Ipsos Buys Marketing Metrics

Ipsos has this week announced the acquisition of Marketing Metrics (MMI), US-based specialist researchers in customer relationship and customer satisfaction management.

Ipsos' CRM / CSM research currently accounts for 8% of total revenues and in 2004 will be grouped globally under the Ipsos Loyalty research division, which will be headed by Ipsos' Paris-based CEO Henri Wallard.

MMI is based in Paramus NJ, was founded in 1984 by Terry G. Vavra, and generated close to $10 million USD in revenues last year. It ranks among the 50 largest research companies in the US and is known for its proprietary models 'The Customer Delight Principle' and 'Aftermarketing'. It also offers customized solutions to clients in the luxury auto manufacturing, global investment banking, international retail and telecommunications sectors.

'We're delighted to have Terry and his team bring their best-in-class research and modelling methodologies in the CRM/CSM fields to Ipsos', Wallard said. 'MMI gives our clients new perspectives and solutions to help solve their business challenges along with sophisticated CRM/CSM research and data mining decision-making tools'.

According to Vavra, MMI clients will benefit from 'the breadth and scope of Ipsos global capabilities in data collection, its norms and databases, and its research specialization focus'.

Rupert Walters, COO of Ipsos North America, emphasises MMI's 'rich history of innovative project assignments and a roster of internationally respected clients' and adds that his company is 'particularly excited about the potential of MMI's newest work in linkage analysis (satisfaction to profits) and satisfaction action-planning'.

Ipsos currently offers US clients products and services in three of the company's five research specializations: advertising (offered by Ipsos-ASI), marketing (Ipsos-Insight, Ipsos-Novaction and Ipsos-Vantis), and public opinion (Ipsos Public Affairs). The addition of CSM/CRM leaves only media research, which given Ipsos' status as 'fastest growing market research firm in the US' [Inside Research] could lead to idle speculation in which DRNO, naturally, will not indulge...

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

• Marketing Metrics (MMI)
• All news