NPD Partners with Real-Time Analysis Firm Neustar

Researcher and information provider The NPD Group has announced a partnership with real-time analytics pioneer Neustar MarketShare, combining NPD's data with Neustar's modeling, planning and resource allocation solutions.

The firms say the move 'will open up new opportunities for marketers to predict, evaluate and improve results'.

NPD tracks sales in more than twenty different sectors, via POS, consumer surveys and new receipt harvesting methods. Its new partner Neustar analyses vast amounts of data to provide services including targeted advertising, caller and contact identification, fraud and cyber attack prevention, and online corporate identity protection.

Together the two firms will build proprietary category marketing mix models, which will be delivered on Neustar's platform, giving clients a 'holistic point of view' on the effect of marketing activities on sales. Theories can be tested using 'what-if' scenarios to optimize marketing strategy.

George Terhanian (pictured), who leads NPD's Solutions Group, comments: 'Neustar MarketShare's solutions are the industry standard, and together we can help our clients identify what is truly driving sales - whether it's their marketing, their sales promotions, or external factors such as the economy'. Iván Markman, GM Marketing Services at Neustar, adds: 'Marrying our analytics and applications with real market data will enable our clients to make more confident decisions and data-driven marketing plans very quickly'.

Web sites are at www.npd.com and www.neustar.biz .