Market Strategies International is pleased to offer the first edition of its annual Social Media Brand Index. The Index is intended to provide an objective, comprehensive view of how top brands across different industries succeeded in social media during 2011.

Utility executives are talking about a new era of increased customer engagement, driven by "smart" energy distribution technologies, but our research shows that many consumers have tuned out. Are utilities missing an opportunity to win over consumers?

Communications firms have an enormous amount of customer experience data available, perhaps more than any other sector. Leveraging this information to drive business decisions requires careful planning and a sound data integration process.

Prepaid gift cards have grown in popularity among consumers and have become a valuable source of revenue for retailers. In this two part study, Market Strategies International teamed up with First Data to learn how consumers perceive and use gift cards.

Findings reveal that consumers continue to have serious concerns about online and mobile security, but for many of America's retail banks this provides a significant competitive advantage over other financial services, technology and communications companies.

Gift card buyers are an extremely diverse group in their attitudes and behaviors toward different types of cards, the number of cards they purchase, preferred purchase locations and affinity for e-gift cards. Savvy retailers take the time to understand how attitudes, behaviors and usage vary among consumers.

In its December 21, 2011 issue, Modern Medicine reports on a new study from Market Strategies International that indicates 58% of primary care physicians (PCPs) expect to join an accountable care organization, and 44% expect it to happen within the next 3 years. PCPs also have a negative outlook for how healthcare reform will affect their practices’ finances.

In December 2011, Greenbook and NewMR organized a debate on the hot topic of research gamification. Listen in as four panelists, including Market Strategies' Reg Baker, weigh in on the use of game mechanics in market research and discuss the need to validate this approach before recommending it to clients.

The November 2011 issue of Oncology Business Review features a research study conducted by Market Strategies International about the future of biosimilars in the US, which we believe will lead to spirited competition.

In the 2011 CASRO Journal, Market Strategies' Theo Downes-Le Guin examines how researchers handle "big data" sources. He suggests that qualitative researchers seeking to apply the tools and principles of unstructured text analysis need to rethink the way they analyze.