CRITERIA OF CHOOSING MARKET RESEARCH AGENCY IN PRINCIPLE:

Formal criteria:

• The price per project (if agency meets the budget)
• The general experience (whether the management and executives have the experience or are just fresh on the market)

Informal criteria:

• Relevant conversion of marketing decision problems to market research problems
• Accuracy in choice of research methodologies and tools, logically provided approach and relevancy of proposed sources of information
• Accuracy of proposed analyses due to the general context of research study
• The way of outcomes presentations, reporting and general shape and format of cooperation

Additional criteria:

Add- on proposed by market research agency:

• If there is “ongoing” monitoring of the study conduct proposed by market research agency? (online participation, frequently progress updates etc)
• If there is a possibility of debriefing after some closed parts of the study?
• If agency would propose some small sample tests to check out the market research methodologies, quotas and samples (if they ask the right people in right way to achieve expected result)

Flexibility of the agency:

• If market research agency is able to conduct only part of the study with option of redesigning the entire study shape and format in the manner that outcomes would be useful for the other purpose
• If agency is able to meet short time deadlines to complete the study
• If agency is able to help the client with unified study for several markets

Insights from the research study

• If agency offers also consulting assistance in drafting the marketing strategy for several markets
• If agency is able to analyse outcomes from several market and clarify the results in the unified manner
• If agency is able to force their executives and partners to meet the same high service standards by their research cooperatives and external executives

Personnel:

• If the management of the agency is involved in the project
• If the personnel has any other additional experience and abilities