Lanre Fasakin is a former president, Nigerian Marketing Research Association (NiMRA) and Chief Executive Officer, Communication and Marketing Research Group (CMRG) Limited, a leading market research company in Nigeria. In this interview with Bankole Orimisan, he speaks on how innovations in technology tools have revolutionised market research industry for better service and product development, especially in the area of data collection and processing in the nation’s economy.
Between when you joined the market research industry and now, what has changed in the industry?
Over the last three decades,what has changed essentially cannot be discussed in isolation of technology. Technology has really revamped the entire process of market research. Today the processes are so different, and the outcome, by extension, is so different too in an interesting way. If you look at all the stages involved, we have data collection solutions, we have software that do data processing much better, we have software that do analysis faster , deeper and better. And we have the look and feel of the report obviously better now than before.So within the context of change technology has been the number one thing that has changed.
Over the last three decades,what has changed essentially cannot be discussed in isolation of technology. Technology has really revamped the entire process of market research. Today the processes are so different, and the outcome, by extension, is so different too in an interesting way. If you look at all the stages involved, we have data collection solutions, we have software that do data processing much better, we have software that do analysis faster , deeper and better. And we have the look and feel of the report obviously better now than before.So within the context of change technology has been the number one thing that has changed.
The clients have also changed. Back then you had the whole week for proposal preparations. That luxury of time is no longer present. The clients seem to be in a hurry to take decisions and you need to turn things around much faster. The other day a client wanted to conclude an advert pretest check on a national scale in 12days! Indeed in the spirit of the real time online transformation, we have seen a situation where the entire process for some surveys -from start to finish- we would be looking at one or two weeks. So in terms of turn around timing, that has also changed.
You could say these are positive changes but a perspective to the change that I do not appreciate is the heart for the job as expressed by some of the practitioners in the field. I think the passion, the zeal and the diligence that were so obviously displayed back then may not be comparable with what obtains these days. I think the passion is less nowadays, maybe also because technology has made life a lot easier.
Having been the president of the Nigerian Marketing Research Association {NiMRA}, the body that controls market, opinion and social research businesses in Nigeria, what do you think the body can do to draw the attention to the plight of market research in the country ?
I would not like to use the word ‘plight’as a right description because of its negative connotations. I would describe it as situation of market research in the country. The answer to that is pretty simple; as an industry we have to be more selfless. Right now the situation is more of the key players working in silos andyou and I know the silos effect hardly generates the desired universal impact a seamless industry-wide construct driving our activities would deliver. We have individually very strong companies-power houses I call them , we need to harness the industry power by making everybody to work together using our time , talent and resources to strengthen the fortune of the industry .
I would not like to use the word ‘plight’as a right description because of its negative connotations. I would describe it as situation of market research in the country. The answer to that is pretty simple; as an industry we have to be more selfless. Right now the situation is more of the key players working in silos andyou and I know the silos effect hardly generates the desired universal impact a seamless industry-wide construct driving our activities would deliver. We have individually very strong companies-power houses I call them , we need to harness the industry power by making everybody to work together using our time , talent and resources to strengthen the fortune of the industry .
What we need to do is to harness this power that we obviously have to the benefit of the industry that has given all of us so much. Bythis, I mean we should sacrifice more as agencies and dedicate more time tothings of industry good. We should dedicate more talent and resources to the issue of industry-wide benefit. If we do that, chances are that we are going to make a lot more impact because right now what we see is a lot of individualism, agencies minding their business and we are not working together as a strong formidable unit we can be.
What would you blame for the dearth of innovation, research and development in Nigeria?
Well, you cannot isolate an industry from the environment in which it is operating. That is pretty much a societal issue and market research just happens to be part of it and we are also affected. As a people, we are yet to prioritize learning. We are yet to get to that level where we seek to know more. We are not yet a learning country orpeople. Right now the drive focus is pretty much about bottom-line or profitability both at corporate and individual levels and anytime the focus is exclusively on that innovation suffers. What do I blame for that? I blame our attitude as a people, I blame the fact that the educational institutions are barely surviving.
Well, you cannot isolate an industry from the environment in which it is operating. That is pretty much a societal issue and market research just happens to be part of it and we are also affected. As a people, we are yet to prioritize learning. We are yet to get to that level where we seek to know more. We are not yet a learning country orpeople. Right now the drive focus is pretty much about bottom-line or profitability both at corporate and individual levels and anytime the focus is exclusively on that innovation suffers. What do I blame for that? I blame our attitude as a people, I blame the fact that the educational institutions are barely surviving.
See,the typical practitioner across the fields is more interested in bottom line as opposed to the bigger picture of how I can do it better. It is also a result of low level of growth and development in technology. It is about improving the process to get a better outcome but right now we are usually very much interested in the outcome irrespective of the process that produced that outcome. Even when the process is warped, in as much as the outcome brings good bottom-line we are happy. Sometimes the process is still the same as it was in 1960 but in as much as it delivers profit, we are cool with it but I think that really should change. We should get to a level where even when certain objectives are met in terms of profitability we should be desirous of what we can do to improve the process. If that becomes our objective, I think innovation will thrive.
How have innovations in technology tools used in market research helped for better service and product development in the country?
In specific terms technology tools in market research have helped to increase our quality control measures. We can sit back in our offices and have a feel of what is going on across the country. Quality control is a lot better both in the office and in the field. Through technology as I said earlier on we can turn projects around muchfaster from ideation, execution and presentation, timing is much better. Now we have better, faster and deeper data analysis tools, this goes to improved technology. Back then you used to test significance and calculate preferencemanually,but these days based on existing software some App somewhere will help you test significance for even ten products by test pairs; it tests the significance of difference with SPSS and we are happy. So really truly technology has contributed so much.Responses are geo-mapped and you can trace the coordinates of the interviews to know which sectors of town the interviews were conducted. You could also figure out the respondents selection techniques used anywhere in the country from your office in Lagos.
In specific terms technology tools in market research have helped to increase our quality control measures. We can sit back in our offices and have a feel of what is going on across the country. Quality control is a lot better both in the office and in the field. Through technology as I said earlier on we can turn projects around muchfaster from ideation, execution and presentation, timing is much better. Now we have better, faster and deeper data analysis tools, this goes to improved technology. Back then you used to test significance and calculate preferencemanually,but these days based on existing software some App somewhere will help you test significance for even ten products by test pairs; it tests the significance of difference with SPSS and we are happy. So really truly technology has contributed so much.Responses are geo-mapped and you can trace the coordinates of the interviews to know which sectors of town the interviews were conducted. You could also figure out the respondents selection techniques used anywhere in the country from your office in Lagos.
Now at what point is market research activation necessary for brands and organizations?
Thank you for that very important question. The relevance of market research at every stage of the product life cycle cannot be overemphasized. It is just that the manager orthe companyexecutive should know what kind of research is needfulto the particular stage of life the product finds itself. Marketing indeed starts longbefore the product was born. There are certain concept checks and need gap analysis you are required to do firstbefore you now say this is the product that will meet those gaps, research plays a huge role there. From there you do yourregular usage, habits and attitudesand brand health tracking, you could identify certain gaps within the industry and by extension, develop product that speaks to these gaps for a profit.
Thank you for that very important question. The relevance of market research at every stage of the product life cycle cannot be overemphasized. It is just that the manager orthe companyexecutive should know what kind of research is needfulto the particular stage of life the product finds itself. Marketing indeed starts longbefore the product was born. There are certain concept checks and need gap analysis you are required to do firstbefore you now say this is the product that will meet those gaps, research plays a huge role there. From there you do yourregular usage, habits and attitudesand brand health tracking, you could identify certain gaps within the industry and by extension, develop product that speaks to these gaps for a profit.
So at that level, market research is very relevant. At the birth of the product, that is, when you now do your launch, market research assumes higher relevance really.The product formulation, the quality, communication, pricing, packaging, promotion, distribution, and so on are all vital elements that require peculiar research inputs. By the time the life cycle moves to the next stage that your product is at the growth stage again there are certain research supports that you need to give it so that you optimize. It is not just about where you are but where you can possibly be. If it gets to maturity, research is also very critical so that between your growth and maturity stage there is a way you elongate and optimize. After maturity,knowing that whatever goes up comes down at some point there’s an imminent decline stage where your product is not able to deliver as it used do many years ago. Again you have a peculiar research needs at that point. So at every stage of the product lifecycle market research is relevant. The important thingis for you to know what kind of research is needful at a particular stage of the life of the product, and that is critical.
What is the state of online research in Africa compared to the level it has attained in the developed world?
Online research is getting better. For me, it is a growth stage and we are beginning to appreciate the huge and immense potential of online research these days. There’s a big caveat though, and that would be the penetration ofthe internet in Africa. It may not be comparable with what obtains in the developed world but it’s actually growing especially with the advent of mobile network service providers such as the MTN, Glo, Airtel and the 9Mobiles of this world. So online research is doing well but we need to situate the benefit of online research within the profile of the consumers of any brand. Even though online research is a cool thing to do, it is modernand good but it has to go side by side with the profiles of the consumers of the brand.
Online research is getting better. For me, it is a growth stage and we are beginning to appreciate the huge and immense potential of online research these days. There’s a big caveat though, and that would be the penetration ofthe internet in Africa. It may not be comparable with what obtains in the developed world but it’s actually growing especially with the advent of mobile network service providers such as the MTN, Glo, Airtel and the 9Mobiles of this world. So online research is doing well but we need to situate the benefit of online research within the profile of the consumers of any brand. Even though online research is a cool thing to do, it is modernand good but it has to go side by side with the profiles of the consumers of the brand.
Let me quickly say here that online research, beneficial as it is, has its own short comings. If anything, it encourages one line answers and you cannot probe deepbecause you are not there to physically engage and achieve that.Usually, the response rate is not as high as desirable and more often than not you may not be able to control the respondents profile in terms of the quota of a particular social class you want. So those are the key fundamental issues research must address. Be that as it may, right now online research will be suitable if you are talking about middle class to the upper class product but if the product speaks to things used by the grassroots people it may not be the best approach.
Usually, we look at the benefits vis-a-vis the profile of the consumers of the product. If I were to draw a trend in terms of where we are now compared to where we used to be, I think we are making steady progress in that space which is a commendable thing.
Looking at the narrative of market research and it importance to the society,how do you think we can entrench MR as a do without both to government and organizations?
It speaks to the need for us to work as a team as I said earlier on. Key players in theresearch industrymust have a regular platform through which all stakeholders would come together and workshop certain things. Let us as practitioners be prepared to invest more of our time, energy and resources to explain some of these benefits to our clients. Let’s have regular interface and do things at the industry level irrespective of who gets the credit, the credit goes to market research. Market research is the winner. Right now it is still pretty much silos effect, we are still working in silos. If we come together and do things, theimpact is more fundamental and through that the society will appreciate what we do better. Now I need to say right now that one of the ways of doing that is to achieve charter status for NiMRA. We have a long listof ideas on how thingscan be done better if the charter status is accomplished. But despite that it is important for key players in the industry given the volume of business within the space,and given the importance of research to the success of all brands, to come together and evolve this mechanism whereby theywill engage better with the stakeholders and articulate the benefits.
It speaks to the need for us to work as a team as I said earlier on. Key players in theresearch industrymust have a regular platform through which all stakeholders would come together and workshop certain things. Let us as practitioners be prepared to invest more of our time, energy and resources to explain some of these benefits to our clients. Let’s have regular interface and do things at the industry level irrespective of who gets the credit, the credit goes to market research. Market research is the winner. Right now it is still pretty much silos effect, we are still working in silos. If we come together and do things, theimpact is more fundamental and through that the society will appreciate what we do better. Now I need to say right now that one of the ways of doing that is to achieve charter status for NiMRA. We have a long listof ideas on how thingscan be done better if the charter status is accomplished. But despite that it is important for key players in the industry given the volume of business within the space,and given the importance of research to the success of all brands, to come together and evolve this mechanism whereby theywill engage better with the stakeholders and articulate the benefits.
Lack of data to work with in the country
It is important that we have a seamless relationship with the corporate world. Such would encourage the research industry,notindividual players now, but the industry as one body would have a platform through which you churn out credible and regular data that will become a respectable voice that thegovernment and other different stakeholders will listen to. It does not speakwell of our competences as professionals if every source of data is foreign. We will just sit down here and moan when other sources outside who have been able to look beyond individual differences now present data about our own market. I am looking forward for the day when therewill be an industry voice speaking to Nigeria on behalf of the economy. So a lot depends on the extent to which all the strong key players in the market today are able to work together so that that can be accomplished because come to think of it even if somebody goes through the whole process, conducts these surveys and publish it is amongst ourselves that criticism would be fiercest . That is clearly not the way to go. It is high time we started looking beyond all these little differencesand work together to deliver what the society expects of us.
It is important that we have a seamless relationship with the corporate world. Such would encourage the research industry,notindividual players now, but the industry as one body would have a platform through which you churn out credible and regular data that will become a respectable voice that thegovernment and other different stakeholders will listen to. It does not speakwell of our competences as professionals if every source of data is foreign. We will just sit down here and moan when other sources outside who have been able to look beyond individual differences now present data about our own market. I am looking forward for the day when therewill be an industry voice speaking to Nigeria on behalf of the economy. So a lot depends on the extent to which all the strong key players in the market today are able to work together so that that can be accomplished because come to think of it even if somebody goes through the whole process, conducts these surveys and publish it is amongst ourselves that criticism would be fiercest . That is clearly not the way to go. It is high time we started looking beyond all these little differencesand work together to deliver what the society expects of us.
Government as the major source of data in Nigeria
That is really an anomaly. Point is;if we are able to put our data side by side with what the government is saying the people will be there to judge which is closer to reality. If government is telling us the inflation is ‘x’ and the research industry in Nigeria is saying ‘xy’ obviously what the typical player in the corporate circle feels will determine which one is more credible between the two. Right now, thegovernment is the only source and we are just there watching by the sidelines, I don’t think this is right. You cannot be a judge in your own court.
That is really an anomaly. Point is;if we are able to put our data side by side with what the government is saying the people will be there to judge which is closer to reality. If government is telling us the inflation is ‘x’ and the research industry in Nigeria is saying ‘xy’ obviously what the typical player in the corporate circle feels will determine which one is more credible between the two. Right now, thegovernment is the only source and we are just there watching by the sidelines, I don’t think this is right. You cannot be a judge in your own court.
How is the nature of competition in the market research industryin the country and what is your assessment of the scorecard in 2018?
The nature of competition in the market research industry is very interesting. Just like any other industry, there’s a lot of globalization now, the world is a global village and the typical research agency in Nigeria is playing alongside others in that big village. That is the context I see. The implication is that you would be up against some established,bigger global players in your market. That is our own current reality and we welcome it. For me,it’s fun because the influx of the global players has made the local agencies to really up their game. We all serve the same set of clients and you cannot afford not to be up to date in terms of technology and manpower.
The nature of competition in the market research industry is very interesting. Just like any other industry, there’s a lot of globalization now, the world is a global village and the typical research agency in Nigeria is playing alongside others in that big village. That is the context I see. The implication is that you would be up against some established,bigger global players in your market. That is our own current reality and we welcome it. For me,it’s fun because the influx of the global players has made the local agencies to really up their game. We all serve the same set of clients and you cannot afford not to be up to date in terms of technology and manpower.
The extent to which you are able to anticipate your clients’ needs and generate insight to add value to their process will mark you out. We’ve gone beyond the stage of data collection and basic information. Market research todayis an insight generation industry and insight comes from your first class understanding ofconsumers around you and the environment that he lives in.Insight comes from experience and the level to which you are able to interpret the information you have at your disposal. So I want to believe the competition is getting more interesting. I say that with caution because while it is more difficult to accomplish certain things nowunlike years past obviously because of the global players that are now within the industry, you still have to meet your clients’ needs. In order to achieve this, the local agencies have had to up their game literarily and that is really good for us.
Scorecard for market research in 2018
I will say it’s an improvement compared to 2017. The value is better than 2017 for the fact that market research is a peculiar case where you are relevant both when the economy is good and when it is otherwise. There are more jobs now but it is just that the type of jobs we have now is way different from what it used to be back then.
I will say it’s an improvement compared to 2017. The value is better than 2017 for the fact that market research is a peculiar case where you are relevant both when the economy is good and when it is otherwise. There are more jobs now but it is just that the type of jobs we have now is way different from what it used to be back then.
Don’t you think the presence of multinational market research agencies is stifling the performance of local market research agencies?
Any time people come up with that argument I take a different view point. I don’t think the presence of multinational agencies is stifling the performance of the local market research agencies. On the contrary, their presence is helping us to grow. Let’s use the analogy of soccer which I think most people are familiar with. No matter how talented you are, if you combine the skills of Lionel Messi and Ronaldo into one person and the person is playing at the Onikan Stadium, Lagos Island he would not offer the same entertainment value as the average player playing at Old Trafford or Camp Nou. So what that means is that the local research agency would have toup its game and come to global standard. The local research agency cannot afford to still use Pen and Paper when the global standard is digital.
Any time people come up with that argument I take a different view point. I don’t think the presence of multinational agencies is stifling the performance of the local market research agencies. On the contrary, their presence is helping us to grow. Let’s use the analogy of soccer which I think most people are familiar with. No matter how talented you are, if you combine the skills of Lionel Messi and Ronaldo into one person and the person is playing at the Onikan Stadium, Lagos Island he would not offer the same entertainment value as the average player playing at Old Trafford or Camp Nou. So what that means is that the local research agency would have toup its game and come to global standard. The local research agency cannot afford to still use Pen and Paper when the global standard is digital.
The local research agencies will have to use data collection solutions that is up to par if the agency is serious about getting attention of the client.Let us shift our focus from training to learning. There is a world of difference between the two.The local research
agencies must be prepared to learn new ways and imbibe new skills that will put you in avery good position to add value to the briefs from clients. If the multinational agencies had not come probably we would still have been doing things the way we did decades ago. But their presence has really made it that any local agency that wants to be taken seriously by clients today would have to play at the level that is at par or even better than our foreign counterparts.In any case, who says the Nigerian agencies should not reach out and explore prospects in other markets too?
agencies must be prepared to learn new ways and imbibe new skills that will put you in avery good position to add value to the briefs from clients. If the multinational agencies had not come probably we would still have been doing things the way we did decades ago. But their presence has really made it that any local agency that wants to be taken seriously by clients today would have to play at the level that is at par or even better than our foreign counterparts.In any case, who says the Nigerian agencies should not reach out and explore prospects in other markets too?
If as a local agency your processes are revamped and you offer cost advantage you definitely stand a chance. Some jobs would still go to the global brands by default,but the local agencies definitely stand a chance because of our better understanding of the nuances of this market. Years ago I saw a report where a foreign analyst talked about 90% penetration of Palm wine in Northern Nigeria; urban and rural. Of course, we scoffed at it because Palm Trees do not grow in the North in the country. So it is still our market and we have the ace.
Outlook of market research in 2019
2019 promises to be fun and exciting. We are going to see a lift in the space of social research because it’s an election year. Growth in social research experienced in 2018 will be sustained given the strategic relevance of Nigeria to the scheme of things in Africa. Usually, the year preceding the election and the election year attract a lot of attention from the global audience watching. There’s a lot of opinion polling going on. Transition also boosts investor confidence in an economy so hopefully by the time the elections are concluded in a peaceful mannerinvestor confidence in Nigeria is heightened. Aftermath of that would see moreinvestors looking in and that portends good for the economy as a whole.
2019 promises to be fun and exciting. We are going to see a lift in the space of social research because it’s an election year. Growth in social research experienced in 2018 will be sustained given the strategic relevance of Nigeria to the scheme of things in Africa. Usually, the year preceding the election and the election year attract a lot of attention from the global audience watching. There’s a lot of opinion polling going on. Transition also boosts investor confidence in an economy so hopefully by the time the elections are concluded in a peaceful mannerinvestor confidence in Nigeria is heightened. Aftermath of that would see moreinvestors looking in and that portends good for the economy as a whole.
Final note
I would like to add that as an industry we should be prepared to explore the opportunities in other segments of this market.For too long everybody has been doing the same thing operating as a generalist agency. We should be looking at developing smaller segments that arepowerful and very formidable. Who says we cannot have a small agency whose focus is exclusively on insight generation? Whosays we cannot have exclusive Data Analytics Company focusing on AI? It’s also high time we started looking at bespoke research services. We can have Human Resources Management (HRM) analytics for instance. We can have omnibussurveys using the qualitative research approach, we can have data collection powerhouses, and so on. At CMRG we are committed to these things, fingers crossed.
I would like to add that as an industry we should be prepared to explore the opportunities in other segments of this market.For too long everybody has been doing the same thing operating as a generalist agency. We should be looking at developing smaller segments that arepowerful and very formidable. Who says we cannot have a small agency whose focus is exclusively on insight generation? Whosays we cannot have exclusive Data Analytics Company focusing on AI? It’s also high time we started looking at bespoke research services. We can have Human Resources Management (HRM) analytics for instance. We can have omnibussurveys using the qualitative research approach, we can have data collection powerhouses, and so on. At CMRG we are committed to these things, fingers crossed.
