Market research is all about predicting the future... or attempting to at least. But, as human habits and patterns become more irrational, as some suggest, predicting the future based on the past is becoming increasingly difficult, yet ever-more important.

It's simply no longer logical to take the historical data found in market research and assume that it will predict the future. Yet, many businesses use it as such, and, maybe in the past, that was okay. Now, human behavior must be considered right alongside market research in an entirely new way.

Although the world is shifting away from oil-based fuels towards more sustainable energy sources, several reasons deem renewables, like wind, solar and hydro-electric systems, impractical for quite a few sections of society and industry: not enough wind, too many cloudy days, and insufficient watercourse.

In the wake of acute power shortages, this leaves us with very few alternatives, one of which is using a generator. Gas-fired generators are gradually becoming the choice for both standby and prime power.

Targeted therapies and the use of molecular profiling to determine which first-line treatments patients should receive have rapidly found their feet in the non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) market. Even the segmentation of this market into very small patient sub-populations – such as the EML4-ALK positive group, which accounts for between just 3-7 percent of all NCSLC patients – can prove commercially enticing as pharma companies carve out their own niches.

In the world of market research, one of the biggest areas of confusion revolves around licensing.  When I buy a report, who can use it and how can it be used?  This is made even more difficult because the terms one publisher uses can be different from another.  In 2013, we published a blog post to help companies of various sizes and with various budgets determine which license was right for them. Because licensing remains such a complex concept to many purchasers and end users, here is a more in-depth guide to help you understand the complicated maze of market research licensing.

The digitization wave sweeping through the automotive industry has disrupted the dynamics in car retailing, giving rise to a bricks and clicks model to complement the time-worn system of automotive dealerships.

According to Frost & Sullivan’s latest study on the global automotive industry, online transactions will account for four percent of the total global car sales by 2020; that translates to exclusive online sales of more than 50,000 cars belonging to brands ranging from Daimler, Renault, and BMW-I to Dacia and Ford. Plus, the number of mobile payment users is expected to rise by 16 percent, exceeding the one billion mark by 2025.

We hear it all the time: "But, I am not the buyer..." One of the most common client misconceptions that I have experienced while working in the market research industry is that the MarketResearch.com research specialists are only here to help those within the company library or purchasing department find and buy relevant reports. While we do assist clients in this way, there is also a great deal that we can do for those who are using the reports as well, even if you hold no purchasing power.

Wireless services are a key area for telecommunications' industry growth in 2014, and industry players around the world are competing heavily for a lead position in these developments.  In fact, it is expected that subscriptions to wireless services will overtake the actual world population due to the number of multiple subscriptions owned.

The most popular terms used by enterprise communications vendors today—and, indeed, for many years—are “UC” (which stands for “unified communications”) and “UCC” (“unified communications and collaboration”). But, if you think that means IT buyers understand what those terms mean, you’re wrong.

In the first episode of the hit series Mad Men, Don Draper explains to the client, Lucky Strike cigarettes, that advertising is "based on one thing: happiness. And, do you know what happiness is? Happiness is the smell of a new car. It's freedom from fear. It's a billboard on the side of a road that screams with reassurance that whatever you're doing is okay. You are okay."

But, how do you measure your customers' happiness? Predict it? Create products that elicit it? Do customers even know what they want?

In the two past decades, the healthcare industry in China has been growing at a fast pace, as it is a tremendous challenge to provide healthcare for 1.3 billion people. According to Asia Market Information and Development Company, the dramatic expansions of the healthcare system, drug manufacturing, and health insurance have transformed China’s society and economy. Life expectancy has now reached 76.8 for women and 72.5 for men compared to 69.9 for women and 66.9 for men in 1990. Demographic transition from high mortality to low mortality has helped drive this increase in life expectancy. Primary diseases have also shifted from infectious to chronic. Cancer, heart diseases and cerebrovascular diseases are now top killers. As of now, spending on healthcare counts for over 5% of GDP and that will only continue to increase in the next decade.