Few companies have a culture of ‘doing right by their customers’. But we heard this phrase the other day during the UK fuel contamination fiasco when, after being confronted by credible evidence that their fuel was indeed causing large numbers of cars to malfunction, something they initially denied, Tesco used the phrase to characterise its intended response.

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Click the image to see a full size table of recent MR deals.

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Once you go down a road strategically, you end up in a what you may call a path dependent position…from which it’s very difficult to turn back
(Andy Dexter)

 BIG Conference  In this, the final podcast in the run up to the BIG Conference, Andy Dexter makes the case to Steve Wills for a pure consultancy focused completely on insight. But while he makes a persuasive case, can he convince Steve that he has thought through the many issues surrounding talent? Listen to find out

Listen to other podcasts featuring Steve

 STARRING 

• Andy Dexter, founder and Managing Partner, Truth Consulting
• Steve Wills, co-founder and MD, Customer Insight Solutions (Host)

Learn more about BIG Conference 2007

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Businesses have a reluctance to use services that are free because it doesn’t fit their mindset
(Ray Poynter)

 BIG Conference  In the first of two podcasts in the run up to the BIG Conference in May 2007, Phyllis Macfarlane and Ray Poynter take a comprehensive look at how web 2.0 tools and techniques can be used to improve B2B research. They also talk about the obvious cultural and organisational issues that such changes invariably bring up

 STARRING 

• Ray Poynter, The Future Place
• Phyllis Macfarlane, Head, Gfk NOP Custom (Host)

Learn more about BIG Conference 2007

AUDIO QUALITY: We apologise in advance for the below-par audio quality and hope that the quality of the content makes up for this

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The assumption is that by-and-large, individuals make decisions on their own. My Herd point-of-view is that people influence each other, often without realising it

Mark Earls’ latest contribution to life, the universe and everything is gaining traction. His new book rethinks how people make decisions and discovers as a result that much of current research practice is fundamentally flawed in its assumptions and interpretation of consumer behaviour. Quite fitting for this self-styled ‘Contrarian’. The book provides psychology underpinning for many recent phenomena such as social networking, engagement, conversations, ethnography, blogging and predictive markets by showing how we act as groups and not individually. Part of our monthly column for ESOMAR’s Research World magazine

 STARRING 

• Mark Earls, author, Herd: How to Change Mass Behaviour by Harnessing Our True Nature, Head Honcho, Herd Consulting

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While I made some difference perhaps teaching economics…actually getting involved in the political process had a more profound impact on the kind of environment in which people live

Despite being almost 76, Dr. Richard Wirthlin has no plans to retire yet. On the occasion of his leaving the Harris Interactive board, he talks about how he started in research, his interest in politics and days in the White House as President Reagan’s strategist and pollster, how the merger with Harris Interactive came about, his legacy and future plans. This is the full version of the conversation previously released in summary form as a DRNO EarPiece

 STARRING 

• Dr. Richard Wirthlin, President Reagan’s strategist and pollster, and founder, Wirthlin Worldwide

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If you’re unfamiliar with meme trackers, they are to blogs what Google News is to mainstream news. That is, meme trackers help summarise key conversations in the blogosphere.

They’re a great time saver and we always look at them first before exploring individual blogs where necessary. We like Digg, Tech Meme and Tailrank.

But with our passion for marketing and market research, wouldn’t it be cool if we could have specialist meme trackers? Well, we may have a solution. The following are still in beta so drop us a note with any suggestions etc. But have a go and hopefully you’ll be better informed in less time. Enjoy!

MR BlogTrack
Marketing BlogTrack

above are also listed on the ‘useful’ links section of the sidebar
Series:MarketingTalk

“Unlike other applications … Second Life has a storyline related to pretty much any press you want to talk about”

 EXCLUSIVE  You could for forgiven for not having heard of Habbo because it is aimed at teens. But with the seemingly blanket coverage it’s received in the mainstream media as well as on blogs and podcasts, you will surely have heard of Second Life. Both are online 3D virtual worlds where people interact with each other via avatars. Both are extremely popular and are experiencing rapid growth. And some of the largest brands in the world are starting to setup virtual life in Second Life. Here we learn more about them from their creators, and find out why they are so popular and what the future holds. For those unfamiliar with either of these social networks we recommend taking a quick look at their websites to get a basic feel

 STARRING 

• Emmi Kuusikko, Director of User and Market Insight, Sulake (Habbo)
• David Fleck, VP Business Development, Linden Lab (Second Life)
• Mario Menti, GMI, blog

The first conversation was recorded live at the Euro MR Event 2006

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