FIELD FORCE

OTR's Field Force consists of nearly 100 individuals living in or near most major cities in the United States who make site visits to specific locations to gain detailed information on companies or products we are covering. OTR Field Force projects vary in size from just a few representatives to 30 to 40 on one project. Some projects consist of observations, while others entail face-to-face interviews.

Some Field Force projects to date include visits to stores and restaurants for observations and/or questions to managers to assess inventory levels, pricing, promotions, floor plans, renovations, new menus, customer service, store traffic and shelf space allocation for new products.

Field Force capabilities include:

Finding confirmation: Field Force can increase confidence in new or unexpected findings through direct observation in the field.

Supplement: Price checks, monitoring and trend identification add valuable insight to supplement a reporter's research.

Fast turnaround: Field Force can offer quick turnaround on broad scale projects when necessary, collecting and delivering real-time information to clients to help in the decision making process.

Sample OTR Field Force Projects:

Retail Store Visits (Children's and Teen Retailers), Customer Surveys, Home Improvement, Snack and Beverages: Pepsico, Energy Drinks, Smokeless Tobacco, Bedding (Select Comfort Stores) and medical offices for Facial Aesthetics

Robin MacLeod — Editor, Field Force/Hardlines

Robin covers consumer products, natural food industries, and retail hardline topics. She has a Masters degree in Business Management from Cambridge College and prior to joining OTR Global in 2003 she was a Training and Development Manager for Big Y Supermarkets.