General Mills and MarketTools Form Strategic Partnership 26/06/00 General Mills and MarketTools, Inc., the world's leading ASP (applications service provider) for research and feedback solutions, are linking in a strategic partnership to conduct consumer research via the Internet. The alliance combines General Mills' methodologies and insights with MarketTools' pioneering software and infrastructure technology for Web-hosted research and feedback. General Mills (a leading packaged grocery manufacturer with international sales of US$7 billion) will be a founding customer of MarketTools, with plans to conduct an increasing share of its consumer research through MarketTools applications. The agreement also includes the formation of a separate joint venture company that will conduct customised Internet research for firms worldwide. General Mills will take an equity stake in MarketTools, and will own a 50% interest in the joint venture company. Based on General Mills' experiences to date, the Internet can save as much as 50% in the cost of research, and reduce research time by up to 75 %. According to Steve Demeritt, Vice Chairman General Mills, "We expect the Internet to be the preferred research vehicle for companies around the world in the 21st century. Internet applications can clearly deliver more efficient research. More important, by maintaining the same rigorous consumer sampling methods we've always adhered to, the quality of the research can be higher because consumers tend to be more candid and thorough in their responses." Instead of answering the phone at an inconvenient time, or being stopped for a quick survey when rushing down the high street, consumers can now log onto the Internet at their convenience to answer questions and give advice. "We find that consumers are more candid and more honest with us when they give their feedback to us through the Internet," said Gayle Fuguitt, Vice President of Consumer Insights for General Mills. "When consumers choose when, where and how they give advice, it fits into their busy lives better, and therefore they can be even more helpful in guiding us to product solutions and improvements for them. Candid consumer insights are key to innovation. That's what made MarketTools such an attractive partner. General Mills knows what consumers mean when they speak and MarketTools knows the most efficient and effective ways to speak to them." As Bill Schlegel, President and CEO of Market Tools comments, "The Internet is changing the way we reach our customers and the way they reach us. Consequently, we envision a greater degree of interactivity between companies and consumers, which will ultimately lead to better products and services offered to consumers. General Mills is a perfect partner for MarketTools because of their decades of leadership in leveraging consumer insights. MarketTools in turn is helping General Mills take a leading role in utilising the Internet to facilitate more design and development of new products as well as increase the emphasis on monitoring consumer and employee satisfaction with existing products." The joint venture is expected to begin operations as early as August.