GroupM hones multi-market research edge

<P>GLOBAL GroupM has rolled out Connections after two years in development, billing the planning tool as its most significant since 3D was launched six years ago. </P> <P><br><br><BR>Connections will be available through all GroupM agencies - Maxus, MEC, MediaCom and MindShare - and should fill an important information gap in Asia, according to MindShare's regional director of insights, James Chadwick. </P> <P><br><br>"Our clients are consistently complaining and being concerned about the lack of good strong data across Asian markets," he said. "Connections gets around that." </P> <P><br><br><BR>The new tool offers advertisers the chance to delve into buying habits for a particular category, Chadwick explained. Although he declined to put a price on Connections, the scale of a single study, involving a four-stage investigation over two to three months, is likely to limit its use to the biggest advertisers. Chadwick argued however that increasing marketing budgets and sharpening competition could make the investment worthwhile.</P> <P><br><br><BR>"It makes sense to spend  one or two or three per cent of your budget in order to understand what is and isn't going to work for the other 97 per cent," he said. "We have a number of clients who are spending enough money in Asia that they are ready for this kind of approach."<BR></P>