Courtesy of MRNews *
A few weeks ago, Ifop, the oldest French group specialised in marketing and opinion research, announced a significant milestone in its external growth strategy with the acquisition of Brain Value. Established in 2003, this company is one of the most dynamic players in the market, positioned at the crossroads of qualitative research, strategic planning, and marketing consultancy.
Its founder and CEO Nicolas Riou, along with Executive Vice-President Nathalie Ternisien and Ilana Rudiakov – formerly Head of Ifop IQ and now member of the Brain Value management team – talk about synergies created by this merger, as well as the ambitions of this new Brain Value, which becomes the brand representing qualitative research within the Ifop Group.
MRNews: Brain Value has established an original domain, situated at the intersection of qualitative research and strategic planning. However, hasn’t Ifop already adopted this approach?
Ilana Rudiakov (Ifop IQ): Yes, absolutely. Upon his arrival, our CEO Stéphane Truchi was eager to develop and enhance Ifop’s offer by integrating strategic planning, which initially gave rise to the creation of InCapsule. When I joined the group two years ago, he expressed a strong desire to take this hybrid approach even further. As a result, we created Ifop IQ, these initials meaning Inspiring Qual. The aim was to leverage strategic planning to ‘augment’ qualitative research. In particular, semiology and trend detection have bolstered our systems. This hybridisation takes place naturally with qualitative research, but also with the group’s other activities, including Ifop’s quantitative research, Sociovision and Occurrence. Our merger with Brain Value thus extends an already well-established approach.
What other important commonalities exist between Brain Value and Ifop IQ?
Nathalie Ternisien (Brain Value): We share the same vision on qualitative research, with a very strong strategic focus. On both sides, we prioritise fundamental studies over a few ‘tactical’ tests. I’m thinking in particular of in-depth brand investigations – which we call ‘Brand Essence’ – as well as brand audits. Historically, brand strategy consultancy has been our strong point.
IR: For Ifop IQ, the strategic aspect is also predominant. Brand issues are very much a part of our activity, as well as the precise markets exploration, to assist companies in identifying the best opportunities, with reflections regularly involving lead users or experts.
From left to right: Christophe Jourdain (Ifop Group Deputy General Manager), Ilana Rudiakov (formerly Head of Ifop IQ, now Senior Vice-President of Brain Value), Nathalie Ternisien (Executive Vice-President of Brain Value) and Nicolas Riou (Founder and CEO of Brain Value).
For complementarity to be fully effective, there must also be differences. What are they?
NT: There are convergences – I’m thinking of the Luxury & Beauty sector where we are both renowned – but also clear complementarity between us in terms of the industries we work with. Brain Value has a strong expertise in FMCG and areas such as Gaming, Automotive, and Healthcare. The Ifop Group, on the other hand, has strong positions in Energy, Banking & Insurance, and more broadly in Services. This allows us to cover all key sectors, which is a real advantage.
IR: The merger will also help strengthen our positions internationally, especially in the United States and China. It is an opportunity for us to expand our local presence in these two major markets, with professionals who have a deep understanding of these cultures, in addition to the business initiated from Paris.
You have announced that your qualitative research and strategic planning activities will be carried out under the single brand of Brain Value. Why did you make this choice?
NT: The Brain Value brand was founded in 2003. It enjoys a strong reputation, especially in France with French companies of international stature, but also in China. It goes without saying that we don’t intend to destroy this value, but rather to capitalise on it. However, particularly in the field of qualitative research, value also relies a lot on the teams involved, thus on the one we are now forming with Ifop IQ.
Nicolas Riou (Brain Value): The reputation of the Brain Value brand, and its close association with a strategic qualitative research, is indeed a major asset. Clients are attached to people, and I fully agree with Nathalie. They are also attached to a certain mindset and to specific expertise that we’ll be keen to promote. That’s part of our strategy. But we are also going to strongly emphasise the synergy with Ifop, and our upcoming visual identity will undoubtedly reflect this.
In practice, do you already know how the teams will be working together? Will the premises be shared?
NT: Ilana is a member of our Management Committee as Senior Vice-President, alongside Cécile Batho, Cécile Gorgeon, our CFO Safia Hoarau, Aurélie Pichard, myself, and of course our CEO Nicolas Riou. That’s an important first step, that means we’re joining forces to design the qualitative research of tomorrow, with this strong strategic focus we’ve been talking about, and now a team of 60 people overall.
IR: We’re in work in progress mode! We’ll certainly work under the same roof, but first things first. Meanwhile, we’re meeting regularly in our Management Committee sessions, but also beyond that perimeter, because I want to expand the circle to ensure that the teams get to know each other quickly and get the measure of this opportunity. In particular, we organise internal meetings to encourage interaction and intellectual stimulation, as well as brainlunches on various themes. We’ll also collaborate in creating and hosting events together, with our customers, in different formats as inspiring as possible.
What are or will be the major benefits for the market?
NR: They already have access to an extended Think Tank of experts. This is true for Ifop’s customers, who can now benefit from Brain Value’s resources, particularly in terms of strategic planning. But it’s also true for Brain Value’s customers, who can request all of the Ifop Group’s expertise. With qualitative and quantitative research, Sociovision, and also Occurrence and its subsidiary Deep Opinion, they have access to the best of both worlds! I would like to add that combining our expertise will enable us, in a few months, to build innovative offerings on the market. Stay tuned!
Looking ahead 4 or 5 years, how do you evaluate the success of this merger?
NT: Our main ambition is to become THE market leader in brand strategy issues. When teams are wondering about defining a brand platform, about its purpose, identity, imagination, values, territory, but also about the innovation strategy associated with it, Brain Value must be the first name that comes to mind. We also aim to further strengthen our leadership in the Luxury & Beauty sector, following the strategic direction set by Stéphane Truchi for the Ifop Group.
NR: It seems crucial to me that we should be perceived as multi-specialists, with expert representatives in various key categories. This is true for Luxury & Beauty, where our leadership is renowned. But it can and must be extended to other domains such as Automotive, Gaming, Food and Services, etc.
Is there anything important you’d like to add?
NT: Since we started working together, I have been struck by the obviousness of our commonalities. We speak the same language, but we also share the same passion for what we do, which I believe is a significant key. I truly believe that we can only excel in this profession if we are passionate, and we certainly are!
NR: This common culture is an essential factor. We share the same values, including the passion for this profession, the quest for excellence, and certainly a form of goodwill too. Being in a positive and enjoyable environment truly matters! So we have lots of synergies and complementarities, and a very strong desire to leverage all that to invent qualitative research and studies of tomorrow. Because we work in a changing world, and as our customers’ needs are evolving, we have to adapt to them constantly, designing new solutions day after day to serve them better.
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