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Market Research

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The market research function within an organization

Market research departments have been the historical way by which the larger commercial enterprises have bought and managed their research. Although the death of the research department has been heralded for some time, it is still present in many companies although it may well be operating under another name. The traditional function of a research department was, in effect, to be the custodian of the company’s information about brands and markets, and normally this was done from the perspective of the consumer. This would involve managing the information environment, teaching best practice to the company and its employees, acting as a central resource for buying the research and being available to help in its interpretation. In recent times there has been a growing dissatisfaction with the service provided by the research industry, and therefore with the research departments that lie within companies. This has translated into an increasingly stated need to have ‘consumer insight’, which seems to mean the ability to conceptualize

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Market Intelligence

the world from the consumer’s point of view. It is probable that the source of this change is the greater knowledge that exists in the marketing community about research as a result of the very much greater volume of it being done, and the fact that it is now generally taught on undergraduate business courses. Clearly, in the long term this is a positive thing for the industry.

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Market research departments have always had a role greater than just buying market research. This role includes an educational one, a best practice one, and one relating to managing and harbouring the brands and market knowledge of the company. The organization of market research departments becomes difficult when the company is large, and there is a dilemma about whether to centralize or to distribute it. This is especially relevant to...