Market research companies and new product development tools

This research investigates (1) the share of new product development (NPD) research services in market research (MR) companies' turnover, (2) MR companies' awareness and use of NPD tools and the modifications made to these NPD tools, and (3) MR company managers' perceptions of the influence of client use of commissioned NPD research on client NPD performance. The results from a sample of 35 Dutch and Belgium MR companies show that NPD research is a major growth area. MR companies mainly use qualitative research and focus on marketing-mix and product optimization services. A moderate awareness and use of NPD tools exists, although major differences between tools exist. In over 75 percent of all cases MR companies have adjusted the NPD tools they use. Especially customization and standardization of the tools have taken place. Analyzing the relationship between the level of use of commissioned NPD research and client NPD performance, no significant main effect is found. However, a positive effect exists between the use of MR companies' services and NPD performance for firms that specifically aim to solve NPD problems and/or increase their NPD success.