abnResearch rebrands as abnImpact, opens new office in Hong Kong

The company has also opened a Hong Kong office, which joins an existing office in Bangkok, where the company was founded in 2010. The new location will be led by Scott Lee, who joined as managing director in June from previous executive director positions with Cimigo and Synovate. The company has also hired Angela Cross as qualitative director in Bangkok.

The new name, which took effect 1 August, better fits with the agency's use of so-called 'co-creation' methods to help its clients adapt their research to fit the changing relationships they have with their customers, according to the agency.

"abnImpact recognises how consumers increasingly expect dialogue with brands to help shape their development,” Maziar Amirahmadi, chief executive officer, told Campaign Asia-Pacific. “The rebranding emphasises our focus on bridging the gap between research insight and strategy by bringing the consumer closer to a client’s brand in a direct conversation."

This means moving away from the traditional tools of research—focus groups and surveys—toward a co-creation model, in which consumers are recruited to engage with the brand on an ongoing basis and made to feel like active participants in its development. This interaction frequently occurs within a purpose-built website that incorporates social-media mechanisms. Co-creation is a much-hyped trend within research, and abnImpact is not alone in espousing its virtues. Eyeka is a notable competitor active in Asia-Pacific.

Examples of co-creation research, Amirahmadi said, include asking participants to post updates about their shopping experiences, their usage of a certain type of product, or their experiences doing a particular household chore. Such methods can be used for everything from uncovering insights for product development to testing advertising campaigns.

Although technology enables the approach, "the more poignant development is actually a development in the consumer psyche," Amirahmadi said. "People almost feel that it's their entitlement to belong to a community and to have their say."

The approach gives brands good bang for the buck, as Amirahmadi explains: "Where the brands adopt this real co-creation spirit, you don't need to pay a lot of money," to participants, he said. "They're not doing it for the money." In addition, consumers tend to be more open behind the "veil of anonymity" that the online tools provide than they would be in, say, a focus group, he said. 

The agency's client list is heavy on FMCG companies including Unilever, L'Oreal, Heineken, Pepsi, Philips and Johnson & Johnson. The new office in Hong Kong is meant to provide more opportunities to work with service-oriented companies, including those in finance and telecom, Amirahmadi said.  

[Disclosure: Haymarket Media, publisher of Campaign Asia-Pacific, has worked with abnImpact in the past.]