CLEVIS Research Training
Instruction Material: The basics of thorough primary and secondary research
December 2014
CLEVIS Research GmbH
Erika-Mann-Straße 53
D-80636 Munich
Outline
Chapter 1 – Research Basics
Chapter 2 – Secondary Research
Chapter 3 – Primary Research
Chapter 4 – Conclusion
Chapter 5 – Project Examples
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Research Basics
Importance of professional research
Primary and secondary research input is crucial for sound recommendations to our clients
Information & Data


Analysis

Information and data generated through primary and
secondary research are the basis of a range of
downstream analyses

It provides support and justification for our
recommendations to our clients, particularly, but not
Assessment
exclusively in market oriented projects

Justification
Decision
The quality of the input directly impacts
the quality of our recommendations
Recommendation
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Research overview
Interviews
Information research
 By phone or in person
 Search engines (Google, etc.)
 "Warm" (introduced) or “cold"
(ad-hoc, anonymous) calling
 Free databases (eurostat, SEC, etc.)
 Targets
 Experts (from universities, institutes,
associations, etc.)
 Customers
 Competitors
 Suppliers
 Information brokers
(D&B, market research, etc.)
Synthesis
analysis
&
application
 Press databases
(Genios, Financial Times, etc.)
 Company reports and filings
 Studies published by consultancies and
auditing firms
Secondary Research
Primary Research
We differentiate between primary and secondary (desk) research, which complement each other
 Congress documents
 Trade fair data
Always record all sources of data and contact details for audit trails and risk management issues!
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Secondary Research
What is secondary research and why to do it?
Comprehensive research projects always start with an investigation of secondary information sources
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Secondary information consists of existing data sources
and information collected by others
This type of research is based on information gleaned from
studies previously performed by government agencies,
chambers of commerce, trade associations, and other
organizations
This kind of information is mostly available on the web,
local libraries, books, business publications, newspapers
and magazines
Although secondary research is quite inexpensive, it is not
as accurate or useful as specific primary research
 Example: Secondary research may tell you how much
automotive OEMs spent on consulting, but not how much
they are willing to pay for specific consulting services
Secondary information delivers fairly quick and inexpensive answers to many questions
It is almost always the point of departure for primary research
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How to structure the secondary research?
Before you start your desk research, plan and structure your approach thoroughly
Prior to your desk research, make sure to know the answers to all of the following questions:
 What is the purpose of the information being researched?
 What is the time period your research should cover?
 What geographies are needed?
 What is the time frame? Make sure to allot enough time data purchasing, integration of external researchers, etc.
 What are appropriate search terms to be used?
 How can the research be split up into logical packages to be allocated?
 How much time needs to be spent on further research concerning the importance of the information (80:20 rule)?
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Where to search?
These sources might be an assistance and first guideline to ease your access to secondary research
Financial
statements,
Broker
reports/company
ratings
Market research
data
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Economic
indicators &
demographics
Trade statistics
Forecasts
Trade press
Interest rates,
Exchange rates
Dictionaries
Encyclopedias
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Standard sources
Websites
Macroeconomics & statistics
trade press
academic journals
Company information
News articles
Printed Media
Consider the following information in your research:
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Where to search: Printed media
News articles, trade press and academic journals are great sources for information on industry trends, technologies and recent
developments
Type
Contents / description
Examples
News articles
 Information on trends & opinions
 Interviews with experts, company
representatives, etc.
 General information on private
companies
 Regional press for local news,
statistic, particular companies,
logoffs, etc.
 Newswires
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Trade press
articles
 Industry trends & developments
 Information on new products,
innovations, management topics
 Statistical data, tables
 Market shares & developments
 Job descriptions & salaries
 Supplier information & profiles
 steelonthenet.com
 lme.com
 Detailed information on technologies
& products
 Product functionalities and
applications
 Case studies
 Academic opinions
 oxfordjournals.org
 jstor.org
Academic
journals
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Factiva
Genios
Financial Times
Reuters
Bloomberg
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Where to search: Company websites
Company websites are a good start to gather information – BUT pay attention to information provided on company websites
as they may be biased!
Company press & data
Company directories
 History, ownership, locations, product portfolio, service
descriptions
 Management bias, organization charts
 Financial results, investor presentations,
press releases, IPO information
 Broker presentations
 Locations and addresses
 Company executives & biographies
 Product data and specifications
Company
Information
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Ownership data
Company profiles
 M&A data on historical deals, values &
ratios
 Intelligence on forthcoming M&A deals
 Shareholder movements
 Changes in shareholders
 Company ownership charts
 Completed profiles of companies covering any of
the above
 Usually high-level, summarized data, but may
provide some insights
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Where to search: Company statements
Many companies are required to release financial statements, which can be obtained from governmental organizations or third
party publishers
Type
Contents / description
Examples
 Filings that registered companies legally have to file in the country of incorporation
 As reported, accounts and other reported documents form the most accurate form of
accounts data
 Often scanned from original documents
 In some cases, private or very small companies are allowed to report very little
financial data
 bundesanzeiger.de (DE)
 Companies House (UK)
 SEC (US)
Financial data
publishers
 Information companies that specialize in collecting financial data
 Interface often allows for additional manipulation and screening based on industry or other
parameters; data usually downloadable to Excel
 Comparison of financial data across different countries is easier due to
standardization of accounts items
 Usually, no notes to accounts included
 Careful: data quality varies across providers
 Bureau van Dijk
 Datastream
 Regional stock exchange
websites
Credit rating
agencies
 Credit rating agencies collect information on financial strengths and risk exposure of
companies, based on supplier payment data, legal proceedings, news and other verification
tools
 Often, they also collect company filings
 Sometimes they can only provide estimates for financial items
 They do cover private companies
 They often sell raw data to the financial data publishers
Company
registers
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S&P
Moody’s
Fitch
Creditreform
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Where to search: Broker reports & company ratings
Furthermore broker reports as well as company ratings are helpful sources of information
Type
Contents / description
Examples
Equity
analysis
 Equity analyses can be used to track the performance of individual companies and
industries (indexed)
 Share prices, market capitalization and other financial instruments such as bonds, trusts,
futures and option performance over time
 Datastream
 Thomson Markets
 Yahoo Finance
Broker reports
 Often provides valuable insights into operational and financial performance,
strategies as well as industry performance for quoted companies
 Historical and financial projections
 Particularly good at financial breakdowns on divisional levels, WACC and DCF analysis
 Quality varies, try to pick longer reports or "initiating coverage reports" for more depth
 Some boutique firms cover specific industries while other do not publish their reports
 Thomson One
 Thomson research
 Reuters research
 A series of additional tools to rate company performance and investment risk:
 Betas: return on company share price in relation to market to measure
investment risk
 Consensus earnings: average to several broker estimates on company earnings
 Company ratings: ratings given to bonds by credit agencies (indicating the
risk of default)
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Betas &
consensus
earnings
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D&B
Bureau van Dijk
Bloomberg
LMS
S&P, Moody's, Fitch
Experian, Equifax, Graydon
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Where to search: Market research data
Extensive market research data is provided by specific research publishers
Type
Market
analysis
Broker reports
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Contents / description
Examples
 Reviews of markets with forecasts, competitors and market shares
 Often with additional databases/expertise that can either directly be purchased or
requires a subscription/contract
 Reports can often only be purchased in whole at high prices
 Includes niche research suppliers that specialize in certain industries (e.g. Forecast
International) or type of research (e.g. consumer surveys)
 Report listings can be found on their websites
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Freedonia
Global Industry Analysts
IBIS World
Forecast International
Frost & Sullivan
Statista (DE)
 Online portals that allow access to parts of market reports such as tables, chapters etc.
Cheaper access to high-price market reports
 Sometimes new reports are delayed when published in portals
 List of reports from publishers are not comprehensive
 Reports purchased in whole maybe more expensive compared to purchasing
directly from publishers
 No access to market research company for questions
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marketresearch.com
Profound
Thomson Research
Reuters on Demand
Tablebase
researchandmarkets.com
marketsearch-dir.com
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Where to search: Macroeconomic and statistical data
National and international organizations provide this information, sometimes including sound forecasts that can be used in
market models
Type
Contents / description
Economic
indicators &
demographics
 Basic economic indicators such as gross domestic product (GDP), consumer price index (CPI),
purchasing managers index (PMI) etc.
 Collected by national bodies - always first source
 Aggregated by international associations for comparison
 Population (births, marriages, migration, deaths etc.)
 Labor, wages, employment
 Sector analyses, e.g. by industry
Trade statistics
& commodity
prices
 Imports and exports of specific goods, based on international systems of harmonized
product codes
 Production and growth of specific items and services, often collected by international
trade associations
 Historical wholesale prices for bulk commodities
Forecasts
Exchange rates,
interest rates,
conversion
tables
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 National and international associations produce some forecasts, mostly short-term
 Investment banks sometimes also produce or quote forecasts
 Longer-range forecasts, produced by specialized economic research companies,
are often very expensive
 Exchange rates often needed over time
 Interest rates for property transactions
 Conversion tables (often supplied by industry associations that need them)
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Examples
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CIA – The World Factbook
National census organizations
Eurostat
International
monetary fund IMF
United Nations
Economic institutions/ NGOs
HBOS Economic Factbook
OECD
European Central Bank
World Economic Forum
World Health Organization
International Energy Agency
World Trade Organization
UNCTAD
UN Commodity Trade Statistics
Euroconstruct
Cambridge Econometrics
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www.oanda.com
www.imf.org
convertworld.com
umrechnungstabelle.de
www.ft.com
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Where to search: Standard sources
Many websites provide standard insights into the meaning of a certain topic as well as general information about it
Type
Dictionaries,
thesauri &
encyclopedias
Maps, mapping,
post codes,
phone
directions
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Contents / description

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

Checking of spelling, synonyms
Foreign language terms
Definition of technologies and terms, often glossaries supplied by trade associations
Standard literature on business topics (Wöhe, Hopfenbeck, Varian, etc.) featuring important
definitions
 Atlas and map collection for identifying locations, catchment areas etc.
 Statistical packages for manipulating geographical information
 Online yellow and white pages
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Examples
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Dictionary.com
dict.leo.org
www.wie-sagt-man-noch.de
Wikipedia
Duden
PONS
 Google maps
 teleauskunft.de
 Mapquest
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How to search – How to“Google”?
Here are some nifty modifiers to type in your Google search box to refine your searches and get the best results
Exact
Phrases
""
Excluded
Words
–
Similar
Words

Multiple
Words
OR
Numerical
Ranges
…
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 What it does:
searches for an exact phrase
 What to type:
"one small step for man“
 What you’ll get: results including the exact
phrase "one small step man”
 What it does:
excludes search results with a
particular word or phrase
 What to type:
bass-fishing
 What you’ll get: results about bass that are not
related to fishing
 What it does:
searches for a word and all its
synonyms
 What to type:
mobile phone
 What you’ll get: results with the word "phone", as
well as "cellular", "wireless", etc.
 What it does:
searches for web pages that
include either word
 What to type:
vacation London OR Paris
 What you’ll get: results with the word "vacation"
and either "London" or "Paris"
 What it does:
searches for a range of numbers
 What to type:
Willie Mays 1950 … 1960
 What you’ll get: results about Willie Mays during
this time period
Find
Meanings
define:
Site Specific
site:
Specific file
types
filetype:
Math
Answers
1+1
Conversion
Cm in foot
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 What it does:
defines a word or phrase
 What to type:
define: plethora
 What you’ll get: links to definitions of the word
"plethora"
 What it does:
searches only particular websites
 What to type:
global warming site: edu
 What you’ll get: references to global warming
found on .edu websites
 What it does:
narrows search results to specific
documents types (e.g. pdf)
 What to type:
fileytpe:pdf or filetype:ppt
 What you’ll get: references to pdf/ppt documents
that match your search pattern
 What it does:
basic calculator functions
 What to type:
4+7, 30% of 55, 20^2, sqrt (4), etc.
 What you’ll get: the answer
 What it does:
 What to type:
converts units of measure
cm in foot, 28C in F, $ in pound,
days in fortnight, miles in league,
mph in speed of light, etc.
 What you’ll get: the converted answer
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How to record your research findings?
Every information which is found ends up in a long- or shortlist – a detailed list of research findings - which is often handed
over to the client
x
The structure of the list (columns, etc.) should be planned and set up before the actual research is started.
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Why is documenting so important?
Keeping track of your research findings right from the start helps you to avoid multiple investigations on similar topics and
facilitates auditing
An information spreadsheet helps to…
 …identify gaps in your research
 …eliminate multiple searches that have already been done
 …explain your research process to your team
 …archive successful research projects
 …audit work done for a project
LISTING ALL FOUND
INFORMATION THOUROUGHLY
IS THE FIRST STEP TO A
SUCCESSFUL
RESEARCH RESULT
 …reduce risk associated with recommendations to clients
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Example: What is secondary research used for
Secondary data from different sources can be used to model market sizes and to develop forecasts (primary input is used to
double-check the model …)
Export volumes
Copper export CAGR% (05-09) (09-14F)
value [bn US$]
Copper export
volume [m tonnes]1)
7
6
5,5
5,8
6,0
6,2
6,5
50
0.0
40
5
4
30
3
20
2
3,5
3,6
3,9
3,8
4.2
(2.9)
9.1
3,7
0
0
05
06
07
08
09
10F
Copper export value
Codelco volume
11F 12F 13F
Private volume
Total volume
Unit price development
Copper price
[US$ per ton]
14F
 Historical data from secondary
sources
 Value forecast calculated with
price and volume data
9.000
6.000
2.2
3.000
0
05
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06
07
08
09
10F
11F
12F
13F
14F
Commentary
Commentary is strongly
influenced by primary
research input
 Copper exports have increased strongly during
2005-07 following strong unit price increases
 The export value depends on both volume as well as
unit price developments
1.4
10
1
1.7
EXAMPLE: copper export volumes in Chile and worldwide
price development
2.1
Pricing data has been
generated from secondary
sources
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 In 2008 prices dropped significantly as a result of
the global economic downturn, thereby driving
export value down as well
 Going forward, moderate increases of both price
and volume are expected following recovering
economies, thereby driving export values upward
 Key drivers for Chile are demand from its key
customer China as well as new innovations with
increasing shares of copper
 However, price has been highly volatile in recent
years, future development is difficult to forecast,
thereby some uncertainties as to the actual
developments remain
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Listing at CLR – Some Principles!
When recording your results it is essential to consider some basic principles (for more insights you can also check our CLR
guidelines)
Before you finally start your research, please discuss your initial setup of your list with your PM
Consider to use the official CLEVIS Research or client colors for your list
In some cases your lists are directly transmitted to the costumer – the formatting has to be uniform, faultless and correct
Please pay attention to aligned formatting and the complete display of available information – do not copy and paste
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What is in for you?
Carrying out secondary research seems to be „boring“ to many people – however there are several reasons why it shouldn‘t
and isn’t
Secondary research reveals interesting insights
 Client receives understanding about market mechanisms
 Valuable information is often intransparent and hid in several sources
 Receiving a deeper insight is crucial for strategic decisions
Research delivers necessary skills for future careers
 It requires a diverse skill set:
 Understanding: quickly become proficient in the jargon/technology/
economics of the industry
 Business understanding: try to understand how it fits into the big
picture
 Process knowledge: how to approach a market analysis (where, how,
what to search)
 CLR reaches a better market understanding
 by getting insights into a new industry/market, which adds to past
information
 by finding new sources for information
 Persistence: sometimes you have to dig deep until you find
something of value
 Analytical understanding: cumulating and processing all information
found
 It develops vital consulting skills
 Every researcher gets a valuable insight
 into a certain market/industry/product
 into the methodological approach and process
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 Thinking on your feet
 Business sense
 Functional knowledge (measures, etc.)
 Carrying out a thorough secondary research is actually one of the most
complex tasks you can do
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Primary Research
What is primary research?
Telephone interviews let you gather very specific information that you would never be able to generate from secondary
sources
x
 Research tool to collect highly current („hot“) data
on short notice
 Main source for a classic market analysis
 In combination with secondary sources, you develop
a deeper understanding of market issues
Telephone interviewing puts you at the heart of the information gathering of the case and often makes you one of the bestinformed team members
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Why to do primary research?
Telephone interviews make valuable, but nontransparent pieces of information available
EXPERTS
Areas of
enquiry
Result
CUSTOMERS
 Market characteristics:
 History
 Trends
 Growth
 New products
 Technology
 Product gap
 Product classification
 Key market drivers
 Identification of key players
 Players in the market and
comments on them
 Purchase criteria and switching
costs
 Key success factors
 Purchasing process
Basic understanding of a market and its
characteristics
Important information to generate a
ranking of key purchase criteria and
key success factors
COMPETITORS
 Factual data on a company:
 Number of employees
 Production sites
 Turnover
 Product mix
 Salaries
 Market shares
 Cost breakdowns
 Margins in specific product areas
Highly sensitive and critical information
on a firm's financials, market position
and competitiveness
Availability
Easy
Difficult
Confidentiality
Low
High
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How to do primary research?
The primary research process includes both, the time you spend on conducting interviews and the one you need to prepare
yourself for calling
Preparation
Initial research
 What information do
you need?
 Are there useful
secondary sources?
 Specify exactly the
scope of your
interviews
Interview log;
questionnaire
 Create a contact list
 Look up experts,
customers, suppliers
and competitors
 Check with old cases
if there are contacts
you might be able to
use again
 Design the
questionnaire
 Include all relevant
areas of interest
Preparation should not last more than 1-2 days!
Either provided by or needs close interaction
with CLR PM
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Interview phase
Cold/paid calls
 Conduct your interviews in
this order
 Experts
 Customers/ purchaser
 Competitors
 Add paid interviews, but
only if needed
Callbacks
Analysis and
recommendation/
input for slide
production
 Callbacks are important if
 specific topics are still not
clear
 new topics arise
 Ask your interview partners if
you could call them back for
further questions
Enlarge contact list with research specific new contacts
Documentation
 Document your interviews on the same day (important!)
 Provide interview write-ups/memos to your project manager on the same day the
interview is performed, including name and contact details of interviewee
 Should be done outside calling hours, when contacts are best available
This is essential to ensure that
 no information gets lost
 team members can easier understand market topics immediately
 all team members benefit from each others’ experiences
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How to do create a contact list?
Being creative while researching interview contacts is crucial for the success of calling
There are many plattforms which might be helpful to gather contact details
x
Company
websites
Institutes
Associations
Books
Trade fair
websites
Publications
Governmental
departments
Conference
programs
NGOs
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How to prepare for calling?
It is crucial to be prepared before one picks up the phone so one can be focused only on the call as soon as it starts
Know your
subject
Write down key
questions
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 Interviewees are usually more willing to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about
and the interview is more useful
 Spending time teaching a "divisional manager" the industry basics is not good use of their time and
does not enhance the caller’s image
 However, in certain circumstances ignorance can be used to your advantage
 Prevents you from forgetting important key questions
 The respondent may not be as co-operative second time around
 Be prepared to be asked specific questions on the topic by the interviewee – an expert talks to an expert…
Order your
questions
 Control the interview as far as possible – often interviewees will talk about what they want to talk
about rather than what you want them to talk about
 Keep most sensitive questions until the end of the interview, when you have developed a better idea
of how to feed your critical questions and when the interviewee is more relaxed – however, do not
leave them until the point where the interviewee tries to end the conversation
Have "intros"
and "exits"
ready
 Interview work can be positioned as market research, a two-way dialogue between industry experts,
a survey of potential suppliers etc.
 Ask your interviewees if it would be okay to call them back again in case of further questions
 Always ask if they can recommend or forward you to other people worth speaking to
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What rules to follow “on the phone”?
Pay attention to a few rules in order to have a profitable interview
Description
Rule
Focus on topics, on which you think your interviewee can deliver the most information
Be careful asking overly sensitive questions, BUT push to get the data you need
Modify your questionnaire as new issues develop
Make your interviewee feel important and valuable
Feed your interviewee with new insights in order to get the information you need
Be interactive and positive to keep the interview alive
Be polite and grateful but not desperate or needy
Give feedback to your PM if you see new issues developing/recurring/arising
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On the phone: Examples of introducing interviews
Your opening gambit is one of the most important parts of the interview
„Hello, I am XY from CLEVIS Research in Munich. I am calling you because I found your name in/on XY. We are
currently analyzing the furniture industry in Austria with the aim to identify future trends and developments,
particularly in light of today’s market scenarios.
In this course we speak with a number of reknown market participants, and I am interested in your view on
future developments and perspectives. Would you mind discussing a few topics with me?”
„Hello, I am XY from CLEVIS Research in Munich. I am calling you because I found your name in/on XY. We are
currently analyzing the market of UV-technology and light sources with the aim to identify future trends and
developments in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America. I have been recommended to call you as someone
who could give advice on the European UV-market. Would you mind discussing a few topics with me?”
„Hello, I am XY from CLEVIS Research in Munich. I am calling you because I found your name in/on XY. We are
currently collecting feedback from the market following the merger of Sony & Ericsson.
We speak with a number of market participants, and I am interested in your opinion on the impact of the
joint venture on future market perspectives. Would you mind discussing a few topics with me?”
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On the phone: Stay positive and keep your attitude!
This is a summary of some aspects you should consider before you start calling
… awkward questions
… put-offs
 Never ever tell the interviewee our client’s name, no matter
how often this question arises (just in case your PM told you
so, it`s ok to report the client’s name)
 Quite often people you talk to are not really interested in the
client’s name – they are just curious; making a clear
statement can prevent any rumors
 Give the interviewee the feeling his input will be
very much appreciated and is important for
your work
 Never lie – just don’t tell them the whole
truth
 Keep your word: if you promised to send
extracts later, make the note in the interview
tracking
 Be polite and courteous – you never know if you
will have to call the person again someday
 Depending on the industry sector you are trying to call
people can be very unfriendly when it comes to telephone
interviews. They might block you completely or ask if you
could send questions via Email
 Clarify that your call is not “just another market
research survey” – avoid sending emails
 Offer to send extracts of your study to the
interviewee to raise his interest in this
conversation (if your PM agrees)
How to deal
with …
… business ethics
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 Don’t be afraid of stopping a conversation
once you realize the other person is a
windbag
 If you have a long contact list to go through,
don’t waste your time with people who add no
value to your project or market analysis
... windbags
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On the phone: Dealing with “awkward” questions
Try to prepare for all sorts of questions in advance, so you never are surprised… The more scenarios you think through
beforehand the more professional you act
Depends on project whether we take over client name,
our name or a certain role (DEFINED BEFORE
CALLING!)
Possible answer:
„We are in general searching the xxx
market and during the search we came
across your name and details“
“Who are you
working for?”
Possible answer:
„Because you might also be glad to
receive some more market insights
in the end… we might send you
some of our results afterwards.“
Possible answer:
„I understand and respect that. Would it
perhaps nevertheless be possible that
you answer two or three small questions.
Your confidentiality is of course ensured.“
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“Why should I
waste my
time talking to
you?”
“The company
policy is not
to talk to
people over
the phone”
“How did you
get my
contact?”
Possible
questions…
“Please send
me an email
or fax with all
your
questions”
“You don’t
know
anything
about this
business?”
Possible answer:
„I am at the moment trying to collect all
important information in order to get an
overall market understanding. But you
are the expert, that is why I am glad that
you share your knowledge with me!“
Possible answer:
„It would be very helpful if we could it discuss it by phone… it helps
to directly clarify questions and reach a shared understanding.“
ALWAYS TALK TO THE PM BEFORE YOU SEND ANYTHING!
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On the phone: Closing interviews
Three things to remember before closing interviews
A complete stranger gave you his time and valuable information
Be thankful
Get the
permission to
call back
and note
contact data
 Have you ever declined to give your opinion on a subject, on which you were an authority?
 Be thankful if the interviewee helped you to gather important data
 “Thank you very much for your time and cooperation”
If you have identified a valuable source, try to keep it
 Quite often new issues arise and you have to call back some of your interviewees
 Always ask valuable interviewees if it’s okay to call them back for further questions and note
contact data, so we can provide the interview participants with the results of the market
study if promised
By closing an interview
professionally your
interviewee will always
feel valued and you
might have won a useful
source to contact again
in the future
Your interview partner might know further valuable contacts
Ask for further
contacts
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 At the end of a good interview you should ask if the interviewee has knowledge of any other
people whom interviewing would be useful
 This is an easy way of getting additional valuable contacts you might not have found by
browsing online
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On the phone: Main tips
Prompting a provoking statement can help you generate the information you need
Do not allow yourself to be blocked by receptionists/secretaries

watch out for trigger words like survey or market research

tell them as little as possible, sound confident and imply that it is important to talk to Mr XY
Suggestions and prompting can help to generate information you need

if extracting “hard data” is very difficult, try to woo your interviewee with provoking statements, e.g.:

“I’ve talked to competitors of yours. They said the market is forecasted to increase by 5% over the next three years.
Are you as optimistic as they are?”

“Would you consider switching suppliers for a 5% discount?”
If you have a long “to call” list, don’t be afraid to apologize and end the call if you think you are wasting your time
Always try to be as straightforward and as natural as possible!
Stay positive – after every bad experience follows a good one at some point…
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How to track your interview status?
Recording conducted interviews in your “contact list” helps you to track your status and update your team members (for more
insights you can also check our CLR guidelines)
A tracking template is available on
request from your project manager
Global
statistics
Company, interviewee &
position
Last contact date, status and
commentary are most
important in managing your
interview program
Source where the
interviewee has
been found
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Phone
number
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How to record your interview results?
Provide detailed write-ups about every interview you conduct – either in Excel or in Word
Rules of documentation
1. Create a standard telephone interview form as a
word/excel document (if not provided through your
project manager)
2. Document the interview straight away to ensure no
important information gets lost, or in the low-calling
times in the evening or during lunch break
3. Organize the notes in their logical order to be more
efficient in slide production afterwards
4. Write down interview results in detail and in your own
words – no catchword!
5. Note full interviewee data and demographic data of the
interview
6. Answer in complete and comprehensive sentences,
which also feature your analysis of the meaning of the
response
7. Include examples to make sure your answer is clear
and cannot imply second understandings
8. Make sure that your project manager gets the write-ups
and memos in due time
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Why is documentation so important?
A standardized and consequential documentation ensures that your results are also traceable by other persons and different
analyses can be deducted
 An exact documentation of your results is especially
important as write-ups are sometimes directly delivered to
the client (so they need to be overarching, complete, sound
and flawless)
 The PM needs to understand the content of the interview,
even if he was not there, to make sense for a further client
analysis, etc.
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Example: What is primary research used for
Key purchasing criteria can for example be identified by good interviews with the relevant stakeholders
Order qualifiers
Today
Importance
high
Commentary
Order winners
Generated by means of interviews: interviewees ranked the
importance of key purchasing criteria by product segment
low
Quality &
reliability
Service
offering
Price
Order qualifiers
Relationship
Local
with
presence
supplier
Local
content
Order winners
Importance
high
Future (2-4 years)
Armoring
low
Quality &
reliability
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Armoring
Local
content
Local
presence
Price
Service
offering
Relationship
with
supplier
Purely interview-based
results
 Product quality & reliability as well as superior armoring are
prerequisites in order to be successful in Brazil
 In light of the Brazil army’s second hand and potentially outdated equipment, service offering has been equally important
and been an order qualifier as well
 However, going forward Brazil is expected to purchase new
equipment, which will lead to service becoming less
important
 Price has been quite important and was the main reason why
Brazil chose to purchase second hand equipment
 Now Brazil has shifted focus towards buying new rather than
used equipment, which indicates price becoming a less
important criterion
 Good customer relationships help considerably in winning orders
against competitors in Brazil
 Local content and presence have not been important, but with
the new policy, the importance of these criteria will increase
considerably
 In fact, local content is going to become an order qualifier, as
the government intends to have its industry participate
 "…With its increasing military budget, Brazil intends to also
stipulate its domestic industry, thereby requiring firstly an
increasing share of local content and secondly local
production …"
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Listing at CLR – Some Principles!
When recording your results it is essential to consider some basic principles (for more insights you can also check our CLR
guidelines)
Before you start calling, please discuss basic rules with your PM (Can I say the client name, etc.)
Write down interview results in detail and in your own words – no catchword!
In some cases your write-ups are directly transmitted to the costumer – the formatting has to be uniform, faultless and correct
Please pay attention to aligned formatting and the completeness of your write-ups – they have to be understandable for people
who did not take part in the interview
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What is in for you?
Carrying out primary research is a „no go“ to many people – however there are several reasons why it shouldn‘t be
Calling is crucial for all stakeholders
 Client receives understanding about market mechanisms
 Valuable information is often not available from other sources
 Adds insight to information obtained from other sources
Calling delivers necessary skills for future careers
 It requires a diverse skill set:
 Understanding: quickly become proficient in the jargon/technology/
economics of the industry
 Empathy: size up the character, understand "where they are coming
from" and modify your approach if necessary
 Business understanding: try to understand how it fits into the big
picture
 CLEVIS Research reaches a competitive advantage
 by providing information others do not have
 Interview guide: attempt to cover all the questions but sacrifice the
less important ones at times
 Persistence: "you have to kiss a lot of toads to find a prince“
 by delivering a special value added to the client
 It develops vital consulting skills
 Communication skills
 Interpersonal skills
 Every researcher becomes part in the results
 by providing meaningful information about the clients question
 Thinking on your feet
 by having significant input and influence on the direction of the case
and the recommendations made to the client
 Business sense
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and will thereby form a significant part of a researcher’s professional
evaluation
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Conclusion &
Examples
Necessity of good secondary and primary research
Good research work causes good results and satisfies the customer
Secondary and primary research results are necessarily needed for:
 generating very specific and detailed data
 delivering sound client recommendation

modelling market sizes and developing forecasts (primary input is used to double-check the model and to provide qualitative backing)

finding valuable qualitative information such as market drivers, their impact, future trends as well as market trends by specific
segments

identifying of key decision makers, which are crucial in any customer analyses

analyzing important players in specific markets in order to investigate the competitive environment

identifying a range of soft skills for companies moving into global markets

delivering an overview on market shares, which is one of the trickiest tasks in market research and requires a large-enough sample of
good interviews
Because every list and every write up is used to conduct a client analysis, it has to be formally and content-wise consistent and
correct!
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Project example: Successful international market entry
We carried out a European focused market analysis for UV curing applications in several industries in order to help the client
understand his growth possibilities
Short description of project
Results market trends
 The client‘s aim of the project was to get insights into the UV
curing market
 This was done by ..
 Providing market information (volume, etc.)
 Listing market participants and interesting markets
 Depicting the competitive landscape
 Identifying future trends and market drivers
 Preparing a market entry strategy
Results market volume
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Project example: Successful product strategy development
We carried out a strategic survey for a mid-range product market in order to help the client understand whether he can enter
the market with a slightly premium product
Short description of project
Research funnel
 The client‘s aim of the project was to understand the key
purchasing citeria and values of customer and non-customer
segments
 The project was based on a 360°stakeholder primary research in
China, Germany and USA
 It revealed insights into the brand selection, design features,
lacking standards and sales channels
Results key decision criteria
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Project example: Successful due diligence
We carried out a due diligence in the market of iOS-based POS systems in the hospitality sector to help the client understand
the risks and opportunities of buying a certain company
Short description of project
Results qualitative analysis
 The client‘s aim of the project was to get an insight into the iOSbased POS market in the hospitality sector

This was done by…
 An initial assessment of company data
 A thorough insight into the industry
 A detailed analysis of products
 An evaluation of the competitive landscape
 A deep dive into competitor profiles
 An identification of market drivers and trends
Results market volume forecast
 A forecasting of market penetration rates
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We need you…
In order to deliver further successful client projects we need your support
Areas you can support in

Carry out thorough secondary research

Deliver market understanding to CLEVIS Research its clients

Steer your own researcher team

Become the best in interviewing market participants

Support us in analyzing data and preparing it for the client

Add your perspective to our results

Become part of a project team
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CLR Company Profile
We are market-based management consultants and research experts...
Customers





Leading consultancies
PE/VC funds
Start-Ups
Medium-sized companies
Multinational corporations
15%
15%
10%
40%
20%
Who we are and what we can offer..
Over 300 successful research &
consulting projects in over 100 markets
and more than 50 different languages
Managing entrepreneurs
 Expert knowledge and experience in relevant
Research &
Consulting
Mission
15/12/14
topics related to market-based management:
- Sales & market strategy
- Marketing & customer journey
- Product and business innovation
- Mergers & acquisitions
- Procurement & IT
CLR is an expert boutique helping companies of any
size/industry to position themselves in a challenging
environment by well-grounded research activities in
the B2B area completed with tailored consulting
solutions by a proven and holistic mix of
methodology, by delivering first-hand market
information locally and internationally with a skilled
and committed team
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Innovators, lean manager and
experts in virtual collaboration
Young talents and a vital pool of
over 200 freelance analysts
47
Contact Details
CLEVIS Research GmbH
Erika-Mann-Straße 53
D-80636 Munich
Tel. +49 (0)89 242 111-0
Fax +49 (0)89 242 111-55
www.clevis-research.de
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