Advocacy

ESOMAR is the global voice of the data, research and insights community.

ESOMAR brings together the diversity of our profession. Every day we promote our community's commitment to the highest professional and ethical standards and demonstrate the true value research plays to society and their economies.

We champion…

…the data, research and insights profession, those working within it and suppliers to the community - helping them express their interests worldwide.

We inform…

…the general public, regulators, politicians, advocacy groups, trade bodies and the media – showcasing the benefits our profession has on society through awareness-raising activities.

We advise…

…our members and help them understand and anticipate key legal issues that may impact on their work. We support legislators to adopt fit-for-purpose legislation that ensures our profession remains trusted.

We collaborate…

…with national and international associations to promote the value of research, elevate standards in our sector, and foster best practice exchanges within our sector.

Addressing issues

Social value of research

We champion and are driven by the belief that the research we conduct and the insights we generate add value and have an impact on people’s daily lives.

Digital economy

Data, research and insights is an essential enabler of the digital economy. We raise understanding of how digitisation is fundamentally changing our capacities and economic role.

Data protection and privacy

Handling personal data is essential for any research project – data protection and privacy are a crucial topic among our activities. We believe respecting the privacy of individuals is critical to maintaining the trust needed for our industry to operate.

Freedom to conduct opinion polls

We work to ensure our profession can conduct independent polling (free of government or special interest interference) to enable free and democratic societies. Read the report

Self regulation

We believe in strong, accountable self-regulation as a way to guide our sector to adopt ethical and responsible professional standards. We work to promote its value as a regulatory tool.

Freedom to sample

Access to census data is crucial to selecting a representative sample from a population. We work to guarantee access to this data, whilst providing the necessary guarantees to avoid abuse of the data.

Championing data, research and insights

Protecting and promoting the data, research and insights industry is at the core of ESOMAR’s work. We achieve this through projects and initiatives involving our community, the general public and other stakeholders. We also work tirelessly with our association partners around the world to ensure our sector is speaking with one consistent voice to legislators.

Research Choices

In partnership with industry leading companies, we are informing the general public – raising their awareness of data collection and passive audience measurement. Research Choices reassures the general public about the diversity of research and its benefits.

researchchoices.org

Eureka's of Market Research

ESOMAR has collected examples of ‘a-ha’ moments from the data, research and insights profession. These Eureka initiative shares practical examples of how research has made an impact on society, government or organisations.

Eureka Information

Free course for journalists – understanding opinion polls

AAPOR, ESOMAR AND WAPOR have together launched a free online learning module for journalists. This course helps anyone who is not a market researcher understand how polls are conducted, what to look for in methodology and why even the most legitimate of polls sometimes miss the mark.

Enroll now

FAQs on opinion and election polls

Answering the key questions on opinion and election polls from a journalist, opinion poll and public interest perspective.

FAQs on opinion and election polls

ESOMAR Plus:
Supporting our corporate members to reach high professional standards, and legal compliance

Advising legislators

ESOMAR works with other associations to monitor international data protection and privacy policy developments and to assess the implications of proposed legislation, for market, social and opinion research. To support researchers worldwide, ESOMAR, in consultation with our expert committees and key stakeholders, develops position papers for regulators which explain and advocate the legitimate requirements of research. By co-operating with national and international associations, ESOMAR provides a global industry voice.

November 2019 ESOMAR/SAVA/WAPOR Postion Statement on Slovakia Poll Embargo 2019

September 2017 Coalition for Audience Measurement Position Statement on Proposed ePrivacy Regulation (UPDATED)

August 2017 ESOMAR/EFAMRO Position Statement on EU Copyright Reform

June 2017 Coalition for Audience Measurement Position Statement on Proposed ePrivacy Regulation

May 2017 ESOMAR/EFAMRO Position Statement on National Implementation of Article 89 Research Derogations - perspective of the market, opinion and social research and data analytics sector

April 2017 EFAMRO/ESOMAR Position Statement on the Proposal of an ePrivacy Regulation

July 2016 ESOMAR Open Letter - Brexit and the need for research

March 2016 ESOMAR/WAPOR Position Statement on Polling in Greece

December 2015 EFAMRO/ESOMAR/SYNTEC/WAPOR Position Statement to GDPR Trilogue Negotiators

May 2015 Position Statement to DAPIX on further possible revisions to Article 83

April 2015 Summary Position Statement for the EU GDPR Trilogue

October 2014 EFAMRO/ESOMAR/WAPOR Letter to DAPIX Group on EU GDPR

October 2014 EFAMRO/ESOMAR Letter to Justice and Home Ministers

January 2014 ESOMAR Legislation Review
Poland: Draft Data Protection Act

July 2013 Letter to Mr Hustinx regarding GPDR

April 2013 Position Statement to MEPs regadering GPDR

In partnership

We work together with national and international associations that share an interest in the data, research, and insights community, to ensure we speak with one voice whenever possible.

Safeguarding Public Trust

Our sector relies on public trust and confidence to carry out our mission to support evidence-based decision-making. We support national and international associations through joint initiatives. By promoting their actions, we together communicate the value of research to the public, and the commitment our members make to respecting the rights of individuals.

Protecting our Reputation

Together with national and international associations, we champion the interests of the data, research and insights community. We work together to implement an effective and consistent global self-regulation framework to govern ethical and professional standards for our members at national and international levels.

Capacity-Building

ESOMAR - together with our partners - is working to build the capacity of national and international data, research and insights communities by helping to establish associations where such infrastructure does not exist and thereby extending the reach of our corporate social responsibility efforts.

Featured association partners

ESOMAR and national associations of data, research and insights are deepening collaboration through bilateral partnership agreements that aim to strengthen our capacity to deliver valued services to our members.