Trends in Primary Market Research – 2021
The blog is for those interested in understanding the performance of primary market research majors like Nielsen, Kantar, and Ipsos in 2020 and the trends post COVID’19.
COVID’19 had a great impact on the business and the manner in which business will be conducted in the future.
Let’s understand the performance of primary market research majors like Nielsen, Kantar, and Ipsos in 2020.
Performance of primary market research majors in 2020
Nielsen Holdings plc, a global measurement, and data analytics company, continues to be at the helm of the primary market research industry with revenue of $ 6,290 million in 2020.
Kantar is one of the world’s leading data, insights, and consulting company and in 2020 has achieved a revenue of $ 3,479 million
Ipsos Group S.A. is a multinational primary market research and consulting firm with a revenue of Euro 1,837.4 million (~ $ 2,187 million)
Nielsen Holdings plc
Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, with headquarters in New York, has operations in over 90 countries, including many emerging markets.
It covers approximately 80% of the world’s population and holds leading market positions in many of our services and geographies.
Nielsen provides the most complete and trusted view available of consumers and markets worldwide.
More than 70% of Nielsen’s business is from annual revenue has been committed under contracts.
Nielsen is divided into two business units
- Nielsen Global Media provides media and advertising industries with unbiased and reliable metrics that create a shared understanding of the industry required for markets to function.
- Nielsen Global Connect provides consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers with accurate, actionable information and insights and a complete picture of the complex and changing marketplace that companies need to innovate and grow.
Nielsen Business Segment Overview
Media
Media provides media and advertising companies reliable metrics to succeed across the $600 billion global advertising market. Media helps clients to define customers they would like to reach, optimize the outcomes, and through cross-platform measurement bring the best of TV and digital measurement.
Revenue from the Media segment is generated from television, radio, digital, and mobile audience measurement services, and analytics. This helps the client to establish the value of airtime and more effectively schedule and promote programming and optimize media spends
Connect
Connect provides Consumer Packaged goods (CPG) manufacturers and retailers with information about products at the marketplace.
Connect provides the tools that build predictive models to turn observations into business decision making and enabling business strategy
Business data and analytics provide an essential foundation in the rapidly evolving marketplace.
Revenue for Connect segment comprises from:
- Measurement services – core tracking and scan data (transactional measurement and consumer behavior information) in the Consumer-Packaged goods (CPG) industry. This data is utilized to measure market share, tracking sales traction per month, and other analytics.
- Consumer intelligence and analytical services for product development and marketing activities.
Performance of Nielsen
Holdings plc 2020
Nielsen revenue at $ 6,290 million in 2020 and a 3.2% decline.
Media Segment Revenues
Media revenue stands at $ 3,361 mill. the decline by 2.3%.
Revenue from Predict / Optimize (custom insights) decreased 6.6%, reflecting an impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports, Gracenote auto, and short-cycle revenue.
Connect Segment Revenues
Connect revenue declines by 4.2% and reaches $ 2,929 mill. in 2020
Revenue from Predict / Activate (custom insights) decreased 4.5%, reflecting an impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Partially offset by acquisition of Precima (Global, innovative data science company enabling retailers turn shopper insights into strategic advantage) in January 2020
COVID-19 impact on Nielsen Operations
COVID-19 impacted the revenue from sports, auto, and other non-contracted sources for Nielsen Global Media
Nielsen Global Connect witnessed challenges due to COVID for recruitment, metering, and monitoring the media panelist homes (Media business) and retail measurement services in markets that are heavy in traditional trade (connect services)
Major Strategic contract in 2020
The acquisition of Precima (a Global, innovative data science company enabling retailers to turn shopper insights into strategic advantage) in January 2020 strengthened the media business.
On October 31, 2020, Nielsen entered into an agreement to sell Global Connect business to Advent for $2.7 billion in cash. On February 11, 2021, the shareholders & board approved the transaction.
Kantar
Kantar is a data and evidence-based agency providing insights and actionable recommendations to clients, worldwide.
London is the H.O. of Kantar group and it has more than 30,000 employees working in 100 countries in various research disciplines, including social media monitoring, advertising effectiveness, consumer and shopper behavior, and public opinion.
Performance of Kantar 2020
The gross revenue for Kantar stands at $ 3,479 million in the year ended Dec 2020. A decline of 11%.
Business Segment Revenues – Kantar
The decrease was due primarily to declines in customized businesses:
Consultancy business declined by 19% due to reduced client spend
Insights decline of 17% was driven by a significant slowdown due to the impact of COVID-19, as clients reduced spend in areas such a new product innovation and copy testing of the new advertising campaign. Covid also impacted face-to-face fieldwork had a major impact on their faster-growing market.
Public business declined 10% respectively due to delayed projects
Health grow by 10% due to increased demand from the pharmaceutical segment
World panel division grew by 2% due to consistent demand for behavioral insights across regions
Growth platforms of Holistic Brand Guidance (HBG) and Marketplace delivered double-digit growth and also Analytics domain witnessed growth.
Faster growing markets declined by 14%. The largest impact in Africa and the Middle East because of the reduced ability to conduct face-to-face.
Mature markets also declined by 10% largely due to the pandemic on customized business
Major Events for Kantar in 2020
- Sale of 60% of Kantar from WPP to Bain Capital completed in Oct.’20
- Alexis Nasard named CEO of Kantar and he joined Kantar by Dec’20 end.
Ipsos
Ipsos is one of the leading primary market research company globally, operating in 90 markets and employing over 16,000 people.
The 75 business solutions are based on primary data from our surveys, social media monitoring, and qualitative or observational techniques.
Ipsos tagline “Game Changers” – summarizes our ambition to help our 5,000 clients navigate with confidence our rapidly changing world.
Performance of Ipsos 2020
Ipsos posted revenue of €1,837 million (~$ 2,187 mill.). for 31 Dec 2020, down by 8.3% on 2019.
Business Segment Revenues – IPSOS
- Consumer comprises of Brand Health Tracking, Creative Excellence, Innovation, Market Strategy & Understanding, Social Intelligence Analytics, etc. accounts for 42% of revenue witnessed 15% decline.
- Clients and employees comprise of Automotive & Mobility Development Audience Measurement, Customer Experience, Channel Performance (including Retail Performance and Mystery Shopping), Media development, etc. heavily impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic especially from Car manufacturers, airlines and hotel chains, and other sectors. This segment accounts for 22% of the revenue witnessed a decline of 21%.
- Citizens – Public Affairs, Corporate Reputation, etc. accounted for 19% of revenue and witnessed the highest growth of 28%. Ipsos benefited from the increase in social
research and studies on the state and evolution of public opinion. - Doctors and patients Pharma (quantitative and qualitative) which accounted for 17% remained relatively stable.
By region, Asian Pacific (16.2%) and Americas (13.8%) witnessed the highest decline in revenue.
Overall in 2020, Ipsos generated €1,349.6 million in mature markets, down 2.5% on 2019. These markets account for 73% of total revenue.
In emerging markets, Ipsos posted revenue of €487.9 million, down 15% year-on-year. Emerging markets, which accounted for up to 35% of revenue in 2014, only accounted for 27% in 2020 due to more volatile growth rates and weakening exchange rates against the euro.
Acquisitions by Ipsos – 2020
- Acquisition of Askia, a leading survey technology provider to the market research industry for more than 20 years. Askia’s high-performing tools for collecting, analysing, reporting and visualising both online and offline data enjoy high recognition among more than 150 clients, including research companies and businesses. Askia has subsidiaries in France, the UK, Germany, and the United States. Its annual revenues are around 5 million euros.
- Ipsos acquires technology company Fistnet-Dotmetrics. Fistnet comprises Big Data audience measurement experts and software engineers. Dotmetrics platform provides digital audience measurement, seamlessly tracking and reporting internet traffic to participate websites and apps with improved accuracy of device identification over other methods. Facing a range of forces that makes the identification of devices increasingly complex, Fistnet has been able to provide solutions in the changing environment.
- Ipsos acquired a majority stake in the Czech Republic-based company MGE Data, a leading player in out-of-home (OOH) measurement with unparalleled capabilities in consulting, data analytics, application development, and technical solutions in mobility, geo-marketing, and media research fields.
- Ipsos acquired the mystery shopping business of the Maritz group, one of the largest mystery shopping service providers in North America.
Key Trends in Primary Market Research Industry – 2021
1. Consolidation of Media Business
Nielsen to sell the Global Connect business to Advent, thereby focusing on the media business.
Ipsos’ acquisition of Fistnet-Dotmetrics and MGE DATA indicates companies are eying to invest in media measurement companies.
2. Healthcare a focus area due to COVID
The Health division of Kantar has performed well with a growth of 10%.
Ipsos Health division has also witnessed positive growth.
IQVIA, formerly Quintiles and IMS Health, Inc., an American multinational company serving the combined industries of health information technology and clinical research also witnessed positive growth in 2020.
3. Social research to witness growth due to various initiatives.
Ipsos has witnessed organic growth was 11.5% at end of June, 27% at end of September, and 29.5% at end of December for their “Citizens” segment which encompasses Public Affairs, Corporate Reputation, social research, etc.
4. Shift in data collection from face to face to other mediums
Face to Face data collection reduced by 11% for Kantar and 5% for Ipsos. Increase towards online and other media
5. Need for newage research
The pandemic has changed the way consumers buy products and there is a need to understand the changing behavior.
The consumers’ media habits have changed, influencers have changed, exposure to multiple platforms has changed, etc. There is a need to look beyond traditional market research methods to understand the consumer/customer
5. Increasing spend on AI
Technology will play an important role in bringing data from disparate sources together which can be done by AI.
All major companies and investing heavily into AI for competitive edge.
6. Social Analytics
Integration of social analytics with other data to draw meaningful insights
7. Digital Platforms
Research is becoming more deeply connected to other areas of the business thereby requiring a more holistic approach. There is a demand for integrated market research, with tools and systems that plug directly into various sources of data rather than requiring information to be imported or exported. Hence a need for digital solutions for fast access and DIY solutions.
