2Europe

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company is a mission-based, nonprofit publisher of tax news and commentary, based in the U.S. 

I serve as a liaison between our subscribers and our website developers and our sales team.  I also work closely with the Product team to implement suggestions for enhancements to our existing products and suggestions for new ones.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with the vendor?

We wanted to do market research among tax advisors in three European countries, to help in determining our strategy for expanding into new markets.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

A 2Europe Director carried out interviews with 15 advisors, spanning about 15 hours.  Prior to the interviews he worked with us to develop a set of interview questions, and afterward he created a report of his findings.

What is the team composition? 

We worked with one of 2Europe’s Directors.

How did you come to work with the vendor?

We learned of 2Europe through our network, with Ian of GTM Global providing the referral to our contact.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement was successfully completed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Our Executive Team now has information that will enable them to make better strategic decisions.

How did the vendor perform from a project management standpoint?

Excellent performance.  All work was conscientiously carried out and delivered within the promised timeframe.

What did you find most impressive about them?

2Europe’s Director was a very skilled interviewer.  He was able to quickly establish rapport with high-level professionals in three different countries, working across cultures.  He was highly attuned to the information we were seeking and the interviewee’s ability and willingness to provide it.  He asked follow up questions to tease out important information.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the global brand communications manager for one of the brands within the Group's brand portfolio. It is my role to strengthen the brand via a range of digital communication tools.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire 2Europe?

We wanted to understand the core customer targets of our UK brands and we wanted to compare the brand performance of our brands. We neede this info to create clarity about the Brand performance and make customer based decisions.

SOLUTION

How did you select 2Europe?

I had worked with 2 Europe in the past and I was very satisfied with the quality of their work. As the project focused the UK market, I selected them as a favorite supplier.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

We set up both qualitative and quantitative nationwide research for both owned brands and competitors brands

What was the team composition?

I worked with the agency director with who I have a great understanding. He is extremely quick in grasping the goal of the research and is very committed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The local company management team was delighted by the research because of its richness and its clarity. Often, research can lead to more questions than answers. Here the outcome was extremely clear and can initiate a range of customer based strategic decisions.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Great collaboration. Led by myself and the agency director for a clear set-up of the right scope of research. The broader team was involved for business related input and for revieiwing the proposals. The reaction times of 2 Europe are great, so everybody felt involved.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The professionalism and overall quality of the work were impressive. On top, the reaction speed and involvement. A real benchmark for others.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

The reesearch took a bit longer than planned, but this was due to the pandemic and the holiday season that made access to the target for interviews more difficult.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Market Research Manager for a security products company based in the US.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire 2Europe?

I was looking for someone that could conduct some one-on-one interviews with consumers and professionals in the UK. The objective was to show the participants a prototype for a potentially new product.

SOLUTION

How did you select 2Europe?

I sent emails to several vendors that serviced the UK. I received several bids for the work. In addition to being competitive with other bids that I received, I found Rob to be the most responsive. This gave 2Europe the edge over the competition.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

The work started out as potentially one-on-one interviews with people in US, UK, France and Netherlands. Due to budget constraints and COVID restrictions, the work was limited to US and UK. I conducted the interviews in the US and provided 2Europe the exact same materials that I used - discussion guide, images of product in various colors, possible accessories and sent a set of prototype products to show the design.

Twenty interviews were conducted over 2 days in both countries.

What was the team composition?

I worked directly with Rob to ensure everything ran smoothly and it did.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We have gotten executive level approval to move forward on the development of the new product.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was very effective, again, everything went smoothly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Rob's responsiveness and willingness to confirm details. Also, they provided a very detailed report promptly. They've been easy to work with, and there are no issues with the quality of research they have delivered.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

No area for improvement.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at a worldwide industrial gas company; it operates in about 30 industries. I’m an operational marketing specialist based in Dubai. I support the marketing activities of the region, so my role is a bit different than what I engaged the services of 2Europe for.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

This project was a global initiative, and we engaged with 2Europe for an external focus group. 
 
We engaged in a joint HR marketing initiative to improve how we attract talent to the organization. We were taking a marketing approach, so it was similar to the research used to market a new product. We wanted to understand what different personas in the marketplace think about our organization. We engaged 2Europe’s services for that purpose.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The scope of work was to run focus groups of 13 different personas who subscribed to set criteria. For example, they would have to be a senior engineer based in India with some amount of experience to be included in our focus group. We worked with them internally to determine the personas.
 
2Europe recruited the candidates for the external focus groups. They assisted us with the generation of the discussion guides and executed the focus groups. Finally, they provided the analysis and report at the end of the project.
 
For the UK focus groups, they used one platform to facilitate the conversation. That platform allowed us to participate as observers whilst the focus group took place. We could talk among ourselves and talk to the facilitators while impartially observing. This was useful because it avoided us disrupting the flow while allowing us to improve the discussion so that it really fit into what we were looking for. 
 
Some focus groups were in different languages, but it would’ve been nice to have this technology for some of the other English-speaking focus groups, as we didn't necessarily have the chance to review the ones in the United States.
 
What is the team composition?

I worked directly with Rob (Director). We got a core team of six people, but we only dealt with him.
 
How did you come to work with 2Europe?

It was an internal referral. We just did some research and finally asked a few people for what they recommended; one of my colleagues in Europe had used them in the past. 
 
What differentiated them was that they were cost-competitive, and they provided a really detailed and thorough breakdown, which impressed us. They were very clear about the recruitment process and how they would carry that out. We were interested in that because it was important for us to get the correct profiles. We thought they were the strongest in that area, and we liked the way they responded in a very tailored and professional manner.
 
How much have you invested with them?

We spent £90,000 (approximately $124,000 USD). 
 
What is the status of this engagement?

We received their final proposal in November 2020, and the project was finished at the beginning of March 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

When we receive an analysis report, we run it past a few colleagues and distill it into timelines to measure. 2Europe was perfect in meeting the deadline on time, but since it was a qualitative analysis, it was difficult to put a KPI to it. It was just based on feedback from the focus groups. Due to the nature of the analysis, there wasn’t any formal methodology, but 2Europe provided a final analysis report and a presentation. We reviewed it as a team and were satisfied in that sense. 

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

It was excellent. Rob was always accessible throughout the whole project. I don’t think there was a day where I couldn’t get a hold of him or waited longer than an hour for a response. He was very responsive and diligent. He drove the project on.

We didn’t have set periods for our meetings, since the stakeholders in the project and in our organization are quite difficult to pin down. However, Rob and I caught up when needed, and we had a good enough relationship to keep each other informed. Of course, at the start and at the end of the project we had kickoff and summary meetings scheduled, but it was a flexible approach. Our main methods of communication were Microsoft Teams and emails.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Rob was very thorough and diligent. When we had discussions and there were questions raised by our team, he was really good at taking notes and taking those comments on board. His general energy and drive were great. It was a big amount of work, and he delivered it on time. We were really impressed with how responsive he was. Also, he created a 300-slide report that was very detailed, so the attention to detail was excellent. It was right up there in their impressive attributes. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think it had more to do with the nature of the project, but there were a few points that we raised that didn’t relate to the wider mission of the project. Sometimes Rob was too invested in the detail, so there were a couple of times where he didn’t necessarily hit the nail on the head the first time around. We asked for a specific area on the report and it took a couple of times to get what we were asking for. 

Any advice for potential customers?

Someone might want to have more meetings and clear time goals, but we took a flexible approach and it worked for us. 2Europe offers a really good service, and they’re able to pivot to provide all sorts of things. Take advantage of that flexibility.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of education policy at the Institution of Civil Engineers. We’re a professional membership organization for civil engineers across the globe.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We wanted to survey our members on a series of diversity and inclusion issues to understand how we can match the needs of our members.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

With 2Europe, we worked on a survey of our membership, across age, grade, ethnic background, gender, position in the industry, etc., to take the temperature of what’s going on within the industry and within the institution. 

It’s a fairly comprehensive survey that will enable us to work on an action plan for improving diversity within the industry and within ourselves over the next year or so.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Rob (Director). 

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

Other parts of the organization have worked with 2Europe on other surveys, and they’ve always delivered.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost was just under £4,000 (approximately $5,500 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from October–November 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Our only metric was delivering the survey within a certain time period, which 2Europe achieved. Overall, their services were brilliant. 2Europe was very accessible and very helpful. We had a good dialogue with them all throughout the process, which was quite iterative. The data and information were presented exactly as we wanted.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

Our communication together was quite good. Any queries were answered pretty much immediately. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

2Europe had a very good, intuitive understanding of what we needed. They were also able to refine what we were asking for into a form that we’re able to collect data from most effectively.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing at all. I wouldn’t suggest anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We had a very clear idea of what we needed when we went to them, which I think made the process fairly seamless and very quick. If customers have taken the time to work out precisely what they need, then the process will be a lot smoother.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a user researcher for a restaurant services platform. Our platform connects restaurants with diners. We also have a B2B side of the business which includes restaurant management tools.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We currently operate in 10 different markets. I’m the user researcher at our headquarters in Berlin. I’m an English speaker, but we have 10 different markets which have different languages. We operate in German-speaking, English-speaking, and Mandarin-speaking countries. The difficulty that we faced is that when we do research, we are limited by the languages spoken by the researcher, and a lot of the time, our research is focused in London and Berlin as a result. 

The challenge we were facing with this project was figuring out how to conduct the research in each of our markets, get everything translated and transcribed, and brought back to HQ.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We wanted to conduct diner interviews that met particular characteristics in each of our markets. I internally handled London and Berlin, and then we outsourced the remaining 10 markets to 2Europe. We did 10 interviews per market, with 100 interviews in total.

I initially provided them with the interview script. They translated it where applicable, and then they were responsible for recruiting, conducting interviews, and then providing back the transcription of the interview in English along with the audio file. 

What is the team composition?

There was a project manager that I was mostly liaising with. Whenever we had a wider team call, there was a team lead that was also on those calls.

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

I did a Google search and came across a European directory that handles these kinds of data insights and this kind of work. I started filtering out what our needs were, looking for user interviews. I got down to a shortlist of 10 agencies. I reached out to each of them and gave a brief description of what it was we were looking for. I did a number of calls with each of them and they all came back to me with a proposal. 

Just based on the phone calls, the proposal, and the feel I got for the company over the course of our call as well, 2Europe seemed to be the best fit for us.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent about €20,000 (approximately $23,722 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in March 2020, and we completed the project in July of that year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They were not responsible for the analysis of the data. In terms of success, one of the core things for us was the timeline and that everything was delivered by a particular date. We gave them fairly short timelines and they were able to meet each of the deadlines that we set for them. 

In terms of the actual interview and scripts that were delivered, we had 100 scripts and there were a few quality issues with a handful of them, not many. It was just that the transcriptions weren’t precise, and I needed about 15 to 20 of them to be redone. We had between six or seven interviews that had missed questions from the script. As soon as I came across that, I raised it to the project manager, and they organized callbacks and sorted it out as quickly as they could. Any of the issues that we came across were resolved really quickly.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was super strong. Any time I reached out to the project manager, he was super responsive and always kept me in the loop. He was really responsive. Everything ran really smoothly. As soon as everything was in place and we gave them the go-ahead, they hit the ground running. Every few days they would send me an updated spreadsheet for how many interviews were done and how many were scheduled. They were on the ball with communication and letting me know where they were at with the project. We mostly used phone and email to communicate, but we also had spreadsheets and documents we shared. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were able to achieve results on a really tight deadline. Once we told them we wanted 50 interviews that needed to be done in three weeks, they handled that no problem. We had another call and told them we wanted another 50 interviews, and they also handled that no problem. Everything was really smooth and professionally handled. They took it, ran with it, and gave us updates as it was being completed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There were just a few quality issues, but as soon as I raised them, the project manager addressed them straight away. I think that kind of thing just comes up with projects of this size which was fine. The most important thing was that the issues were resolved.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I can only really speak to if someone were doing interviews. I know that 2Europe offers different kinds of services, but if someone were doing interviews, what I would say is to have a very specific script and specific specs when you hand it over. As I was speaking with the project manager one on one, there were some problems that arose from things that were lost in translation. I would just say to make sure that everything you are handing over from your end is super clear and that you have really made yourself clear to the project manager.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the European product manager for a medical devices company. We serve B2B customers such as vet clinics and other entities.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We wanted to learn more about the kit packer market in Europe, and in particular, the domain on the hospital side because we work with companies that work with the hospitals and provide them with that, so we really needed to understand what the end event was.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

It was a partnership where they designed the survey. They did a proposal and then they also found the contacts at the end for us. The people we wanted to interview were not direct partners for us.

From our side, we provided them with the kind of questions we needed for the type of product we wanted. I would say we worked collaboratively on that and they helped us design the best way to pursue it. They also put the raw data in a format that was more digestible and created tables of the data.

What is the team composition?

I worked with one person.

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

They were recommended to me by another employee of the company.

How much have you invested in them?

It was around €15,000 ($17,740 USD)

What is the status of this engagement?

The proposal was sent in March 2019, and the final report was delivered in August 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We are quite happy with the results we have. It helped us with the grounding of some elements of our strategy, just as we expected.

We needed a piece of information and we worked with them to help us get it. Once we had that information, I am not able to quantify because it is one piece out of the whole data set we built.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

They were late with the research, and at that time, it was a little bit frustrating. In the end, we got the data, so we were happy. They had some struggles accessing the people we needed them to access, which was surprising because they were recommended by someone based on their knowledge of the market.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I liked working with them. They are kind and they really adapted to us, so I think it was good.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Overall, it was a good experience. The only thing was the little hiccup along the way because of the delay. The presentation of the PowerPoint they shared could be improved a little, as well. Other than that, they were good.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I have actually recommended them to one of my colleagues so there is no problem with this company. Just be clear on what you expect and when you expect it — because of my issue with the timing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior marketing manager for UnderwriteMe. We’re a financial services business in the UK, delivering SaaS solutions to underwriters on insurance companies in the life insurance and protection market. 

Our product is a platform that effectively makes the underwriter’s job easier, allowing them to deploy underwriting rules for life insurance, critical illness, and income protection. They can also amend those rules without an IT support team alongside the software.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We’re a fairly young company that’s growing quite quickly, however, we’d never really engaged with our customers. We were worried that some of our existing customers might’ve felt neglected. 

2Europe conducted market research to help us see what we were doing well and where we needed to improve from both a technology and service perspective.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

2Europe’s team spoke to 2–3 audiences from our global clientele (e.g., New Zealand, Australia, Asia), crafting three-question surveys per group. Even though each survey was different, the format was often consistent and uniform, which made it easy for us to compare the final results between different geographies.

In addition to crafting the questions, they called about 25 customers, analyzed the output, and produced a report of the results. They helped us understand what we needed to focus on while highlighting the strong points of our team.

What is the team composition? 

I only worked with Rob (Director), who looked after the whole engagement and was the lead on reporting.

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

I’d worked with 2Europe previously at a different firm, and they’d done a great job for us back then. It was easy to work with Rob again given his good experience.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about £15,000 (approximately $20,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

This project lasted from November 2019–May 2020. I’ll probably work with them again next year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Rob conducts himself professionally, acting as an independent observer the whole way through. That really helped in collecting holistic results. We received positive feedback from both our customer base and internal stakeholders, the most helpful being the customers’ insights into development issues.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

They kept us up to date on progress through regular catch-ups over the phone. Before COVID-19, Rob would come into the office to manage our expectations and communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It was 2Europe’s methodology that stood out — they knew how to ask the right questions, keep within a reasonable length of time, and enable us to get the feedback that we needed.

Rob, in particular, is a really safe pair of hands. You can trust him and his company because they work in a collaborative manner. They kept us involved in the process, took our feedback, and molded their approach to how we work best.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The reporting was useful, but the final visuals could be presented in a stronger way. Overall, that’s a fairly minor thing since it’s our role to interpret their information.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust them and be honest with what you’re trying to get out of the research. If you’re open, 2Europe can use that brief to craft more pointed questions for your target groups.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a brand innovation manager for a hygiene and health company. We want to improve the quality of life for people.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We were looking to validate if an app would create value or not.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our work together has primarily been on the market research front when it comes to user testing. We had 12 users, and we did have two users to start with, and then after the first two users, we revaluated the questionnaire and the process, and we nailed it and we continued on with another 10 users. It was quite a quick spin.

What is the team composition?

I was only in touch with Rob (Director). I assume there are other researchers, but Rob was highly involved throughout the process in this specific case.

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

I asked a colleague in the UK if they had used any local suppliers for a small piece of research, and he had used 2Europe a few times. I asked them and a couple of other suppliers if they would be able to make a small study for us to learn about the usability aspects of the app and the value creation of the app. I made an RFP and they came back with a proposal, and we agreed and started working together.

How much have you invested in them?

It was between £10,000–£25,000 (approximately $13,200–$33,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We got in touch with them in September 2019, and if I remember correctly, the work wrapped up in December 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

I am so satisfied that I wouldn’t hesitate to ask him for more services of a similar kind.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

We are constantly aware of where we are in the process, and they come back within the timings we agreed on. If we have additional questions, they swiftly come back to us and answer those. It was really smooth. We would typically communicate via phone, email, Skype, or Teams.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I think they keep a good pace and they come back in due time. They report to us regularly and keep us in the loop.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think their reports could be slightly less wordy and they could keep some of the words more in an appendix and be a bit more concise on the conclusions. It isn’t a problem, but an improvement area.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If relationships are successful, it depends on the capability of the two parties and if personalities mix so it is difficult to give advice. I had no issues.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work in the EMEA market intelligence and customer insights department at 3M Switzerland.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 2Europe?

We had a project that needed desk research on two healthcare topics, dialysis treatment and oncology patients.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The objective was the same for both projects, namely to learn everything about the landscape of the field. We wanted to understand the processes and the personas involved, and get precise data.

For dialysis, we wanted to know the number of patients in EMEA, specifically UK, France, and Spain. For those, we wanted to know how many were wearing central vascular catheters for hemodialysis treatment, where they were getting treated—in or out of hospital—and who the main providers and brands within the market were.

They helped collect essentially the same information for oncology, focusing on Germany, the UK, and Poland. We used the information for strategic business planning.

What is the team composition?

We were only in contact with Rob (Director), and we worked with a freelance consultant. 

How did you come to work with 2Europe?

I knew them from former projects, and I knew that they had good connections with people with access to sources. 2Europe had also worked with other people within our company, including global colleagues.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost was around £22,000 (approximately $28,900 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

This project ran between December 2019–March 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

I don’t have exact figures, but 2Europe’s work helped us define the target markets. I’m very happy with their work.

How did 2Europe perform from a project management standpoint?

Rob is excellent with communication. He sent me an update every two days, and he answered questions immediately. It was a really fast process. We work with him frequently specifically because the communication works well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The personal relationship they formed with us made them stand out. Rob took a lot of time during briefings to understand the objectives, whereas some agencies just have standardized approaches. We could tell that Rob took a lot of time to understand the proposal so that it would be exactly what we need.

Something else I like about them is that they make proposals on a modular basis. They’re not looking to sell high-priced packages with 20-or-so countries. They start with five countries at a lower price and allow us to go up from there. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there’s nothing.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I’ve run a few qualitative phone interview projects with 2Europe, and I think that this is their specialty. If I were to recommend them to someone else, I’d say that they’re very much into qualitative research by phone.