Home / Export Marketing Research Scheme (EMRS)
Project part-financed by the European Union
UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) provides support to companies to undertake export marketing research through the Export Marketing Research Scheme (EMRS). EMRS is managed by The British Chambers of Commerce. Companies can access free, professional and independent advice about researching export markets and receive financial subsidies of up to 50% towards marketing research costs. The purpose of EMRS is to help and encourage UK companies to undertake overseas marketing research prior to developing a strategy for market entry or further investment into a new overseas market. EMRS helps to ensure that UK companies undertake or commission marketing research based on sound methods and to achieve a widespread understanding of the discipline and benefits of marketing research in the exporting process.
Companies may wish to carry out export marketing research to obtain intelligence on topics such as:
EMRS support is generally available for UK companies with fewer than 250 employees, wishing to research specific overseas markets for their own products or services. Companies need to apply for an eligibility assessment.
Companies may receive support for up to ten in-depth field research projects.
In house: up to half the costs of essential travel, interpreter’s fees, daily subsistence and a contribution towards administration costs for one researcher, subject to a maximum grant of £5,000 and a minimum of £100.
Agency-field project: up to half of the total project costs where face to face interviews are undertaken in the market, subject to a maximum grant of £15,000 and a minimum of £100.
Agency-desk research: up to a third of the cost where there is no visit to the country, subject to a maximum grant of £5,000 and a minimum of £100.
Published market reports: up to a third of the cost of purchasing a market research report, subject to a maximum grant of £5,000 and a minimum of £100.
The maximum amount available overall to an eligible company is £30,000. No more than £20,000 can be used for projects conducted in the USA, Canada and European Union.
We can advise you at every stage of your marketing research project. You may first of all wish to decide where to start exporting or which territory to target next if you are already an exporter. Once you have identified a market, the next stage is deciding what information is required, and how to go about the project.
The first stage is to understand the market in which you currently operate. Consider, for example:
Although these may appear simplistic considerations, a clear understanding of your existing market can help eliminate countries which are obviously inappropriate as potential new markets, for example, those with few potential end users or with poor payment records.
A more detailed evaluation process will enable you to prioritise the remaining list of possible targets. It is helpful to consider markets both in terms of the potential ‘reward’, i.e. size of the market, against the relative ‘ease’ of different markets for your company. Whilst large markets are important, they may be less accessible, requiring considerable resources and time to develop; a smaller, and perhaps ‘friendlier’ market could be more worthwhile.
Factors which may indicate the level of likely demand for your product or service in a country might include:
Different criteria will have varying levels of importance for different companies and products / services.
Once you have established your selection criteria, try to obtain information about how each market you are considering performs on these criteria. Information is readily available from free, or inexpensive sources including published research and directories, commercial libraries, Business Links, UK Trade & Investment, Chambers of Commerce, Trade Associations etc. Please click here for a list of useful websites to gather information at this stage in the process.
Although the process requires comparison of several different markets, it may help you to avoid costly mistakes in the future. Having compared markets on objective criteria which are relevant to your business, you can prioritise, focusing on those markets most likely to yield promising results.
Once you have identified a market, the next stage is deciding what information is required, and how to go about the project.
You will need to know the current size of the market that you are considering entering. This may be expressed in monetary value or as units (no. of businesses, no. of projects, no. of items).
The market is likely to be made up of a number of segments that could be defined by:
You will need to decide how your market is segmented, obtain information about each segment and decide which is likely to offer you the best returns.
An understanding of the supply chain in your proposed market is useful. This includes a detailed knowledge of the relationships between the producers, the importers, the distributors and the customers. The role of wholesalers should also be investigated with attention paid to the relative importance of the alternative supply routes.
You will need to appreciate the changes that have recently, or are expected, to take place within your market. Various factors will influence a market’s size, its segments, patterns of use and distribution. These factors can include:
Knowledge of who currently supplies similar types of products or services to those that you are considering introducing onto the market is clearly important. It is necessary to understand the extent of competition and to know your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.
Consider:
It helps to understand the motivations of your customers and why they are buying the products or services they use. The questions you may need to consider include:
An understanding of the legislation and regulations that apply to your product category in the country concerned should be developed. Consideration should also be given to how these regulations are applied in the field on existing products. This includes health & safety, environmental and technical issues.
Both in-house and agency research have their own distinct advantages, and every company planning to research an export market should consider carefully which is most relevant to their needs.
We categorise "in-house" research as a project which is undertaken usually by a company employee; in-house researchers can also be technical experts, industry specialists or business consultants who may not be a direct employee of the company. They do not normally have a marketing research background, so the advice our Research Advisers can provide on issues such as research techniques, questionnaire design and planning often proves invaluable.
"Agency" research, by contrast, is carried out by market research specialists, working to a specified brief. Companies seeking support for this type of project are asked to submit a minimum of three detailed proposals from market research agencies, each of whom must demonstrate that they are independent and have the expertise and resources to carry out the project. The company then nominates which agency they wish to commission.
The benefit of using a professional market research agency can be measured in terms of peace of mind. Many companies feel comfortable in the knowledge that research is being carried out exclusively for them by experienced professionals. Use of an external agency means there is no impact on internal resourcing and research results are independent and totally objective.
However, companies using external agencies gain no hands-on experience in their proposed marketplace and have no opportunity to forge contacts. Agency projects come with a higher price tag and the quality of research is only as good as the agency chosen to do it.
One advantage of conducting research yourself is that the in-house researcher is involved with every stage of the project from start to finish. A huge range of information can be gleaned firsthand from an overseas trip, much of it of practical value in demonstrating your knowledge to potential customers in the future.
There is a cost advantage in choosing in-house over agency, but this should be weighed against the time an individual will need to spend on the project and the likely impact of this on the business. In-house activity can generate additional expenses, such as the cost of using interpreters.
Bias, too, is a problem facing the in-house researcher. Close personal involvement means it is often difficult to adopt a completely objective stance and this can influence research findings.
All this demonstrates that the choice should be based on the needs and circumstances of individual companies. We can provide free, independent and objective advice to help ensure that the decision you make is the right one.
Once you have decided which option suits your company, please refer to either the BCC in-house research section, or the agency projects section
Contact the British Chambers of Commerce regarding the support available: -
Tel: 024 7669 4484
Fax: 024 7669 5844
email: emr@britishchambers.org.uk
