NFO and ASI collaborate on new print testing product
Greenwich, Conn.-based NFO Research, Inc. and ASI Market Research, Inc., Stamford, Conn., have teamed up in a joint product offering. The product, NFO/ASI Targeted Print Testing, provides advertisers with a method of comprehensively testing print ads among targeted samples of consumers.
Advertisers who place ads in print media make significant investments in ad development and ad placement. Print testing is a means by which advertisers can test the effectiveness of an ad before total costs are incurred. Targeted print testing allows testing of ads among the specific audience the advertiser is attempting to reach. "In the real world, not all people respond to advertising the same way," says Bill Moult, president of ASI. "Therefore, advertising effectiveness is best measured among the consumers at whom the campaign is targeted, rather than a general audience." Locating targeted groups of consumers for testing can be difficult and costly with traditional print testing methods, he says.
NFO/ASI Targeted Print Testing allows advertisers to test among targeted audiences. Using NFO's pre-screened 450,000 household panel, targeted samples of consumers meeting virtually any criteria (i.e., sufferers of chronic ailments, the mature market, affluent households, households with children, brand users) can be located. In-home testing is administered by NFO using ASI's print test methods. The test provides multiple measures of the ad - communication efficiency, communications effectiveness, and diagnostic measures - to understand why the ad performed as it did.
Claritas offers waste-site data, ZIP code encyclopedia
Claritas/NPDC, Alexandria, Va., is offering the Environmental Hazards Database. The database is derived from information compiled by Environmental Risk Information & Imaging Services (ERIIS), also of Alexandria. Claritas provides the hazards data on-line via its Catalyst Connect system, or as a report, which can be ordered by phone. Claritas says it will ship within 24 hours. The system can take any U.S. address and provide an environmental risk report (ERIIS Scan) that lists potentially hazardous sites by type and proximity to the subject property. The data can also be formatted for use in spreadsheet software and geographic information system (GIS) mapping software. The data is regularly updated and draws on nine federal and state sources. Registered underground storage tanks are included. The database is available for several geographic levels, including a site radius around a given latitude-longitude point, census block group, census tract, ZIP code, county and state.
In addition, Claritas is now offering Rezide, a directory filled with comprehensive demographic details for every residential ZIP in the United States. For each ZIP, Rezide lists 122 demographic details about that area's population, age, income, employment, marital status, housing type, education, ethnicity, number of vehicles and more. The directory consists of 10 volumes, each of which covers one of the 10 five-digit ZIP postal service areas in the United States. So, for example, volume nine contains data for ZIPs beginning with nine, covering California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii and Alaska. Demographic statistics listed for each ZIP Code include: 1993 estimates of population, households and families; five-year projections for population and households; household size and income ranges; "ZIP Quality" ratings (comparing income, education, etc. to U.S. norm); age distributions, education level; racial and ethnic breakouts; housing information such as home values, housing types, ownership and rent data; occupation and industry; white-collar-to-blue-collar employment index; and family type, marital status. The cost for each volume of the directory is $195, while the complete set runs $895. Rezide is also available on magnetic tape and CD-ROM, and a Rezide database is available for geographic information system (GIS) software.
IRI gains drug chains' scanner data Chicago-based Information Resources Inc. has announced that Boots the Chemist and Superdrug, in separate actions, have decided to provide InfoScan NMRA, IRI's United Kingdom joint venture company, with sole access to the chains' scanner data for health and beauty-aid (HBA) products. It is estimated that together, these two retailers account for over half of the U.K. retail market for HBA products. This marks the first time that Boots, the U.K.'s leading drug chain, has made its point-of-sale scanning data available for research purposes. With data from Boots and Superdrug, InfoScan NMRA is now able to provide a comprehensive source of information on health and beauty-aid use in the United Kingdom.
D&B, Prodigy provide info to small businesses
Dun & Bradstreet Information Services, North America, and Prodigy Services Co., have signed an agree-ment that allows D&B to offer its marketing information on-line to Prodigy service members. The service, D&B Solutions, offers information on more than 9 million U.S. businesses via personal computers that are linked to the Prodigy service. The information can be used for direct marketing, sales prospecting, market analysis or job searching.
Simmons offers Choices II
Simmons Market Research Bureau Inc. has released Choices II. The fully integrated package is available in Windows and Macintosh platforms as well as local area networks. The first release, which came out in mid-December, included crosstab analysis, criteria searching throughout the database, reach and frequency, presentation-ready output and built-in graphics. Choices II also offers non-Simmons databases including Monroe Mendelsohn and JD Power car and truck studies. The second release is scheduled for the end of the first quarter of 1994. This release will include: Trender, full-help system, means/medians, enhanced count coding, and perceptual mapping. Simmons also has allied with MediaPlan Inc. With Choices II and MediaPlan's Manas planning software, the user can create a total media plan including reach and frequency for print and broadcast.
Trans Union and Fair, Isaac introduce Revenue Projection Model
Trans Union Corp. and Fair, Isaac and Co., Inc. have introduced Revenue Projection Model (RPM), a tool for predicting revenue from pre-screened solicitation prospects. RPM ranks solicitation prospects by the relative amount of revenue likely to be generated in the first 12 months of bankcard account life. Bankcard issuers can use RPM with their existing prescreen strategies to determine which individuals to solicit for preapproved credit offers. The product is most effective when used in conjunction with a risk model. It can also be integrated with clustering and segmentation tools, and custom response models. RPM was developed using a large sample from diverse bankcard portfolios, combined with credit bureau history information provided by Trans Union. The database was analyzed by Fair, Isaac to determine the credit bureau characteristics most predictive of revenue. RPM examines characteristics in categories including length of credit history, current levels of activity and usage, and payment information. Trans Union and Fair, Isaac also offer tools for validating RPM and consultation for incorporating RPM into solicitation strategies.
Global purchasing newsletter launched
W-Two Publications Ltd., Ithaca, N.Y., and Global Business Opportunities, Pound Ridge, N.Y., have introduced Market: Basket, a newsletter that follows trends in global purchasing power. The newsletter will look at relationships between consumer demographic and lifestyle trends, income and spending power. The goal of the newsletter is to help readers make comparisons among countries and to help them acquire a working knowledge of the different kinds of income measurements that are available and what they mean in the assessment of spending power.
1994 'Red Books' now out
National Register Publishing's 1994 Standard Directory of Advertising Agencies and Standard Directory of Advertisers, or "Red Books," continue to be enhanced by Reed Reference Publishing, which acquired the publications in 1992. The Standard Directory of Advertisers provides in-depth profiles of more than 26,000 national and regional advertisers with advertising budgets of at least $75,000. The directory is available in two editions: one arranged alphabetically by business; the other geographically. The 1994 editions feature more than 1,000 new advertisers and 1,000 new personnel. More than 90% of the listings have been completely updated, reflecting changes in personnel, sales, media expenditures and brands. Features new to the 1994 edition include: product categories by state index (all companies are organized geographically within each of 52 classifications); increased coverage of Canadian advertisers; three new business classifications (food retailers, government and state agencies, and cultural and recreational entertainment); and a services and suppliers section. The 1994 Standard Directory of Advertising Agencies profiles more than 8,700 agencies with at least $200,000 in billings and provides complete contact information, with more than 59,000 titles. More than 90% of the listings have been updated; there are 350 new listings. New features in the 1994 edition include: agency profiles with enhanced basic listings; special markets index with nine new categories; agency ranking summaries published by Advertising Age magazine; and services and suppliers section. An international edition of the Red Books is also available. The Standard Directory of International Advertisers and Agencies is also available. It features information on more than 2,000 advertisers and 2,000 agencies in 127 countries.
SPSS debuts new SPC Windows package
Chicago-based SPSS Inc. has introduced a new statistical process control (SPC) software package for quality improvement. Dubbed QI Analyst, the software package is designed for SPC in manufacturing. The package was developed to help users improve processes, cut waste, reduce non-conformance and meet customers' and management's quality improvement requirements. QI Analyst is one of the first SPC packages running under Microsoft Windows. It automatically: produces 21 high-resolution variable and attribute control charts, histogram and Pareto, short run and trend charts; applies Shewhart control tests; color codes charts to indicate the state of the process - green for in control, red for out of control; runs capability statistics such as CpK, Cr, Cp and Cpm; tests for normal distribution; and calculates trend lines and statistics.
Investext bumps up its databases
The Investext Group, Boston, has added research from two consulting firms - Killen & Associates, Inc. and Strategic Directions International, Inc. (SDi) - to its Marklntel market research databases. The two firms are online exclusively through Marklntel. Reports from Killen & Associates focus on major telecommunications, computer and information technology companies, with coverage of business developments, emerging market opportunities and strategies. SDi supplies research and analysis on the highly specialized analytical instrumentation industry. These reports provide technology assessment, strategic information and insight into industry trends and developments. The Marklntel databases - Marklntel and Marklntel Master - provide on-line access to studies from consulting and market research firms. The databases currently offer over 22,000 full-text, fully indexed reports, covering hundreds of industries and highly targeted market segments. Both databases are available only through I/PLUS Direct, the Investext Group's on-line delivery service.