An Evaluation of Services Provided by the Market Research Industry

The stature of the market research industry appears threatened by uccusations including invasion of respondent privacy, excessive interviewing and disguised sales appeals. The much publicised lawsuit involving Beecham vs. Yankelovich questions the very foundation of the industry; the validity and reliability of the information generated by marketing researchers. Just how well is the industry performing? This article reports the results of an assessment of the quality of services provided by the research industry by measuring both suppliers' and buyers' perceptions of a number of service performance dimensions. Reactions to industry threats and attitudes toward certification are also examined.