Synovate to measure ad effectiveness through digital media

(20 May 2010 4:00 pm)


MUMBAI: The Aegis Group-owned global market research firm Synovate has made a major investment in marketing research in the digital environment through the creation of Digital Centre of Excellence.

Based in London, the centre will service clients globally. It will specialise in understanding and measuring the effectiveness of brands' advertising through digital media.


Explaining the rationale behind the initiative, Synovate capabilities and practices CEO Ged Parton said, "Whilst many companies are making a good deal of effort recording what is happening in the digital environment, Synovate believes that there is still breakthrough work to be done in understanding how the environment works at the individual person level to build, support, reinforce and change brand relationships."

Synovate has also initiated a significant 'research on research' effort. The programme will be led by Philip Shaw, head of digital communications research for Synovate in the UK. Shaw will work closely with Synovate's innovation leaders including Director of Innovation Dr Jan Hofmeyr, based in Cape Town, South Africa.

Parton said: "Our intention is to regularly publish what we fully expect to be provocative and challenging thought pieces contradicting some of the current received wisdom in the industry and reinforce our commitment to challenging the industry and living our research reinvented mission."

The company is already running pilot 'research on research' programmes. These include:

- assessing the relationship between social media buzz and commercially relevant brand relationship, i.e., as relationships move market share moves;

- reviewing actual communication exposure versus claimed memory utilising cookie based technology;

- a URL "webmeter": a browser plug in this captures panel members' online behaviour and relates this behavioral data to attitudinal changes.

Parton also confirmed that Synovate's strategy is to partner with external technology firms. "We are specialists in the why questions of research - why people think as they do, why they behave as they do, why they chose as they do. It makes good sense for us to stick to our core competency and partner with outstanding technology based specialists who have the soft and hardware skills that our clients need."