For his annual contribution to our international research issue, Quirk’sWest Coast ad rep/roving reporter Lane Weiss traveled to Turkey to speak with Cem Akyol, general manager of Bilesim International, an Istanbul research firm.

Lane Weiss: Tell us a bit about your company’s background.Cem Akyol: Bilesim International Research and Consultancy Co. was founded in 1984. In 1999, it became the only Turkish research provider that has the ISO 9001 Quality Certificate. Currently, we enjoy serving our client companies with our expertise in consumer attitudes and habits, advertisements, company research, product tests and advertising expenditure studies.

What research methods are most commonly used in Turkey? For example, face-to-face research? Focus groups? Telephone interviewing?Face-to-face type of interviews using pen and paper is the most commonly used research method in Turkey because its applicability and efficiency is higher than others. About 70 percent, as of 2006, of the interviews conducted in Turkey were face-to-face. The usage of telephone interviews shows an increase because telephone penetration has reached acceptable levels. I think telephone interviews will take over the position of face-to-face interviews in the near future. These two methods are followed by focus groups.

Is Internet research becoming more popular and more viable in Turkey?Only 20 percent of the population in Turkey has Internet access, and the largest two groups of users are the youngsters and the people with a mid-higher education. So today, we have very low coverage, which makes it not feasible to do interviewing using the Internet. In five to 10 years the Internet penetration will become high enough in Turkey to make Internet research viable, but it will not replace the face-to-face or phone interview.

What are some of the ways you see the Internet affecting market research in Turkey and around the world?Interne...