TNS are the one of the world's leading market information groups providing a broad range of research capabilities across a wide number of market sectors, ensuring that they bestow their clients with consistent, accurate market information and analysis.

TNS have an extensive global reach, operating out of 70 countries worldwide. This allows them to provide market measurement, analysis, insight and consultancy to many companies, both national and multinational.

PROBLEM

The Healthcare division of TNS was looking for an Internet based solution to enable the effective presentation of pharmaceutical sales data to both head office and field users, enabling customers to be targeted more precisely and enhance sales performance.

Pharmaceutical sales data supplied by TNS is provided at a very low geographic level - information on every GP practice in the UK. This volume of data is very difficult to assimilate and take decisions on. Head office users were finding it difficult to see the bigger picture, whereas field users found it hard to get meaningful information at a local level.

It was a situation where the sales force was drowning in data but there was very little visible information.

The system also enabled their customers' head office staff to access this information for strategic planning.

SOLUTION

Aligned Assets' solution utilised the tabular data. Building upon specially developed database procedures, Aligned Assets exploited the advanced analysis and thematic capabilities of the standard GeoXplorerT product, enabling a rapid display of information upon a map showing the "area of interest" to the sales representative.

Further provision was made to enable the sales force to export this information to applications, such as MS Excel, to enable further analysis.

The key objective was simplicity. By their very nature sales forces are expensive and the system had to be intuitive to minimise the level of training required. Keeping them out of contact with their customers is costly. Since implementation the sales have increased by double figure percentages.