The annual conference of Esomar, the global market research association, was held in New Orleans from 18 to 21 September.
Market research? Not really, although the website still proclaims that Esomar is "the essential organisation for encouraging, advancing and elevating market research throughout the world", because one of the major themes of the congress was to redefine the profession, in particular by rewriting the CCI/Esomar International Code, the bible for all market research specialists.
In its current version, the code refers to "Market research, which includes social and opinion research"; the new version speaks more simply of "Research which includes all forms of market, opinion and social research and data analytics". Clearly, big data has come a long way and Esomar confirms that knowledge of citizens and consumers can now be obtained - also - by means other than direct questioning.
As the association's American representatives pointed out, research has to face up to 3 key challenges: automation, digital technology and globalisation. These 3 challenges intersect and overlap, with digital technology facilitating automation and accelerating globalisation.
In short, the conference - strangely entitled WOW, but nothing to do with World of Warcraft, though... - was the conference of a profession that is seeking, or rather seeking to redefine, its contours. In 2016, but already in 2015 in Dublin, in 2014 ...
Marketing - and marketing research - must adapt to a world in upheaval: there's no point in asking people who leave traces everywhere they go where they were the day before, their memory will certainly prove less accurate than cookies and other Beacon tags; on the other hand, to better understand why they prefer one product seen in a shop window rather than another, it's not certain that the best data scientist in the world will be able to understand their deepest motivations...
Marketing is increasingly divided between those who are unconditional supporters of automation and those who believe that machines cannot be totally - or solely - trusted.
It's true, a web surfer who has just visited several sites offering coffee machines doesn't need to think long to send him a discount offer: you just need to be quicker than your competitors and be the best bidder to win the business. In the long run, we'll just be selling me too products at bargain prices... to the delight of cash-strapped customers.
We can also try to understand why some consumers hesitate, rereading the technical data sheets 100 times, so as not to give in to the siren song of promotions: perhaps they can't find what they're looking for (well, a coffeemaker to their taste), and there is room for other, better adapted products... and no doubt offering better margins!
As well as automation, which ultimately destroys value, there remains the vast field of strategic thinking, which necessarily involves in-depth knowledge of customers and their expectations/needs/motivations.
