Knowledge Networks adds custom analytics to its social media offering
Menlo Park, Calif., research company Knowledge Networks has expanded its Faces of Social Media product suite to include custom analytics. Knowledge Networks has incorporated a semantic engine from Boulder, Colo., text analytics company Collective Intellect that is designed to process conversations from over 100 million authors daily and provide information regarding social media’s effects on product categories and how social media conversations reveal people’s feelings about specific products or topics.
The addition of custom analytics capabilities is intended to identify market trends that lead to new marketing and product tactics; determine which social media marketing activities and messages have the greatest ROI potential; diagnose how brands perform on the social media landscape; illuminate new product acceptance and reception as input to course corrections; and evaluate whether key advertising messages are being reflected in social media conversations - a marker of campaign progress. For more information visit www.knowledgenetworks.com.
Kinesis app with barcode scanning aims to facilitate purchasing research
Kinesis Survey Technologies LLC, an Austin, Texas, research company, has unveiled Kinesis MobileScan, a multifunction mobile research application with embedded barcode scanning technology. Kinesis MobileScan is a downloadable app that can be licensed to market research firms. Its built-in mobile barcode scanner is designed to capture purchase data for point-of-sale diaries and other purchase-reporting research. All barcode information (product brand, type, size) plus geolocation and timestamp information is collected.
In addition to barcode scanning, the app provides other functional options including panelist registration, survey access, community interaction, digital image/video/audio and text collection and in-app messaging to supplement or replace e-mail and SMS communications. The app is compatible with Apple iPhone/iPod devices. An Android version is planned for release later in 2011. For more information visit www.kinesissurvey.com.
ParentSpeak brings parents and children together for MROC research
C+R Research, Chicago, has launched a shared network called ParentSpeak, designed to bring together parents of children up to 18 years old and engage them to interact while also offering insights through various means for client-sponsored research. Among its research capabilities are online immersion and advisory sessions, including online chat sessions and focus groups; bulletin boards; exploratory surveys; photo and video journals; and voice-mail shop-alongs. Traditional quantitative research is also enabled, such as concept evaluation, advertising testing and Web usability tests. Hybrid approaches can also be used. For more information visit www.parentspeak.com.
MarketTools updates its data quality solution
San Francisco research company MarketTools Inc. has released an updated version of TrueSample, its online data quality solution that aims to ensure that survey respondents are real, unique and engaged. The new version of TrueSample is designed to chart overall panel tenure mix for survey respondents, along with how frequently individual respondents take TrueSample-enabled surveys to provide insight into how tenure on a panel and survey-taking frequency affect research results. In addition, the version includes detailed reporting to give users transparency into and control over the quality of their sample sources. For more information visit www.markettools.com.
Maponics updates Neighborhood Boundaries in U.S., Canada and Europe
Maponics, a White River Junction, Vt., location-based data provider, has released version 1.11.1 of its Neighborhood Boundaries product, which includes 120,000+ neighborhoods in the U.S. and Canada. With the update, coverage of locally-sourced neighborhoods has increased by 10,000+ polygons, with coverage expansion in more than 70 new cities; and over 1,000 neighborhoods were added to the Washington, D.C., and Miami metro areas. U.S. Census files are included at no additional charge and, starting with the 1.11.1 product release, Canadian Census files and accompanying product documentation are also included at no additional charge.
Additionally, Maponics has released its latest version of Neighborhood Boundaries in Europe, adding over 1,000 new neighborhoods in 15 new cities. For more information visit www.maponics.com.
Experian debuts Simmons OneView for insights on demand
New York research company Experian Marketing Services has launched Simmons OneView, a Web-based delivery system that combines the syndicated and custom research from Experian Simmons with analytic tools and reports to give marketers 24-hour access to consumer insights.
Simmons OneView offers instant profile reports, data-mining and crosstabs to provide marketers with an understanding of consumer targets; formulates cross-media and messaging strategies with built-in analytic tools, including reach and frequency reports, correspondence mapping and geographic analysis; closes the loop on marketing activities by measuring campaign and ad effectiveness with weekly updates on nearly 60,000 consumer data elements via Simmons DataStream; and provides dashboards and automated alerts and other features and role-based access. For more information visit www.experian.com/simmons.
Employment Index aims to track recruitment trends
San Ramon, Calif., employment consulting company eQuest has created an Employment Index designed to provide a monthly analysis of job posting trends and how effectively online advertisements are performing based on candidate responses to those ads. The company intends to review thousands of opportunities gathered from its corporate customer base, index the responses by job classification and location and provide a synopsis of online recruitment activity. The eQuest Employment Index will also report on the spending patterns of the Fortune 500, including job posting volumes based on activity over the prior month. For more information visit www.equest.com.
Vovici releases its sixth-generation EFM platform
Dulles, Va., research company Vovici has made available Vovici 6, the next generation of its enterprise feedback management platform, featuring over 25 major feature enhancements including a new user interface for survey design, distribution and analysis. Vovici 6 aims to help novice-to-expert users drive the quick adoption of a centralized customer feedback platform across all aspects of the enterprise.
Features and enhancements include drag-and-drop survey organization; inline help, tips and videos; report theme builder; interactive reporting charts; ability to annotate charts; ability to test invitations and profiles; and dashboards for survey design, distribution and analysis. For more information visit www.vovici.com.
20|20 brings Webcams to QualBoard; offers online European training course
20|20 Technology, a division of 20|20 Research Inc., Nashville, Tenn., has updated its bulletin board platform QualBoard to include Webcam capability. The feature is intended to allow study participants to answer questions using Webcams. QualBoard with Webcams also includes EasyClip, 20|20’s video editor.
Finally, 20|20 Technology has added a training class to its Webinar and training series on online qualitative research. QualBoard Training for European first-time users will be offered in English every Wednesday at 6 a.m. EST; 11 a.m. London time; and 12 p.m. Paris time. For more information visit www.2020research.com/webinar-eu.
New data capture tool aims to provide the FACTS
Optimum Solutions Corporation, a Lynbrook, N.Y., research company, has introduced FACTS (Fast Accurate Capture Technology Solutions), a data capture technology designed to limitlessly mine the preferences of a company’s audience. FACTS’ capabilities include the following: telescoding (telescopic coding) to allow marketers to create a tree’s-eye view of any defined subject area; foreign-language data entry using ExoForms to transcribe verbatims in any language supported by Microsoft Windows; audio coding; three-pass entry for quality assurance; and dynamic survey processing for generating custom surveys geared toward each individual respondent and processing those surveys within FACTS without requiring template definitions. For more information visit www.oscworld.com.
New tool AMPS up Web site performance
SiteSpect, a Boston research company, has debuted SiteSpect AMPS (Automated Multivariate Performance [Optimization] Solution), a Web and mobile performance optimization solution that employs multivariate testing and behavioral targeting intended to determine causal relationships between individual performance-enhancement techniques and end-user experience. AMPS aims to accelerate site performance and improve the end-user experience and Web marketers’ key metrics, such as conversion rates and engagement.
Its behavioral targeting capabilities also aim to tailor the blend of performance optimizations based on user profile, browser type and an array of mobile device targeting options.
The SiteSpect AMPS is available as an on-premise enterprise appliance and a private, cloud-based ASP version. For more information visit www.sitespect.com.
Briefly
Fresno, Calif., research company Decipher Inc. has developed an interactive dashboard designed to allow clients to view and manipulate their market research data on the fly; review data in any variety of combinations; track projects; and create what-if scenarios. For more information visit www.decipherinc.com.
Research Panel Asia Inc., Tokyo, has released a Japanese consumer behavior database in its LifeStyle Index. Adding this to the existing Chinese database, LifeStyle Index aims to provide users data access on values, consumer attitudes, preferences and purchase behavior of Japanese and Chinese consumers, along with comparative data between the two. For more information visit www.researchpanelasia.com.
Automated Media Services Inc., Allendale, N.J., has developed a shopper tracking technology dubbed FlowScan, which is intended to record in real-time the precise flow of a shopper’s path in the retail environment. FlowScan is designed to generate time-based flow analytics based on shopper location data, captured moment-by-moment as shoppers journey the store. The data is expected to aid in shelf messaging, placement and packaging. For more information visit www.3gtv.com.
Accelerant Research, Charlotte, N.C., has begun offering BlogNog, its online qualitative research platform, free of charge to students and faculty for academic-related purposes, including project coursework, journal publication, thesis or dissertation. For more information visit www.blognogresearch.com.
Miami research company eCGlobalPanel has re-launched its U.S. Hispanic Panel after a two-and-a-half-year hiatus to focus on its Latin American panel. For more information visit www.ecgloblalpanel.com.
ESOMAR has debuted Research World Connect, an online platform for sharing trends in market research. RW Connect is designed to serve as a podium for open debate and discussion from ESOMAR members and will feature both original and archived content from the print issue in addition to open submissions from the research industry at large. For more information visit www.esomar.org.
Columbus, Ohio, research company iPinion LLC has released its smartphone survey platform iPinion for Android users. The mobile platform runs on all Android 2 operating systems. The company plans to release BlackBerry and Symbian apps later in 2011. For more information visit www.ipinionsurveys.com.
IMS Research, Wellingborough, U.K., has debuted its Strategic Market Assessment service, designed to provide objective, detailed and clear recommendations for the best markets to focus on to achieve profitable business growth. For more information visit www.imsresearch.com.
Borderless Access, a Bangalore, India, research company, has extended its panel service to Mexico. For more information visit www.borderlessaccess.com.
Louisville, Ky., research company Sedulo has introduced its ClarityQMR service to support physician surveys, focus groups and other qualitative market intelligence services on behalf of pharmaceutical clients. For more information visit www.clarityqmr.com.
Nuremberg, Germany, research company The GfK Group has added cell phone sampling to its Super OmniTel telephone omnibus in the U.S. The update will make it so that 200 are people called and interviewed by cell phone for every 1,000 interviewed. For more information visit www.gfk.com.
Yahoo! Inc., Sunnyvale, Calif., has launched Yahoo! AdLabs, a group focused on providing scientific leadership and accelerating innovation in digital advertising products through Yahoo!’s research organization Yahoo! Labs. For more information visit http://labs.yahoo.com.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, research company Pulse Group PLC has debuted its Pulse Connect Facebook and LinkedIn apps designed to allow users import their profiles into www.planet-pulse.com, its online research community portal. For more information visit www.pulse-connect.com.