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European Online Leader Crosses Pond
European online fieldwork provider Research Now is following up its recent Australian launch with a sales office in New York. The office, supported by two new Directors, will sell survey data from the company's European online panel of over 700,000 potential respondents to the US market.
Research Now launched offices in Sydney & Brisbane in September (www.mrweb.com/drno/news4561.htm ) and listed in the UK on the AIM exchange in August 2005. The US launch follows several months of activity at North American trade shows and reflects demand from North American clients for access to quality European online panels.
Two new Client Service / Sales Directors, Scott Toro and Alex Sunnerstam, will be dedicated to developing the North American market. Toro was previously responsible for selling European research in the USA for Ciao AG, since acquired by Greenfield Online Inc, while Sunnerstam joins from UK online media research specialist Quickwise and was previously at Datamonitor. Research Now Chief Exec Chris Havemann describes the new arrivals as 'two very experienced and professional online research client facing people who can build on the foundations we have already laid in the USA over the last few months'.
MD Andrew Cooper will head up the new US team but will remain based in London, while Sadia Perveen, the Client Service Manager previously responsible for growing US sales from the UK, will move from London to the New York office in the New Year.
Online survey research accounts for some 29% of the US market, while the European online market has only c.4% market share but is rapidly increasing. Cooper, who says US researchers' familiarity with online research for their own market is driving demand for European data collected online, told DRNO that US clients are showing an interest for a number of reasons. 'We are seeing a demand for an alternative option to the two existing US providers, who have both recently acquired the owners of European online panels [Greenfield/Ciao and SSI/Bloomerce]. A choice of two is not a particularly large choice. Also, they like the fact that we're Europeans selling European samples - we have twelve nationalities in our office, and we really understand the cultural nuances. The other providers have bought in Europe but are not selling with European people in the US.'
'It's not something we've done lightly - a lot of British businesses struggle in the US' adds Cooper. 'But it's not as if we're a British car manufacturer selling cars against US made alternatives. US companies have got to buy European samples from somebody with a panel actually in Europe, and buying them from Europeans at source makes sense.' Asked about further global expansion, for example an Asian office, Cooper says the priority is to build up the existing offices and markets. 'There's lots of opportunity in Europe and the US first'.
Research Now, which itself is online at www.researchnow.co.uk , owns the 'Valued Opinions' family of research panels across Europe (UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Republic of Ireland and Austria) - home page at www.valuedopinions.co.uk ..
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