US Research Grows Despite Troubled Economy

The US research industry showed robust growth in the last part of of 2007, according to the Research Industry Index (RII), the quarterly study by the Marketing Research Association (MRA).

The respectable increase in fourth quarter revenues came despite a national economy 'teetering on the precipice of recession' according to MRA. The number of RFPs and proposals increased by 5%, and revenue for booked projects by 3%, while operating margins remained stable.

The survey, consisting of 150 interviews, found 45% firms reporting an increase in business and 19% a decrease, with 36% saying business remained flat. Staffing levels increased by 2%.

Executive Director Larry Brownell comments: 'Business leaders are generally positive about their company performance. They feel new business prospects are strong, they have more new clients, and they've managed to hold on to a larger portion of existing clients.'

Interviews are conducted online among owners or senior level management of MR companies and end users, both quant and qual. The survey was hosted by Authentic Response and reporting completed by Cooper Roberts Research.

Glastonbury, CT-based MRA is online at www.mra-net.org.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.