Market Research Consultants: 8

Brent Coker, PhD, is an Online Consumer Psychologist, researcher, and lecturer of Marketing at the University of Melbourne. He has a PhD in Electronic Commerce (“Predicting Internet Purchase Intention”). 

For the past decade, Dr. Coker has been researching why ideas spread, and what causes people to share. In 2011, he developed the 'bump' algorithm that predicts the spread of memes and video ads, and a few years later, wrote a book to summarize what he learned about Viral Marketing. The WH Smith Heathrow chart topping book, Going Viral is the culmination of a seven year study on the psychology of building a strong brand and customer engagement. For more information, view his Masterclass on Viral Marketing – “ "Virology".“

Dr. Coker founded the dot-com “Fernland” in 1998, and is currently founding director of Deloosh. – a technology and market research company. He is also inventor of the web analytics tool “webreep” Webreep Model,) which was the first web app to detect and measure website dissatisfaction, and more recently the founder of Wear Cape, – an influencer marketing agency. 

Keynotes and Public Speaking - Dr. Coker has been serving as a keynote speaker for years. He has delivered speeches to  such as entities as NASA, IBM, CPA Australia, and Oticon, and Qantas on subject including word of mouth, viral marketing, and online branding.

Dr. Brent Coker on Stage

View Dr. Brent Coker's Expert Witness Profile.

Avinash Vashistha has dedicated his career to the unique requirements of the Global Outsourcing Market. His background and understanding of the practices surrounding Offshore Markets provides clients with a custom offshoring strategy, supplier / build mapping, favorable pricing, reduced risk, successful transition and sustainable performance contracts that address issues unique to offshore delivery.

Mr. Vashistha has evaluated and conducted due diligence on over 200 supplier firms, including companies in India, Russia, China, Philippines, Malaysia, C&E Europe, US, Canada, UK, Ireland and Vietnam. He has directed sourcing assessments, IT and BPO / KPO sourcing transactions and executed program governance models realizing $6 Billion in savings for clients. Avinash also developed significant expertise in the areas of R&D, Technology, Human Resources, Finance and Accounting, Analytics, Investment Research, claims processing and other domain specific voice and back office business processes. Mr. Vashistha has been a strong proponent of well-qualified, but lesser known tier-two suppliers in the competitive sourcing process.

Thought Leader: His opinions are sought and recognized by worldwide organizations and conference organizers such as IDC, NASSCOM, CITEM, C-Level, Private Equity Conference, the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, CII, SBPOA and IAOP. Leading media conglomerates such as the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Time, The Straits Times, The Business Times, USA TODAY, CNN, CNBC, Forbes, Business Week, Bangkok Post, NDTV, Times Group, Business Standard and Cyber Media have featured Avinash extensively. He has been recognized by HRO Today as ‘HRO Superstar’ for 2006 and 2007 in the category of thought leaders and advisors on outsourcing. He has also been recognized as ‘FAO Superstar’ for 2007.

Dr. Thomas Maronick has provided both plaintiff and defense litigators with marketing and consumer expertise for over 25 years. Prior to that he was the in-house marketing expert at the FTC. Since leaving the FTC in 1997, Dr. Maronick has been qualified as an expert in numerous federal and state courts, providing expert reports, affidavits, and testimony on marketing, advertising, and consumer behavior matters. 

Dr. Maronick has designed and implemented over 300 consumer surveys for litigation and/or policy related strategies, using virtually every survey research methodology, including mall-intercept studies, telephone and mail surveys, and studies using the internet and consumer mail panels. Dr. Maronick has testified (deposition/trial) over 75 times in the past five years and is the author of research of the use of surveys in litigation. 

Areas of Expertise:

• False and Deceptive Advertising
• Deceptive Marketing Practices
• Consumer/Advertising Survey Research
• Packaging
• Trademark/Tradedress

Eric F. Forister, PhD is an Economist with expertise in industrial organization, applied microeconomics, and applied econometrics. He has extensive experience in applying economic insights to understand firm and market behavior, analyzing large datasets using advanced econometric and statistical techniques, and designing and evaluating surveys. He has co-authored medical research papers and legal publications on class certification and market definition. As a consultant, Dr. Forister has addressed issues such as:

Market Definition Market Power Competition Market Pricing Merger Efficiencies Common Impact Materiality

Reliance Ascertainability Royalty Rates (including FRAND) Damages Sampling Survey Design Irreparable Harm

Dr. Forister has analyzed dozens of industries including consumer packaged goods, luxury goods, food products, medical services, biotechnology, legal services, fitness, clothing, entertainment, real estate, air and ground transportation, telecommunications, television, electronics, heavy industry, advertising, restaurants, automobiles, gasoline, payment processing, and illicit markets.

Education/Training:

• PhD in Business Administration (Field: Economics), Stanford Graduate School of Business
• BS in Mathematics / Economics, University of California at Los Angeles, magna cum laude

View Dr. Forister's Expert Witness Profile.

Dr. Larry Chiagouris has a rare combination serving as a senior Fortune 500 executive and as an accomplished academician. He has provided expert testimony and written opinions on damages, marketing, advertising, intellectual property issues (including the use of survey research) for plaintiffs & defendants at major national & local firms.

Experience summary:

• Experience evenly divided between plaintiff and defendant engagements over 25 cases

• Several cases include elements of intellectual property issues

• Majority of cases involve elements of consumer behavior or survey research

• Majority of cases involve elements of advertising related strategies and tactics

• Majority of cases involve elements of Internet related tactics

• Majority of cases involve written opinions and depositions

• Written and oral testimony in several Federal District Court jurisdictions

• Engaged by both large multinational law firms and small boutique firms

• Class action cases evenly divided between plaintiffs and defendants

Selected by Agency Magazine as one of 10 best and brightest researchers. He brings extensive experience as a Senior Marketing, Branding and Research Executive responsible for directing major assignments for companies such as AT&T, Campbell Soup, Kraft, Miller Brewing, Peugeot, Pfizer, Prudential and Visa.

He has a Ph.D. in Marketing, is Past Chairman, Advertising Research Foundation and Former Director of the American Marketing Association.

Rob Wallace has unique expertise in Trademark, Trade Dress, Copyright, Brand Identity and Package Design Infringement. For 30+ years, Rob ran one of the nation's top Brand Identity Strategy and Package Design Resources providing global branding expertise to Fortune 500 companies in virtually all CPG categories. His clients include P&G, Nestle, Pepsico, Unilever, Kraft, Colgate, The Home Depot, Brown-Foreman, Novartis, J&J and more than 30 market leading companies. Manhattan-based, Rob has been an expert witness for important litigation involving:

• Likelihood of Consumer Confusion, Brand Valuation & Dilution
• Innovation/Ideation Copyright
• Package Graphic/Structural Design
• Product Design
• Branding Industry Best Practices
• False Advertising
• Corrective Advertising
• and all brand related issues.

Rob has commissioned literally hundreds of consumer surveys and is uniquely qualified to determine the results of all research.

He has worked for attorneys on both the plaintiff and defense sides of his cases. He is effective and efficient with the average project report requiring between 10 and 12 hours.

Dr. Cristina Benton is a senior consultant with Anderson Economic Group, directing the Market and Industry Analysis practice area. Her background is in Research and Data Analysis, Community and Economic Development, and Urban Planning.

While with AEG, Dr. Benton has worked on a number of auto dealership franchise projects as well as retail, industry, and market analyses. Among the clients for whom she has worked are Holland Tulip Time Festival, the Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Automation Alley. Dr. Benton has also worked with automobile dealerships in matters of sales performance assessments, geographic territory analyses, market opportunity studies, and expert testimony. 

Prior to joining AEG, Dr. Benton worked as a community and economic development assistant with the City of East Lansing, Michigan where she provided analysis and support to the city’s economic development efforts. Prior to that, she was a research assistant at Michigan State University working on the evaluation of economic revitalization programs in Michigan. 

Dr. Benton holds a PhD in geography and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning, both from Michigan State University, along with a bachelor’s degree in public administration from Babes-Bolyai University, Romania. She is a member of the Michigan Economic Developers Association (MEDA).

Litigation Support - Dr. Benton has successfully testified in countless state and federal courts, legislative hearings, and commercial arbitration panels. Her services include thorough reporting, depositions, arbitration, and trial testimony as needed

Areas of Expertise:

Market and Trade Area Analysis Retail Location and Distribution Network Analysis Sales Forecasts and Performance Assessments Industry Studies and Benchmarking Surveys and Focus Groups

Tourism and Event Impact Studies Real Estate Feasibility and Market Strategies Urban Planning Community and Economic Development Automotive Specialties

Gina von Esmarch, CMO, Adesso Associates CEO / Founder, is a seasoned Marketing Executive with over 25 years of experience developing strategic and impactful B2B marketing initiatives. She has extensive experience in digital transformation, customer programs / retention, brand, content, and shaping corporate narratives for disruptive and innovative brands in the B2B Tech Space.

In her role as CMO, Gina has developed programs for such clients as Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, PlayStation, NetApp, Socialtext, Ingenico, Fathom Online, Oracle BMW Racing & Moet Cup (2003), and AmericaOne (2000). She has recruited and led teams in countries around the world.

Gina has been engaged to collaborate across teams and regions to align offerings and create revenue. She builds and manages marketing teams to establish market leadership, brand awareness, and differentiation. She excels at leveraging social media to engage with influencers through clear and transparent communications.

Gina successfully develops effective Go-To-Market (GTM) strategies and launches bottom-line impact programs through targeted integrated marketing initiatives. She is an expert at establishing and scaling strategic company positioning amongst third party influencers to build market/product perception, creating strong multi-faceted thought leadership initiatives, crafting large-scale media, analyst, brand awareness, rebranding, and launch campaigns. Gina excels at delivering best-in-class Analyst Relations and Voice of Customer programs with Impact Metrics. With an exceptional mix of analytical skills and business acumen, she drives business decisions in marketing and sales. 

The Know Show - Interview with Gina von Esmarch on Voice of Customer

Business Consulting Expertise:

Brand Awareness & Management Strategic Messaging, Planning & Execution (GTM) Integrated Consumer Marketing Campaigns & Customer Retention Integrated Marketing Campaign Development

Multi-channel Social Media Content Storytelling Digital & SEO Optimization Revenue Growth & Optimization