Europe had largest research market in 1996

Each year, the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR), based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, conducts a study to estimate the total size of the market for market research. The most recent data available shows that in 1996 the worldwide value of the research market was estimated to be worth just over $11 billion, 9 percent more than in 1995 The market in Europe grew by 10 percent over the year and accounted for 46 percent of the worldwide total in 1996, compared to 45 percent in 1995. 



The U.S. market grew by 9 percent, taking 36 percent of the worldwide total; Japan’s market shrank and its share decreased from 10 percent to 9 percent and the market for the rest of the world fell from 11 percent to 10 percent. These apparent shifts are partially accounted for by exchange rate fluctuations and also because the total for Europe includes Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Slovenia and the former Yugoslavia for the first time.

Within Europe, Germany continues to have the largest market ($1,171 million), followed by the U.K. ($1045 million) and France ($883 million). Together the three major markets account for nearly two-thirds of all European research sales. As in previousyears, Italy, Spain and The Netherlands are in fourth, fifth and sixth positions in the total European market.

The pattern of growth was uneven in Europe. In the larger markets, France grew by 3 percent, Germany by 7 percent, and the U.K. by 10 percent between 1995 and 1996. Fast growing markets were Russia (up by 139 percent), the Czech Republic (up by 27 percent) and over 15 percent growth in Sweden and Norway.

Top new product introductions of ’97

What was new in 1997? Try more than 25,000 new consumer packaged goods, a record number of new products. For the second consecutive year, packaged goods companies introduced a record number of new products, according to Naples, N.Y.-based Marketing Intelligence Service, Ltd., a new product reporting and product retrieval firm. Marketers introduced a total of 25,261 new food, beverage, health & beauty aids, household, miscellaneous and pet products in 1997, eclipsing the previous high of 24,496 products set in 1996.



Though 1997 was a record year overall, food launches declined 5.9 percent to 10,416. Ditto for beverages (down 2.8 percent to 3,424 new products) and miscellaneous products (cigarettes, car care, etc.) off by 37.7 percent to 291 new launches. All other new product industries reported new product gains from 1996 including health & beauty aids (up 14.2 percent to 9,371 new products), household products (up 49.9 percent to 1,177 entries) and pet products (up 31.1 percent to 582 products).

And while the quantity of new products has never been higher, the quality of introductions as measured by the percentage of new products offering significant new or added benefits slipped compared to 1996. According to Marketing Intelligence Service’s Innovation Ratings, 5.8 percent of 1997’s new products featured innovations in any one of the following six areas: formulation, positioning, packaging, technology, creating a new market and merchandising. That’s a sizable decline from 1996’s 7.2 percent innovation rating and wel! below the peak innovation rate of 18.6 percent in 1986.

Facing an explosion of choices in the marketplace, it’s more difficult than ever to find ways to stand apart from the crowd. Even so, the top 10 new product innovations chosen by Marketing Intelligence Service from the more than 25,000 new entries reported in 1997 in the firm’s Product Alert publication not only stand apart from the crowd, but manage to offer truly new benefits and features. All were introduced nationally, regionally, or into test markets in 1997.

A fun appetizer, an easy main course or a tasty snack -  it’s all three when it comes to versatile new Dippin’ Pizza. A fun new twist on frozen pizza, Dippin’ Pizza is a ringshaped, cheese-stuffed pizza that comes with its own bowl of zesty dipping sauce. Just pull or cut off pieces and dip them in the sauce. Waupaca, Wis.-based Chef Fresh Frozen, Inc. is the manufacturer.

Every young athlete’s dream is to end up on the front of a Wheaties box. Impossible for all but a select few, those dreams can (almost) come true for kids that live in areas that offer new HomeTown Stars Cereal from Bismarck, N.D.-based Carlisle Cereal Co. That’s because the front of these cereal boxes feature pictures of local sports teams, making them instant collector’s items and conversation pieces.

Do you drink more than three glasses of milk a day? If not you may not be getting enough calcium, which is where Uncle Ben’s Calcium Plus Rice comes in. Fortified with calcium and eight essential vitamins, Calcium Plus contains as much calcium (in each one-cup serving) as a glass of milk. It’s an easy and painless way to add calcium to the diet. Consumers can choose from two varieties - Original Long Grain Rice and Instant
Long Grain Rice.

Ever long for a bowl of ice creamonly to lose the longing after scooping through ice cream that has the consistency of dried concrete? Well you can put those ice cream scoops away thanks to Breyers Soft’n Creamy Ice Cream. That’s because Soft’n Creamy scoops right out of the carton, straight from the freezer, without bending your spoon. Offered in chocolate and fudge twirl flavors, it’s new from Green Bay, Wis.-based Good Humor-Breyers Ice Cream.

Colgate Total Toothpaste does it all. It’s the first and only toothpaste on the U.S. market to help prevent gingivitis, plaque and cavities simultaneously. It’s also the first toothpaste to contain the antibacterial ingredient triclosan as well as the patented copolymer Gantrez, which binds triclosan to teeth, producing a timed release action that enables Colgate Total to work between brushings - another first for toothpaste. It’s new from New York-based Colgate-Palmolive Co.

Every parent knows the drill: water and disposable diapers don’t mix, so those summertime trips to the beach or dips in the wading pool mean rubber pants or nothing at all. That was before the introduction of Huggies Little Swimmers Disposable Swimpants from Neenah, Wis.-based Kimberly-Clark. Unlike regular disposable diapers which swell in water, Little Swimmers contain unique absorbent material that protects without swelling in water. Little Swimmers come in two sizes and severn colors, including hot pink, royal
blue and turquoise.

Coppertone Kids Colorblock Disappearing Purple Sunblock is another innovative convenience product aimed at parents who have their hands full. Applying sunblock to kids is difficult even in the best of circumstances, and when you miss a spot, it’s obvious only after.the damage is done. Colorblock puts an end to those missed spots because it goes on purple so you can see what’s covered and what isn’t. The purple color disappears completely after the SPF 30 sunblock is rubbed into the skin. Colorblock is new from Memphis, Tenn.-based Schering-Plough HealthCare Products, Inc.

If window cleaning, especially outdoor, second-story windows isn’t your bag, then you might want to check out new Windex Outdoor Concentrated Liquid Glass Cleaner. Just hook this bottle up to your garden hose and spray your windows, right through the screens! Harmless to plants, paint and siding, Windex Outdoor features a special sheeting action that allows windows to dry without wiping. A 32 ft. oz. bottle cleans 18-23 windows. Windex Outdoor is manufactured by Racine, Wis.-based S.C. Johnson & Son.

Americans are eating more meals away from home and on the run, which is probably good news for dry cleaners but bad news for clothes. Clothes get a reprieve with Shout Wipes, which take the stain removing power of Shout brand stain treater on the road in a towelette format which, when used on fresh stains, keeps most from setting into clothes and eliminates many completely. Packed in convenient pouches, Shout Wipes are easily carried in a purse or pocket. They’re new from Racine, Wis.-based S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.

Tide HE High Efficiency Laundry. Detergent may be a little ahead of its time in 1997, but it’s likely to be the first of many products designed to work with new horizontal axis washing machines starting to appear in stores. These front-loaders use up to 40 percent less water per wash and over 50 percent less electricity than regular washers. But using regular detergent in them can bring their mechanical cleaning action to a screeching halt due to oversudsing, something low-sudsing Tide HE powder and liquid address. Tide HE is new from Cincinnati, Ohio-based Procter & Gamble.

Some of the more interesting innovations in 1997 came from international markets. These top five international innovations were chosen from the new product innovations featured in Marketing Intelligence’s International Product Alert.

Made with menthol and eucalyptus, Wrigley’s Airwaves Chewing Gum claims to be the first "vapor release" chewing gum in the U.K. and allegedly minimizes nasal congestion How do you get kids to eat their vegetables? If you’re the maker of new Wacky Veg Vegetables you add chocolate flavoring to your carrots, baked bean flavors to peas and pizza flavors to sweet corn. They’re offered in the U.K.

Easier and safer to open and close than cans (particularly for children or families with kids) is the new resealable standing pouch for Inaba Vacuum Pack Tuna, which is offered in Japan. You don’t need a spoon to enjoy Yoplait Petit Miam Dairy Dessert Tubes. Available in berry and vanilla flavors, thisfi’omagefi’ais is packaged in plastic tubes that eliminate the need for a spoon. It’s sold in Australia.

Women who hate to shave their legs are a natural market for Bio Depiless Body Lotion. New in the U.K., thismoisturizing lotion is made with a biological hair retardant that actually slows down hair regrowth.

Strong brand equity bolsters Web site

As the number of sites on the Infobahn continues to proliferate with almost unbelievable speed, its toll upon both consumers and producers of Web site content is becoming increasingly clear. Web surfers report feeling lost, overwhelmed by an abundance of sites commercial and personal, while companies are getting lost, their sites floundering in an ocean of information.

A mere two years ago, just being on the Internet was enough to keep abreast of the Internet revolution. But it is becoming ever more obvious that the crucial challenge facing companies on the Web today is no longer "simply" having a presence on the Web, but retaining and maintaining their on-line customer base. Companies can no longer assume that "if they build it, the customers will come," or, even more important,-that "they will come back."

As reported in the Cyber lnsider newsletter, a publication of Cyber Dialogue and Yankelovich Partners Online, a Cyber Dialogue Omnibus survey conducted in October 1997 suggested that one of the keys to building a stable, loyal customer base on-line is differentiation through a strong and trustworthy brand presence. In the survey of 300 consumers the most-cited reason for first-time and repeat visits, ranking above even the traditional "free stuff" requirement (56 percent), is trust in a company or brand name (59 percent).

Respondents in the survey also mentioned customized E-mail news updates relevant to the consumer’s interests (51 percent), and site announcements or updates (50 percent) as important factors in their decision to return to a site. Interestingly, the survey’s participantsidentified the recognition of a brand from off-line media such as TV and magazines as a relatively minor component (40 percent) of the equation for building and sustaining loyal site visitors.

The survey questions also sought to examine the role of branding in promoting customer click-thrus. When asked what makes them more likely to click on some Web page advertisements than others, respondents emphasized having the right product (90 percent), being a recognizable off-line brand (54 percent), and possessing a sense of humor (52 percent) as being among the most motivating factors. Toggle-this, one of the more suecessful on-line advertisers, uses a sophisticated blend of humor and clever programming to keep computer users glued to their desktops.

Taken together, these survey questions highlighted the difficulties of successful site and product branding in a largely undifferentiated medium where all sites are initially created equal. The data suggests that while companies with established off-line brands possess an inherent marketing advantage over any upstart on-line competition - even in cyberspace - this leverage is far from secure.

The democratic nature of the Interact - where consumers can easily vote with their mouse clicks and keyboard strokes - makes brand leveraging of paramount importance. The emphasis placed by respondents upon trust in a brand, but not necessarily upon one with an established off-line presence, suggests that marketers must strive to safeguard the "name" above all else. The data suggests that marketers and companies who acquire a reputation for exploitative on-line behavior - the selling of lists, high-pressure selling, or overly personal questioning - will have gained little and lost much. 

Local carriers may lose customer base

Local phone companies could be at risk of losing more than a third (36.5 percent) of their current residential customer base as competition increases in the local market, based on the findings of a national study conducted by Aragon Consulting Group’s research subsidiary. Aragon is a St. Louis-based management consulting firm that serves the telecommunications, utility and media industries.

These findings surfaced when residential telephone customers participating in Aragon’s study were asked which they would select to provide their local phone service if they could choose from among their current provider, a long-distance carrier, an electric utility or cable television company.

"While it’s true that 63.5 percent of our respondents say they would select their current local phone company, we expected this number to be high - the local companies have the home field advantage," says Gary Miller, chairman and CEO of Aragon Consulting Group.

"That said, it’s notable to find that 14.5 percent of respondents say they would pick their long-distance carrier for local service, 3.8 percent say their electric utility and 1.2 percent say their cable company," says Miller.

The remaining 17.0 percent participating in the study gave other responses, such as "whichever company offers the least expensive option," "depends on the service" or they simply could not .say what they would do.

Since the Telecommunications Act of 1996 opened the door to such competition among service providers in the local calling market, Aragon also asked consumers to rate the reliability of the service they receive from their long-distance and local telephone service providers as well as their electric utility and cable television carrier on a scale of one to seven, with seven being "very reliable."

"The telephone companies clearly came out ahead on the reliability scale with 71.0 percent of respondents saying their long-distance service is ’very reliable’ and 70.0 percent saying their local phone service is ’very reliable,’ but the electric utilities are on their heels," says Miller. Nearly 64.0 percent of those who participated in the study rate electric service as "very reliable," while only 32.9 percent of cable company customers rate that service similarly.

"This data gives credence to future alliances between long-distance comparties and utilities, much like that of AT&T with Kansas City-based UtiliCorp United and Philadelphia-based PECO Energy Co., as long-distance companies look for ways to enter the local market and utilities facing deregulation search for additional streams of revenue," says Miller. "The utilities have the network to provide the residential connections and a relatively good reputation for reliable service, while the long-distance carriers have the telecommunications expertise and an even better service reputation."

A national random sample of 400 adult was drawn to complete the study with a +/-5 percent margin of error.