Hi WaltPA,

Check out this article http://media.ford.com/newsroom/relea...?release=27039

It is a recent press release from Ford Motor Company, which clearly associates Ford with RDA Group, a marketing research and consulting firm. As you can see Ford has been doing a significant amount of their marketing research with RDA Group for quite some time now.

Of course we should all be aware of who we are giving our personal information. But please don't assume every time someone asks for your gender/age/income that they are using that information in a negative way. In the case of market research all those demographics questions really are insights for the manufacturer.

 

I guess I just still don't get it.

If one of the five surveys I got might be legitimate, how does that guarantee that all five are legitimate? Again, the advise being given here, is to go right ahead and fill out any and all surveys you get in the mail. It is always safe.

How does the owner's gender/age/income/family/children/etc directly affect the quality of a three-month-old vehicle (the sole purpose of the data Ford mentions in their press release)? I still don't get the connection.

RDS is a marketing company. They make money by collecting and then selling data it collects. I don't see in that press release the very important key word "exclusively" (for Ford). Therefore, I don't understand how you are so very sure, that the non-vehicle, very personal, data they collect about gender/age/income/etc isn't also being sold to other customers of RDS?

As I said earlier. I am not against all unsolicited surveys I received in the mail. I had no problem filling out the one from J.D. Power and Associates.

 

Hi all,

Just wanted to add my $.02 to this thread. I am actually a Research Director for a marketing research firm. Everyone who has commented on this thread is right in some aspect.

Those who said that reputable research firms do exist such as JD Power, Maritz, RDA, etc. are absolutely correct. These firms are registered with the international councils on Marketing Research such as ESOMAR and CASRO. Therefore, any surveys with these company logos, or the logos of the manufacturer of the vehicle, are always safe. Please fill them out, including the personal information! They help us shape the vehicles, advertising campaigns and dealer experiences we all recieve every day!

As for some of the myths: OEMs don't just use research they subscribe to, ala JD Powers. In fact, this is the smallest source of research material that OEMs use. Much more information comes from proprietary studies conducted through companies like Maritz and RDA. Sometimes these have the OEM logo, sometimes the research company logo.

As for the personal information, we use that to develop vehicle and market segmentation profiles. As someone else mentioned, we want to know if the average Escape Hybrid driver is a male or female, highschool or college educated, makes 30K or 130K, etc. That way, we know whether to advertise in Field and Stream or GQ, on the Oprah show or Food Network.

As for unscrupulous companies wanted to sell your info - hey, we all know they are out there. However, as mentioned above, there are some good guys. Make sure you don't punish them, your OEM, and ultimately the customers!

Just a bit of learning from someone who does this for a living!

Happy Driving (and survey taking),

Paul

 

Now if only they collected "useful" data like "How tall are you?" As a tall person, there's a LOT that I may like or dislike about a car based purely on my height. This, to me, is substantially more important than the number and placement of cup-holders.

 

I bought my '07 FEH on March 25, 2007. To date I've never gotten any surveys regarding it, except for the dealer calling me to ask if they "...provided me with excellent service."

 

I don't, and would never encourage anyone else to do it.

 

I got my FEH in the fall and I'm getting swamped with surveys...if they are all certified or whatever you want to call it by Ford then they need to re-think how many of these they send out....I sent in at least 1 maybe 2 already and I swear I have at least 4 or 5 sitting in a pile on my desk...some are LONG....do they really think they are getting real answers with this many surveys that are this long....

 

This might be a record for reviving an old thread (10 years, heh). Here's my $0.02


I've been to several automotive focus groups over the years. Driven four electrified cars over the years. Currently Tesla Model 3. I enjoy the surveys, which have almost always led to showing up in person for a focus group. At these events, manufacturers evaluate public opinion on engineering specs, body shapes, interior fabrics and finish, and instrument clusters.

I remember two notable instances in particular. I was shown a dozen variations of car exterior. I couldn't quite figure out the mfg at the time. A few years down the road, I actually saw the sheet metal on the road. It turned out to be a sales success.

On the other instance, I had written out an evaluation after sitting in the driver seat of a prototype car. On my way out, I stopped to munch on their snacks. Two dudes approached me with a ginormous TV reporter sized camera and mic. They asked me to go sit in the prototype and demonstrate my comment. I asked why, they said the engineers are in a remote location and were very interested in my comment. That was fun.


So in summary, I thoroughly enjoyed the surveys and focus groups. I was compensated, and I like to think that I gave them their money's worth and then some. I saw some people over the years 'phone it in' and complete the stuff way too fast. I was the one that took awhile and left detailed comments. I guess I did something right at least once to get on camera.

Are there scammers out there? I suppose. But as someone mentioned, there are legit companies doing research on behalf of auto manufacturers. If you are so inclined, it can be an interesting thing. And you get a chunk of change too. Honestly, I would have did it for free, lol, just for the exposure to future stuff and to be able to help shape future products.