MBR_Issue_29 -March 2017 ALL

Malta Business Review
RESEARCH DATA
Giving
Context To
Research
Data
Rebecca Zammit
Rebecca Zammit has just been
appointed Director of MISCO
International Limited, responsible
for MISCO’s Marketing and
Opinion Research services. In this
interview, Ms Zammit explains
how in today’s competitive
environment, data is a very
important currency and the more
data is available for marketers
and company leaders, the better
and more effective their business
decisions will be.
A recently published review on
smartinsights.com on what the toprated
digital marketing techniques will
be during 2017 reveals how Big Data
(20.3%) together with Content Marketing
(20.4%) will this year be the top marketing
tools followed by Marketing Automation
(10.3%), Mobile Marketing (9.2%) and
Social Media Marketing (8.8%) amongst
others.
“Data however can also be very boring
especially for all those who do not
understand it. This is why we like building
a story with the data. A story, puts the
client in the right context which helps him
understand where his business stands and
where it needs to be taken.
MISCO has been offering marketing and
opinion research services for 33 years.
Eventually, it developed the full range
of data collection techniques now used
through both quantitative and qualitative
methods supported by a pool of around 80
experienced and trained interviewers.
“Our role is to help customers feel the
pulse of people’s behaviour, attitudes,
perceptions and opinions, identify and
measure market size and market share,
analyze the characteristics of markets,
understand market developments and
focus on the critical factors for success in
marketing,” adds Rebecca Zammit.
“Customers who engage MISCO’s
Marketing and Opinion Research Section
include national and international
organisations, operating in both the private
and public sector across a wide range of
activities such as telecommunications,
consumer products, banking and insurance
services, transport, pharmaceutical and
automotive sectors. MISCO is also very
active in the areas of social research and
opinion polling and has garnered extensive
experience through its participation in
numerous multi-country projects.”
“Data is universal so really and truly,
we are equipped to service any sector.
However our experience and continued
investment in technology enables us to
be flexible in that we do not apply an offthe-shelf
approach but devise a research
methodology according to the particular
needs of our customer.”
With long years of experience, MISCO
has had the opportunity to watch the
sector evolve and give birth to new trends.
One such trend is the increased use of
mystery shopping exercises, a research
methodology for which MISCO is very
sought after.
“We are living in an age where we all want
to know how we are being perceived.
Brands too want to constantly know how
they are being received by their target
audiences. Companies constantly request
reviews and testimonials because these
reinforce their public reputation. No
wonder over the past few years most
sectors have experienced a dramatic
increase in the use of mystery shopping
techniques to better understand what
they can do to improve their processes,
products and services,” added Rebecca
Zammit.
Another aspect that makes MISCO’s
Marketing and Opinion Research Unit
unique is the application of specific
technology.
“All the software we use for our research
projects is developed in-house by our own
people. This gives us added flexibility that
allows us to adapt the research according
to the particular client. We feel this is an
important advantage for us given the
increasing use of technology in today’s
modern research methods.”
But no matter which methods are
employed during research, or how capable
one is to interpret data, truth and integrity
are two qualities that best define MISCO’s
Marketing and Opinion Research services.
“Clients sometimes hire our services
expecting us to give them the answers
they want to hear. We challenge the client
and ask what the real problem is that we
are trying to solve. It does happen that the
problem that the client is trying to solve is
a symptom of a much deeper issue. On a
number of occasions the data we collect
paints a different picture from what the
client would be expecting. We know
that the methods we use in our research
processes, return us with a high level of
accuracy with which we can assist our
clients to move forward. Therefore, even
when the results are way different from
their expectations, clients always show
us an element of trust. Being trusted and
respected, helps our clients understand
and accept our recommendations more,”
concluded Rebecca Zammit. MBR
58