MUMBAI: Universal McCann's annual study - Media in Mind (MiM), which provides analysis to how consumers relate to media and products in their daily life, was recently released by Universal McCann executive vice president and global research director Jim Kite. The survey represents the largest investment in consumer media research by any media agency.

Simmons Market Research Bureau, one of America's oldest and most respected consumer research companies, was awarded the contract in 2004 to conduct the MiM study.

"For many years Media in Mind has played a pivotal role in the way we produce media plans that precisely engage with consumers," said Kite. "We continually adapt and evolve the survey to reflect the changing landscape of our business to include all forms of communication, but our link to Simmons and the National Consumer Survey is by far its greatest advance.

"Our relationship with Simmons allows us the capability to track Hispanic Americans' daily lives by language preference. This is a particularly exciting development and exceedingly relevant to many our clients," he added.

Originally launched by Universal McCann in Europe in 1997, MiM has been expanded throughout the world to over 50 countries including the US and is now the largest ongoing proprietary survey of its kind.

The study highlights the multi-media patterns of adults, identifying when different consumers can best connect with media and non-traditional communication forms. This knowledge plus the in-depth support data on consumer lifestyles, behavior and views on how media is used, help Universal McCann client partners determine the best media placement opportunities to impact their target audiences.

"Having such a robust single source of data with the findings customised against our category and individual business needs enables us to profile and segment our consumers in unique ways," said Sony Electronics Inc director of media and Internet strategy Serge Del Grosso. "With Media in Mind, which also complements and augments our existing syndicated research, we now have the depth and breadth to drill deeper, ultimately ascribing value against these consumers in ways we have never done before. It takes us well beyond media usage analysis and into communications architecture."

USA Today director marketing research Catherine Captain said, "At USA Today we are in the unique position of marketing our own products while also providing vehicles to market the products of others. It is our goal to continue to lead the industry in actionable consumer insight and we need the right tools to do that. The marriage of Media in Mind and the National Consumer Survey affords us these rich opportunities on three levels: strategic surveillance of the total media market and where USA Today fits as we explore new markets; a deep understanding of our own consumers and their distinct connection with USA Today; and analysis of our advertisers' brands and consumers in order to create advertising opportunities for them that maximise their partnership with USA Today."