Has the Marketing Research Industry Recovered?

In much of 2008 and early 2009, I frequently wrote about the impact of the recession on marketing research. There were many clear signs that the industry was experiencing reduced revenues. By the middle of 2009, things appeared to be turning around. I believe we are approaching full recovery. There are many positive signs:

• The Research Industry Index (RII) http://www.mra-net.org/news/article.cfm?aID=1073 experienced a strong increase for the first quarter of 2010.
  
• I was just in Boston for the MRA Annual Conference. The mood was very different from a year ago. Instead of talks of surviving or downsizing; people seemed energized, confident and excited. Other positive signs – the conference set a record for first time attendees and the exhibit hall was completely sold out.
  
• Our own company has seen a steady flow of projects from a diverse group of verticals. Yes, clients are still cautious, but they are spending.

Are you seeing the same turnaround?

Hope to See You in Boston!

I am headed to Boston early next week for the MRA’s Annual Research Conference. I have to admit bias, since I sit on the MRA board, but the educational content and speakers for this conference are outstanding. I truly believe this conference outshines all other industry conferences when it comes to the opportunity to learn.

While people go to conferences for many reasons, educational content is frequently a second thought. At most conferences, you usually see large numbers of people milling around in the exhibit hall or refreshment areas instead of attending the educational sessions. Not true for the MRA conference. People are in the educational sessions. They are taking a lot of notes and asking many questions. In other words, they are learning.

Hopefully you have registered and plan to be at the conference. If not, it’s probably too late for most of you. But if you live in the Northeast, a last minute registration is still feasible. You really should be there.