

Growth of marketing research (MR) in India

Expenditures on MR by Indian firms
Major application areas of MR
Methods and techniques in MR
Organization for MR
Innovations in MR
Impact of technology on MR practices
Future trends in MR in India
Managerial perceptions of MR
Hurdles in conduct of MR in India
 GROWTH OF MARKETING RESEARCH
IN INDIA

INDIAN MR INDUSTRY: GROWN FROM RS. 30

CR. IN NINETIES TO ABOUT RS. 700 CR.
TODAY*

REASONS FOR GROWTH

- LIBERALIZATION AND INCREASED
COMPETITION
- MORE DISCERNING CONSUMERS
AND CHANGING PREFERENCES AND
BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS
- MORE PROFESSIONAL MANAGEMENT

*Industry estimates
CHANGING PROFILE OF MR USERS

Multinationals (Particularly FMCG)

Have Been Traditional Users Of MR In India:

- HLL
- ITC
-Godfrey Philips
- Nestle
- Cadburys
- Coca-Cola
- Pepsi
-P&G
- Colgate Palmolive
- Glaxo Smith Kline Beecham
 Changing Profile Of MR Users

Companies Of Indian Origin also Adopting

MR
- Dabur
- Marico
- Ranbaxy
- Asian Paints
- Godrej Appliances
- Godrej Consumer Care
-Mahindra and Mahindra
- Maruti
 Changing Profile Of MR Users
Service Firms are Increasingly Adopting MR
-Bharati Cellular
- Hutch
- ICICI Prudential
- Shoppers Stop
- MTNL
-Taj Hotels
- Reliance Indicom
- Tata Infocom
Business to Business Users
-Indian Flavors and Fragrances
-Tetrapack
-Microsoft
-ACC
-GAIL
MARKETING RESEARCH AGENCIES IN
INDIA*
Large MR Agencies
- A.C. Nielsen-ORG-Marg
- IMRB International
- TNS
Medium Agencies Small Agencies
- Synovate - March Market Research

- Indica Research - Qualysis

- Hansa Research - Mi 17
- Pathfinders - Market Pulse
- Research International - Shaman Marketing Research
- Integrated Marketing Research

* Illustrative List
 Mean Annual Expenditures on Marketing
Research by Organization Size
n = 131

Organization Size Mean Expenditure

(Sales Turnover) (in Rs. Lakhs)
Group A
> Rs. 2000 Cr 125.21
Group B
Rs 1001- Rs.2000 Cr. 120.75
Group C
Rs.500- Rs.1000 Cr. 79.69
Group D
< Rs.500 Cr. 43.27

Mean Expenditure 81.79

Correlation between Organization Sales
Turnover and Expenditure on Marketing
Research

Annual Sales
Turnover

Annual Marketing
Research Expenditure .396**
n=131
* *Significant at 0.01 level
 Mean Annual Expenditure on Marketing
Research
n=131

Industry Mean Annual Expenditure

type ( Rs. Lakhs)
Consumer Non-
Durables 111.91
Consumer
Durables 98.83

Services 57.59
Industrial
Products 29.85
Total Mean
Expenditure 81.79
 Expenditure on Marketing Research
as a Percentage of Sales by Organization Size

Mean Annual Marketing

Organization Research Expenditure
Size as % of Sales
Group A
Rs. 2000 Cr. 0.06
Group B
Rs.1001-Rs.2000 Cr. 0.12
Group C
Rs.500-Rs.1000 Cr. 0.17
Group D
< Rs.500 Cr. 0.21

Total 0.15
 Correlation between Organization Sales and
Percentage of Sales Spent on Marketing Research

Marketing Research
Expenditure as a
Percentage of Sales
Annual
Sales Turnover -.272**
n=131
* *Significant at 0.01 level
Expenditure on Marketing Research as
Percentage of Sales by Industry Type
Industry Annual Expenditure on Marketing Research as % of

Type Sales

Consumer Non Durables 0.28

Services 0.11

Consumer Durables 0.10

Industrial Products 0.04

Total Sample 0.15

APPLICATION AREAS
FOR MARKETING
RESEARCH
Top Five Customized
Marketing Research
Application Areas
 Top Five Customized Marketing Research
Application Areas Across Industries
Ind Consumer Non Consumer Industrial
Rank Durables Durables Products Services
Customer Customer
New Product New Product
1 Satisfaction Satisfaction
Research Research
Studies Studies
Advertising New Product New Product
2 Brand Studies
Research Research Research
Consumer
Advertising Advertising Advertising
3 Behavior
Research Research Research
Research
Consumer Customer Consumer Consumer
4 Behavior Satisfaction Behavior Behavior
Research Studies Research Research
Product/Pack. Product Product
5 Improvement Brand Studies Improvement Improvement
Research Research Research
% of total
69 % 67 % 69 % 73 %
MR Exp.
 % EXPENDITURE ON RESEARCH
APPLICATION AREAS

Application Mean Rank

New Product research 17.77 1
Advertising research 14.81 2
Consumer behavior
research 12.12 3
Customer satisfaction
studies 11.39 4
Brand studies 10.02 5
Product/Packaging
improvement research 6.84 6
Total 72.95 -
Share of Qualitative and Quantitative Research
as % of Total Marketing Research Expenditure

% Expenditure % Expenditure
on Qualitative on Quantitative
Research Research
Type Mean Mean
Industry
Consumer 28.60 71.40
Non-durables
Consumer
30.48 69.52
Durables
Industrial
30.00 70.00
Products
Services 27.00 73.00

Total 28.79 71.21

 DATA COLLECTION
TECHNIQUES
IN MARKETING RESEARCH
 Data Collection Methods-
Primary Research
Application Area Mean Rank
Focus groups-in-person 4.20 1
Surveys-at home/office 4.19 2
Depth interviews 4.05 3
Projective techniques 3.58 4
Surveys –mall intercepts 2.28 5
Field observation 2.26 6
Surveys -telephone 1.67 7
Mystery shopping 1.37 8
On Scale from 0=Not Used to 5=Used Very Frequently
Ethnographic research. 0.89 9
Surveys –mail- paper 0.74 10
Surveys -e-mail 0.71 11
Laboratory simulation 0.66 12
Mechanical observation devices
(Cameras etc.) 0.64 13
Focus groups -online 0.56 14
Surveys -Web 0.52 15
Focus groups -telephone 0.48 16
Surveys -fax 0.14 17
Surveys –disk by mail 0.06 18
Virtual setting 0.05 19
Focus groups -video-networked 0.01 20
Scanner-based research 0.01 21
Popularly used Projective
Techniques
Personification,
Picture Sorts,
Election Speeches for the brands/products,
Conflict Groups (two rival groups speaking for and
against the brand/product),
Brand World and Solar System,
Collages,
Bubble Drawings,
Obituaries for the brand/ product,
Celebrity Fits,
Mood Maps,
Onion Technique (getting consumers to describe
the layers of the product or brand),
DATA ANALYSIS
TECHNIQUES
IN USE
 Mean
Data Analysis Technique Frequency of
Use Rank
Measures of Central Tendency 4.66 1
Measures Of Dispersion 4.45 2
Statistical Tests of Significance 4.38 3
Correlation Analysis 3.59 4
Confidence Intervals 3.46 5
Regression Analysis 3.35 6
Analysis Of Variance/Covariance 3.10 7
Cluster Analysis 2.77 8
Factor Analysis 2.55 9
Conjoint Analysis 2.29 10
Time Series Analysis. 1.69 11
Discriminant Analysis. 1.38 12
Multi-Dimensional Scaling 1.10 13
Others 0.59 -
On Scale from 0=Not used to 5=Used Very Frequently
 INNOVATIONS IN MARKETING
RESEARCH
Application/Technique Rank
Innovations in Customer Satisfaction Research 1
Ethnographic Research 2
Innovations in Advertising Research (Quantitative
Models and Qualitative Techniques) 2
Innovations in Concept testing( including testing 4
software & Qualitative techniques)
Focus Groups Innovations (e.g. dyads and triads) 5
Segmentation and Positioning models (including
Psychographic and Life style Segmentation) 6
Tracking Studies 7
Demand forecasting models 7
Pricing Studies( e.g. price-pack studies, price elasticity
studies) 9
 Application/Technique Rank
Brand Equity studies 10
Conjoint analysis 11
In-Depth Consumer motivation studies 11
Online Research 13
Trial Purchase Prediction models 14
Outlet Location/trade area research 15
Pre-test marketing models 16
Lead user analysis 16
Customer Creativity Enhancement
techniques 16
Photo Diaries/diary placements 19
Simulated test marketing 19
Merchandising research 19
Virtual Testing 19
Quality Development Indicators 23
In-market Trials 23
 SHARE OF MARKETING RESEARCH
CONDUCTED IN-HOUSE VS.
OUTSOURCED

% Research
Outsourced
% Research Conducted To External Research
Industry Type In-house Agencies
Consumer
Non-durables 3.38 96.62
Consumer
Durables 4.71 95.29
Industrial
Products 6.25 93.75
Services 8.38 91.62
Total 5.47 94.53
 Number of Organizations with Full-time
Personnel Assigned to Marketing Research

Organizations with
1 or more persons
assigned full-time to Marketing Research being
Industry Type Marketing Research handled by line executives
% of
Number % of Category Number Category
Consumer Non
Durables 33 76.7 10 23.3
Consumer Durables 23 65.7 12 34.3
Services 17 50.0 17 50.0
Industrial Products 7 35.0 13 65.0
Total 80 60.6 52 39.4
 Select Computer-based Tools/Techniques
Reported Being Owned by
Marketing Research Agencies
Group A Agencies Group B Agencies
(Rs. 10 Cr. Or (Less than Rs. 10
More) Cr.)  

Computer Aided % of % of
Tools/Software Category % of Category Total
Questionnaire
Design Software 20.0 0.0 8.6
Computer Assisted
Telephone
Interviewing (CATI) 53.3 5.0 25.7
Fully-Automated
Telephone
Interviewing 13.3 - 5.7
Computer Assisted
Personal
Interviewing (CAPI) 80.0 20.0 45.7
 Group A Agencies Group B Agencies
(Rs. 10 Cr. Or (Less than Rs. 10
More) Cr.)  

Computer Aided % of % of
Tools/Software Category % of Category Total
Computer Assisted
Self Interviewing
(CASI) 40.0 10.0 22.9
Fieldwork
Management
Software 20.0 0.0 8.6
Quantitative Data
Analysis Software 100.0 75.0 85.7
Geographical
Information
Systems Software 6.7 0.0 2.9
 Future Trends in Marketing Research in India:
Perceptions of Marketing Research Professionals
Trend Rank
Online Research 1
Increase in use of Statistical Methods, Predictive Models and
Tools 2
Computerized Data Capture Methods 3
Increasing Use of Qualitative Research 4
Customer Satisfaction Research 5
Ethnographic Research 6
Data Warehousing, Mining and Modeling 7
Tracking Studies 8
Growth of Syndicated Research 9
Developments in Media Research 10
Greater Professionalisation of Marketing Research 11
Rural Research 12
Consolidation of Research Companies /Entry of Foreign Players 13
 Share of Custom and Syndicated Research
As Percentage of Total Marketing
Research Expenditure

% Expenditure on
% Expenditure on Syndicated
Custom Research Research
Industry Type Mean Mean
Consumer Non-
Durables 79.37 20.63
Consumer Durables 88.04 11.96
Industrial Products 91.20 8.80
Services 88.44 11.56
Total 85.80 14.20
Major Syndicated Services Available
in India
Continuous Syndicated Services
(i) Retail Store Audits
ACNielsen-ORG-MARG (www.acnielsen.com) conducts retail store
audits covering 60,000 outlets across 367 cities and 983 villages
in India.
(ii)Healthcare Sector Audits
Pharmaceutical Audits
ACNielsen-ORG-MARG conducts a Pharmaceutical Audit which
tracks sales of pharmaceutical formulations of 291 companies
(constituting 90 percent of the pharmaceutical formulation
market) through a panel of 2236 chemists in 367 cities and 986
villages.
Prescription Audits
ACNielsen-ORG-MARG conducts a prescription audit which
provides information on the prescription habits of doctors
through a panel of 2800 doctors in private practice.
(iii)Household Purchase Panels
IMRB International (www.imrbint.com) operates its household
panels in ten metropolitan cities in the country and monitors over
30 consumer product categories. Tracks 70,000 households based
on their SEC classifications. The variables used are geography, age
of the housewife, durables ownership, eating and entertainment
habits
(iv) Readership, Audience Measurement and Media Services
-TV Audience Measurement
The TV Viewership cell of TAM Media Research measures TV
viewership for over 250 TV Stations operating in India. It runs
PeopleMeter TV Panels with over 20,000 sample individuals
representing all the Class I towns (with population over 100,000)
-Readership Studies
National Readership Study and Indian Readership Study
B. Non-Continuous Syndicated Services
• Comprehensive Market Studies
• Sector Specific Studies
e.g. -AC Nielsen-ORG-MARG-Market Monitor-Section I
profiles Indian economy, demographics, trade, media
etc.;Section II market profiles of 81 product
categories
e.g. TARGET GROUP INDEX (IMRB): It combines products,
brands, media, demographics and lifestyles.
 Impact of Technological Developments on
Marketing Research:Perceptions of
Marketing Research Managers
Scale: 1=Very low impact; 5= Very high impact

Consumer
Non Consumer Industrial
Industry Total Durables Durables Products Services
Methods

Mean Mean Mean Mean Mean

Data
Collection 2.66 2.63 2.49 2.70 2.70
Sampling 3.08 2.88 3.09 3.25 3.21
Data
Analysis 4.70 4.77 4.60 4.60 4.76
 Role of Marketing Research in Managerial
Decision-Making-Perceptions of
Marketing Research Managers
Scale: 1=Provider of data analysis ; 7=Provider of strategic business advice

Industry Type Mean

Consumer
Non-Durables 4.72
Consumer Durables 4.37
Industrial Products 3.95
Services 4.47
Total Sample 4.45
 Major Conclusions

Usage of MR in India is still fairly low-mean

expenditures 0.15 % of sales;

Top 6 application areas that account for over

70 % of customized research expenditures:
New product research, brand studies,
advertising research, consumer behavior
studies and product/packaging improvement
research and customer satisfaction research;
 Major Conclusions (Contd.)

Dependence mainly on traditional methods of

primary data collection: In-person surveys,
focus groups, depth interviews and mall
intercepts. Innovations in qualitative
research.
Share of Qualitative vs. Quantitative
research expenditures: 30:70
 Major Conclusions (Contd.)

Consumer durables report the largest number

of innovations in MR applications and
techniques.
Major Syndicated research studies available:
retail audits, pharmaceutical audit, household
panels, readership and media audiences.
 Major Conclusions (Contd.)

In-house vs. out-sourced research

expenditures: 5:95
Organizations with one or more MR personnel:
60 %; Organizations with MR being handled by
line managers: 40 %
 Major Conclusions (Contd.)
Major challenges/hurdles for MR in India:
-Lack of trained and reliable field data collection
personnel;
-Respondent non- cooperation due to lack of time;
-Management’s insistence on speedy results at the
cost of research quality;
-Lack of qualified and trained research personnel;
-Management’s unwillingness to make expenditures
required for quality research
 Major Conclusions (Contd.)

MANAGERIAL PERCEPTIONS OF MR

Overall marketing research perceived as serving a

useful purpose. Mktg. decision-makers rate MR’s
contribution to new product introduction, customer
satisfaction and improvement in sales performance as
being highly positive;

Major managerial perceptions that MR professionals must

address:
Speed of marketing research projects
Creativity of approach
Marketing researchers recommendations need to be
more decision-oriented
Marketing researchers understanding of problems of
marketing decision-makers.
 Major Recommendations
Leveraging technology for marketing
research;
Investment in developing in-house
research capabilities;
Building partnerships with external
research suppliers;
Need for focused efforts to attract and
retain people in MR;
 Major Recommendations (contd.)

Expansion in the scope of the MR function

within organizations;
An expanded skills set required for marketing
researchers;
Need to address managerial perceptions about
aspects of MR;
Certification in MR;
Need for medium and small agencies to
rethink strategy;
Marketing research needs more marketing!
THANK YOU