Editor’s note: Jim Quilty is vice president - travel and tourism research in the New York office of research company Ipsos.

According to recent data from the Commerce Department, for the first time since the terrorist attacks of September 11, spending on travel and tourism has declined. We’re of course deep into a recession - at the time of writing in February, unemployment had reached 12.3 million Americans and the unemployment rate hit 8.1 percent. Americans are reducing their travel frequency and spending, a strong dollar is keeping foreign tourists away and with every industry looking for cost savings, businesses are slashing their travel expenses.

Travel is a trillion-dollar industry in the U.S., employing millions of people. It is reeling, and searching for ways to lure travelers back with deep discounts and special packages. The effects are rippling through the industry, impacting boardrooms, marketing departments and their approach to market research. Indicators of public opinion show that the majority believe economic improvement will happen later, rather than sooner. How does consumer opinion translate to spending and when will it change? Faced with a public that’s fearful and reluctant to spend, what are businesses doing to cope? What does it mean for us as market researchers? 

Each year, as part of any company’s annual planning process, questions regarding market research initiatives are debated and answered, including:

•   Should our tracking studies be renewed, consolidated or canceled?

•   Is it time to segment our customers again?

•   Do we test the market in response to planned advertising, innovation or new product launches?

•   Should we scale back on primary studies in lieu of more syndicated offerings?

•   Do we implement more automation to help us survey our own customers?

Then, every decade or so, a recession enters the picture and things ch...