Questions on Quality, Ethics...and Esomar Council
"Quality and ethics in market research - how important are they? How would you strengthen the propositions in both? Discuss."
Such was the task - or rather discussion topic - suggested last week as part of my and others' candidatures for the upcoming ESOMAR elections.
Made me think back to my student days.
Each of us were given five minutes (!) to present our thoughts on strengthening the propositions of quality and ethics to a distinguished body of various national market research association representatives.
Five minutes? Were these the sort of things I needed to be worrying about as a prospsective Council applicant?
They weren't central to my pitch.
But on reflection - quality and ethics are of course central topics for any research associations's activities.
Those in Germany will likely never forget the Akte Marktforschung of 2018 where the hugely influential magazine Der Spiegel threw a negative light on the whole industry by focusing on selected malpractices.
What sounds academic, even philosophical, is eminently relevant to ongoing practice in a dynamic digital, global and often more lightly regulated environment.
The more I researched, talked to more experienced and knowledgeable colleagues, the more I got into both topics.
For those of you interested where I landed - and what I wished to convey in the brief 5 minutes allocated to me, here's my take:
Quality - How Important, and how Strengthen the Proposition?
Quality is of the utmost importance for Market Research’s future wellbeing. We forget this at our peril.
Price and quality perceptions are ideally linked - so raising quality standards should, all else being equal, help boost prices and hopefully margins.
As a pre-amble to my POV, three points:
i) Quality exists in co-existence with other parameters, most notably cost and speed. It is for many therefore a relative not an absolute concept – it involves trade-offs. This has implications for how we approach strengthening the proposition.
ii) Secondly, the market is highly dynamic. A lot of new entrants in the digital space aren’t aware of quality issues, and that means they likely don’t have it as a priority.
This is a challenge – but also an opportunity. Using new analytics sources, often digital, allows clients to make decisions based on larger, different data sets, each with their own rules. Quality concerns are often complex and can appear academic if raised in the wrong way.
iii) Thirdly, formal buyers and users are sometimes not the same person, increasing the complexity.
In summary, the dilemma for all practitioners is:
how does research bring clients along in a market where speed of turnaround is a key driver, pressure on prices is still very high, and where a “good enough” mentality is likely widespread?
These are complex issues requiring further consideration, but allow me to move on in the interests of time.
My four recommendations in a very few words:
i) Quality needs to be brought alive, made relevant in all areas – from UX through big Data, not just survey work. Nobody wants bad quality – but not everybody understands what it means.
ii) Quality needs to be seen in a client-context, with a clear link to impact.
iii) It needs to be communicated with good practice examples – and examples of what bad means, what it can lead to. This is essential to create an awareness of the risks of having bad quality even if you don’t know it.
iv) Finally, we need to embrace different views on what quality is – welcoming new participants into the association fold, and discussing quality approaches with them, with a view to improving the overall standard levels.
I rest my case on quality. Moving swiftly on to ethics.
Ethical Principles - Which Paramount, and how Reinforce their Relevance?
Which ethical principles are important to me?
Very simply, all the existing principles documented in the various codes of conduct are essential to ensure we have a broad public acceptance of what we do.
An assurance of anonymity, confidentiality is key, for example, or that the data will not be shared with third parties, or used for anything other than the purposes stated.
We cannot do enough to ensure this happens systematically and without exception.
Importantly, associations need to stress the benefits of these, so they don’t appear excessively restrictive – we need to encourage people into the association tent, not discourage them by rules and regulations they may regard as costly and without adding value.
Beyond this, there are four further ethical principles I would highlight as being important to me:
i) Firstly, being without bias, offering an objective viewpoint. We exist in polarised, often politicised times, and need to remain strong as the voice of empiricism and objectivity.
That means speaking out, being bold, even to power if needed. And certainly to influencers such as journalists.
ii) Secondly, we need to do more to promote the confidentiality of data gained from Market Research. More on that below.
iii) Thirdly, we need to communicate the integrity of our industry better, more pro-actively.
The Spiegel Akte Marktforschung was an example where we had to defend ourselves, but perhaps we should anticipate more and communicate better stories ourselves.
iv) Finally, we need to observe and enact on broader societal expectations of diversity and ecological adequacy. We need to work harder on both areas.
To the third point above: Market research is a force for good. But just stating that, apodictically, isn't enough.
Our market environment is dynamic, changing fast, especially in the digital space. Much data is collected digitally, often passively, by large tech companies, but also advertising, according to the principle of “informed consent”. But what is that exactly?
This is open to interpretation– how many of us read Terms and Conditions before clicking on a website just to get access?
It’s easy to forget the ability to change your settings in google for example, and then be potentially irritated if you feel that someone is following your online activities.
Research companies need to ensure that there is no doubt about informed consent at all we do – clearly understandable, standardised procedures run through all activities, without appearing over-bureaucratic or getting lost in regulation.
---------------------------------
That's it from me on Quality and Ethics in market research. For now at least.
Esomar Council Election voting start on 1st March - I'd appreciate your vote ;).
Curious, as ever, as to others' views.