Escalent Wins Award for Groundbreaking Research at The Marketing Research & Insight Excellence Awards

2021 Quirk’s Media Awards Recognize Escalent with Groundbreaking Research Project Award

LIVONIA, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Escalent is honored to announce the recognition of one of its financial services research teams as winners of Quirk’s 2021 Groundbreaking Research Project award. Quirk’s recognized the team for their innovation, going above and beyond best practices to ensure the research could influence long-term, broader business objectives. The winning project, resulting in the study Seeing the Unseen: The role gender plays in wealth management, was executed with Merrill to understand gender bias in investing relationships.

“We are so proud of this team’s accomplishments,” said Melissa Sauter, CEO of Escalent. “This project is a shining example of how our teams push beyond boundaries to uncover valuable insights. Through innovative approaches, they uncovered gender bias in the wealth management space and worked closely with our client, Merrill, to make women feel seen and heard in the investing world.”

From virtual one-on-ones with advisors that incorporated webcam eye-tracking for conscious/unconscious physical cues, lexical and body language analyses of interviews, and focus groups with women investors and a quantitative online survey, Escalent leveraged cutting-edge techniques to systematically uncover if, when, and how women encounter negative stereotypes in the world of financial advice as well as the impact subtle gender bias has on their financial futures. The research identified unconscious behaviors that will help Merrill mitigate systemic bias internally and in the broader financial services industry.

The awards, organized by Quirk’s Media, highlight professionals, brands and products that significantly impact marketing research. Categories include recognitions for best projects, MR tools and those using their talents to make the world a better place. The virtual award ceremony was held on Tuesday, November 9.

About Escalent

Escalent is a top human behavior and analytics firm specializing in industries facing disruption and business transformation. As catalysts of progress for more than 40 years, we tell stories that transform data and insight into a profound understanding of what drives human beings. And we help businesses turn those drivers into actions that build brands, enhance customer experiences and inspire product innovation. Visit escalent.co to see how we are helping shape the brands that are reshaping the world.