Corporate Strategy Expert Witness On Marketing Research

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In Using Marketing, Business & Competitive Research to Win Cases, business and corporate strategy expert witness Don E. Smith, President, American Consulting Group, Inc., writes that marketing research is a powerful tool that helps lawyers win cases.

Many market research expert witnesses have an undergraduate degree in their specialty (engineering, business, marketing) and an MBA or PhD. They average over twenty years of business experience. Unfortunately, some lawyers do not recognize the value of marketing research…and put their cases at risk. For example, many lawyers bring in an expert to express an opinion based on his/her experiences. In many cases, this experience is narrow; the expert’s testimony is weak. With effective research, numerous facts from a range of sources provide a far more convincing argument.

Advertising effectiveness Market share Agent performance Market size & growth Best effort evaluation New product opportunity Competition Pricing Competitive analysis Profit loss Dealer performance Sales loss Distributor performance Sales performance Effectiveness of programs
Strategy The keys to the selection and use of marketing research professionals include:
1. Define the hypothesis and the information required to win the case. This guides you in the selection of your researcher and keeps the research focused and affordable.

2. Define key words that define the background and experience you require from your researcher. Such finetuning is now possible through the use of ExpertLaw.com’s search capability.

3. Use researchers with extensive (a) Business experience and (b) Expert witness experience. Unfortunately, many market researchers are (a)
Academically strong but do not have in-depth experience in line management of a business or (b) Not comfortable or practiced in public speaking and are not effective during the stress of a deposition or trial.

4. One of the strengths of market researchers is attention to detail. This Can also be a weakness. An experienced researcher recognizes when details are not required; this saves both time and money.

5. Secure several research-in-progress verbal reports. The information will provide you with valuable insight to the case and your strategy. It also helps focus the researcher.