Ipsos Paper Wins Prestigious International Award For Customer Satisfaction Research

New York, NY - A paper by Ipsos Loyalty employees that examines the positive relationship between customer satisfaction and actual share-of-wallet in a business-to-business environment won the Excellence in Service Research Award for 2004 from the Journal of Service Research, the leading scientific journal in service research. The announcement was made at an awards dinner recently held in Miami, FL at the American Marketing Association's Frontiers in Services Conference. The authors Timothy L. Keiningham and Dr. Tiffany Perkins-Munn of Ipsos Loyalty and Heather Evans, an employee at a major financial services company, won the award for their article, "The Impact of Customer Satisfaction on Share-of-Wallet in a Business-to-Business Environment." The article appeared in the August 2003 issue of the Journal of Service Research. The Journal of Service Research is considered the world's leading journal in service research. It publishes every quarter the most advanced research in service marketing, e-Service, service operations, service human resources and organizational design, service information systems, customer satisfaction and service quality, and the economics of service. Regarding the award, Dr. Roland Rust of the University of Maryland and editor of the Journal of Service Research said: "This article is a prime example of research that both improves the practice of business and advances knowledge at the same time. Keiningham and his co-authors have made an important contribution." Currently there is very little empirical research concerning the relationship between customer satisfaction and share-of-wallet. The Ipsos Loyalty research not only found that there is a positive relationship, but that the relationship is nonlinear, with the greatest positive impact occurring at the upper extreme of satisfaction levels. Said Tom Neri, President of Ipsos Loyalty in the U.S.: "Tim and Tiffany are not only specialists in helping businesses understand, grow and nurture loyalty but widely respected for their research, views and writings in this field. We are proud to have them as members of the Ipsos Loyalty team." Timothy L. Keiningham is senior vice president and head of consulting at Ipsos Loyalty, based in Paramus, New Jersey. His research interests include service marketing and linking service improvement efforts to business outcomes. He is coauthor of The Customer Delight Principle, published by McGraw-Hill/American Marketing Association. Dr. Tiffany Perkins-Munn holds a Ph.D. in Social-Personality Psychology with a concentration in Quantitative Psychology. She is currently vice president and head of loyalty analytics at Ipsos Loyalty. Her research interest is on examining the underpinnings of social psychology and behavioral science in marketing information systems (i.e., internal reporting, marketing intelligence, and decision support systems) and marketing research using a mix of both qualitative and quantitative methods. Download the award winning paper here. For more information on this press release, please contact: Bill Dunn Director of Business Development Ipsos Loyalty 201.739.530 Ipsos Loyalty Ipsos Loyalty is a global, specialized practice dedicated to helping companies improve business performance through customer satisfaction management, customer relationship management, and employee climate management. Ipsos Loyalty provides a state-of-the-art approach to customer-driven business performance through a modular suite of innovative research tools that provides an integrated framework to identify complex global business solutions. To learn more, visit: www.ipsosloyalty.com Ipsos in North America Ipsos is the fastest growing market research company in the U.S. and among the most trusted research brands in North America. With more than 1,300 professionals and support staff in the U.S and Canada, Ipsos offers a suite of survey-based services--guided by industry experts and bolstered by advanced analytics and methodologies--in advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, and public affairs research, as well as forecasting and modeling. Ipsos companies offer a complete line of custom, syndicated, omnibus, panel, and online research products and services. Ipsos conducts polling on behalf of The Associated Press, the world's oldest and largest news organization, BusinessWeek, and the young voter's poll for Newsweek.com. To learn more, visit: www.ipsos-na.com About Ipsos Ipsos is a leading global survey-based market research company, owned and managed by research professionals. Ipsos helps interpret, simulate, and anticipate the needs and reactions of consumers, customers, and citizens around the world. Member companies assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media. They measure public opinion around the globe. Ipsos member companies offer expertise in advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, and public affairs research, as well as forecasting and modeling and consulting. Ipsos has a full line of custom, syndicated, omnibus, panel, and online research products and services, guided by industry experts and bolstered by advanced analytics and methodologies. The company was founded in 1975 and has been publicly traded since 1999. In 2003, Ipsos generated global revenues of $644.2 million U.S. To learn more, visit: www.ipsos.com Ipsos is listed on the Euronext Paris Premier Marchй, and is part of the SBF 120 and Next Prime Indices as well as eligible to the Deferred Settlement System (SRD). Euroclear code 7329, Reuters ISOS.LN, Bloomberg IPS FP