••• online research
Added virtues for virtual
Webcam interviewing tool sees end-to-end updates
Nashville, Tenn.-based 20|20 Research has launched the next generation of its QualMeeting real-time Webcam interviewing software. QualMeeting 2.0 features a virtual lobby for participants; new interviewing tools such as drag-and-drop card sorting, polling questions and storyboarding; and expanded technical support. Additionally, a dedicated teleconference line for clients aims to ensure a behind-the-glass experience.
To shorten the review process, the solution includes a real-time integrated speech-to-text engine for a quick search of recorded conversation and an autoskip tool designed to isolate a single participant and his comments during a session.
20|20 also introduced a companion service, QualMeeting+Plus, to bundle training, project management and technical assistance.
www.2020research.com
••• data analysis
Portal for big data
Cloud-based tool includes over 150 million socioeconomic development indicators
Prognoz, a Perm, Russia, business analytics company, has released the Prognoz Data Portal, a cloud-based tool designed to monitor and analyze more than 150 million socioeconomic development indicators from over 200 national and international data sources.
Built on the Prognoz Business Intelligence Platform, Prognoz Data Portal is intended for experts and analysts in business and the public sector focused on marketing research, business development, product development and business strategy. It offers a range of macroeconomic indicators from a variety of sources, including national statistical services, international organizations and trade associations.
Prognoz Data Portal also includes a native search engine to filter and sort search results based on user-supplied criteria. In addition, time series analysis capabilities allow Data Portal users to analyze changes in indicators found over time using advanced statistical methods.
Queries can be saved, exported to different popular formats or used to create dashboards. Additionally, Data Portal allows users to format reports through a variety of business graphics.
www.prognoz.com/en/data_portal.php
••• data analysis
Reporting at the speed of light
Beacon improves performance, customization
Fresno, Calif., research company Decipher Inc. has updated its Beacon survey and reporting platform to improve speed and allow users to upload video with custom elements, such as dial testing, into surveys.
The reporting tool interface is designed to offer more flexibility to create banners, segments, table sets and to save and share reports. Updated export controls and report-sharing options are coupled with increased speed and performance, including easy selection of tables and graphs to create custom reports; the ability to save reports as shared, public or private; and new controls for exporting reports to PowerPoint or Excel.
Beacon also allows users to upload video content while utilizing the survey-building interface.
www.decipherinc.com
••• diy research
Supplementing self-serve solutions
Toluna updates QuickSurveys and SampleXpress
Wilton, Conn., research company Toluna has upgraded its DIY tool Toluna QuickSurveys. By combining QuickSurveys with the TolunaAnalytics reporting, visualization and analysis tool, users can create field reports, crosstabulations and PowerPoint presentations within minutes of launching a survey. TolunaAnalytics aims to provide advanced yet easy-to-use features to weight data, create custom segments and conduct significance testing.
Additionally, Toluna has debuted SampleXpress, a self-serve sampling platform designed to allow Toluna clients to choose survey respondents, assess feasibility and price and launch and remotely manage projects at any time. The platform includes an application programming interface for clients looking to request sample from within their own supply-chain systems. SampleXpress users can add, subtract or otherwise modify sample sources, including those of third-party suppliers, while projects are in the field.
www.toluna-group.com
••• data analysis
A better Bayesia
Get a handle on Bayesian networks with updated software
France-based research software company Bayesia has launched BayesiaLab 5.2, a desktop application (Windows/Mac/Unix) designed for knowledge discovery, data mining, analytics, predictive modeling and simulation – all based on the paradigm of Bayesian networks.
BayesiaLab aims to allow users to apply artificial intelligence tools to accelerate research workflows. Updates include a redesigned target optimization tool, which uses a genetic algorithm for comprehensive optimizations; automatic computation of contributions for each network generated through multi-quadrant analysis; disjunctive inference and negation of the evidence set for scenario analysis; workspace to start BayesiaLab with a set of previously-opened networks; and a token-borrowing function for floating licenses, which allows users to work offline.
www.bayesia.com
••• diy research
An open-ended partnership
SurveyMonkey and NVivo integrate to offer data analysis
SurveyMonkey, Palo Alto, Calif., and QSR International, a Doncaster, Australia, research software company, have partnered to combine SurveyMonkey with the NVivo data analysis platform to assist users in managing open-ended survey responses. Users can collect open-ended responses via SurveyMonkey and then bring data into NVivo for analysis. The new functionality for SurveyMonkey and NVivo is available as a standard feature in the latest versions of both software tools.
www.surveymonkeyandnvivo.com
••• retailing research
Three-app sampler
New apps predict and track shopper behavior
Prosper Insights and Analytics, Worthington, Ohio, has released its latest Smart Data Apps, including the Prosper Auto Outlook, the Retail Composite Spending Score and Outlook and the Lost Opportunity analytic, designed to help marketers analyze their competitive environment. The apps are available via Prosper’s InsightCenter technology.
The Prosper Auto Sales Outlook aims to provide marketers with directional insight into lightweight vehicle sales month-over-month and year-over-year, allowing automakers, insurance agencies, financial services, dealerships, manufacturers, analysts and investors to monitor projected auto sales.
The Prosper Composite Spending Score represents consumers’ intended level of retail spending over the next 90 days. The Prosper Retail Outlook takes this one step further and projects the average direction of seasonally-adjusted retail sales, excluding automobile dealers and gas stations, over the next 90 days.
Lost Opportunity is intended to provide retailers with insight into how many people are shopping in their stores most often for one category yet shopping a competitor for other categories. It also identifies how much money those shoppers are worth.
www.prosperinsights.com/showcase
••• reporting software
Say no to copy/paste
E-Tabs pairs charting tool with PowerPoint
London research company E-Tabs has launched E-Tabs Graphique, an ad hoc charting tool that is embedded into PowerPoint. E-Tabs Graphique is designed to offer instant visualization of research data. All outputs are in native PowerPoint and fully editable. Additional features include ranking and sorting, reusable data filters and chart styles and intelligent data matching.
www.e-tabs.com/graphique
••• mobile research
Hybrid for handhelds
Vision Critical launches qual/quant mobile solution
Vancouver, B.C., research company Vision Critical has debuted Mobile Discussion Forums, a product designed to offer integrated mobile qualitative (ideation) and quantitative (survey) research options in one feedback-gathering tool.
Using Mobile Discussion Forums, members can create new posts, comment, reply and vote on their favorite discussions. Conversation threads are maintained and presented in an easy-to-navigate flow and moderators can reply, edit and star posts, while removing any inappropriate posts, all from their handset. Moderators can create forums for desktop and mobile users with no special authoring required and most smartphones are supported.
www.visioncritical.com
••• mobile research
Making mystery shopping mobile
ShopTalk brings automation and immediacy to mystery shopping
Civicom Marketing Research Services, Greenwich, Conn., has launched Civicom ShopTalk, a self-administered mobile ethnographic research tool designed to let researchers collect user-generated content through mobile diaries. ShopTalk is especially geared toward mystery shopping.
Using Civicom’s mobile communications tools, ShopTalk lets mystery shoppers make real-time audiorecordings of their observations and insights. ShopTalk can be used with any mobile device and even with landlines. Mystery shoppers can press one number on their mobile device to start recording and upload text, photos, videos and documents.
Shopper recordings go into Civicom’s database, where they are sorted by shopper, event, time and date. Users can listen to these at any time and Civicom produces a report that includes text and sentiment analysis. Data can be additionally enhanced with infographics.
www.civi.com
••• facial coding
Expression and emotion
AdProbe measures physical and emotional response to campaigns
U.K.-based research company Vision One has launched AdProbe, a tool designed to measure the performance of advertising (including TV and radio) against seven emotional triggers, linking them via an E-index score to purchase intentions and overall ad effectiveness.
The tool, which uses facial expression analysis software, can be used in pre-testing, ongoing campaign tracking or in focus groups. It also aims to provide insights into brand fame and potential buzz among target audiences.
www.visionone.co.uk
••• advertising research
Peeling back the layers
Tool uses big data to understand audiences
Acxiom, a Little Rock, Ark., research company, has debuted the Audience Operating System (AOS), a marketing platform designed to integrate disparate sources of media channels and technology into an open platform. AOS consists of three layers: data, audience operations and applications.
AOS can incorporate virtually any legally-usable data elements – first-party, third-party or otherwise. The data layer offers context to understand your audiences, including the attributes needed for segmentation, the match data used for campaign deployments and Acxiom predictive models for further context.
The audience operations layer bridges traditional CRM and DMP information to bring together disconnected audiences.
The applications layer hosts browser-based tools for accelerating marketing efforts. AOS is pre-loaded with Acxiom’s core applications and supports apps from Acxiom’s development partners.
www.acxiom.com
••• Briefly
Research companies GfK, New York, and Pointlogic, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, have partnered to integrate data from GfK’s Automotive Image Barometer Study with a Pointlogic interface in one platform. Dubbed GfK-Pointlogic Brandpoint, the solution aims to allow users to analyze Image Barometer findings with interactive graphics and charting. The platform consists of an Insights Module and an ROI Module.
www.gfk.com/us
New York researcher The Nielsen Company has launched TOPTEN, a mobile app that aims to provide insight into trends across a variety of category lists, including TV shows, music, movies, Web sites, books, video games, mobile apps and consumer products. The app is available in the U.S. for iPhone, iPad and Android devices.
www.nielsen.com
Harpeth Marketing, a Franklin, Tenn., marketing consulting firm serving the market research industry, has launched the M|R Marketing Workshop, an online educational program developed to teach participants the process of marketing and sales and help them create a customized business development plan.
Participants are required to log in every two weeks for a two-hour session over a six-week period. During this time, Harpeth Marketing provides one-on-one telephone coaching; reviews each participant’s final marketing and sales plan; and provides quarterly, one-on-one telephone coaching over the following year.
www.mrmarketingworkshop.com
Berlin research company SensoMotoric Instruments (SMI) has released the next generation of its SMI Eye Tracking Glasses. SMI Eye Tracking Glasses 2.0 have been updated to offer a pocket-size recorder designed to allow fully mobile in-field research and record extra-long tasks and work sessions.
www.smivision.com
Atlanta research company StandPoint has debuted the Activation Workshop, an interactive program designed to help companies put their research plan into motion. The workshop is three days long spread over a two-week period.
www.standpointgroup.com
New York research company Hall & Partners has launched Connect: Big Thinking on Our Connected World, a publication focused on thought leadership regarding brand engagement in the digital world.
www.hallandpartners.com/connect
Catalyst Healthcare Research, Nashville, Tenn., has released 5 Questions to Ask About Patient Experience Surveying, a white paper intended to help health care executives understand how to maximize ROI in patient experience surveying.
www.catalysthealthcareresearch.com
Nimbus-Online Inc., a Bellevue, Wash., research company, has released a white paper that details how its BioNimbus technology is suited for packaging research in a 3-D virtual reality space.
www.nimbus-online.com
Aptel Research, Cambridge, Mass., has launched the Patient Voices Syndicated Report Series, which aims to provide insights into the emotional and rational factors that impact the patient journey through specific chronic diseases in specialty markets. The first report covers multiple sclerosis in the U.S.
www.aptelresearch.com
Norrköping, Sweden, research software company Dapresy has updated its Dapresy Pro research reporting solution with version 8.3. Improvements include greater capacity, more choice in the statistics that can be applied to a report and new options such as bringing statistical tests, significance and confidence limits into market research data analysis charts. The solution also features a new software interface to communicate directly with other data hosts and data collection platforms.
www.dapresy.com
Decision Resources, a Burlington, Mass., research company, has released its Strategic Insights report series to evaluate industry trends to inform biopharmaceutical corporate, commercial, development and marketing strategies.
www.decisionresources.com
The Optimization Group, an Ann Arbor, Mich., research company, has launched the Advertising Agency Hub, a resource for advertising agencies to learn how to use research to help their clients succeed.
www.optimizationgroup.com
Tokyo research company AIP Corporation has added Australia to its twice-monthly omnibus. Australia is the 13th country or region covered.
www.aip-global.com
London-based Ipsos Healthcare has launched its syndicated patient journey studies with OncoJourney, which offers a view of the oncology patient journey.
www.ipsos.com
InCrowd, a Cambridge, Mass., research company, has launched InCrowd Answers, a DIY intelligence-gathering tool for the pharmaceutical industry.
www.incrowdnow.com
Reston, Va., research company comScore Inc. has released mobile commerce (m-commerce) sales estimates by product category occurring on both smartphones and tablets. ComScore’s m-commerce measurement capability builds upon its existing top-line tracking of m-commerce spending that began in 2010.
www.comscore.com
Hertfordshire, U.K., research company 2Europe Ltd. has changed its Web address to www.2-europe.com.