Introduction
MRQual helps brands make better decisions through carefully designed online validation surveys with a qualitative feel. They help clients test, refine and validate packaging, messaging, concepts and positioning, combining clear survey evidence with rich open-ended feedback so brands can understand what people think and why. MRQual has worked with companies such as Diageo, Thatchers Cider, Sacla, Thornton & Ross, L’Oréal, M&S and SPAR.
That kind of work only holds up if the people answering are the right people, and if the research can keep pace with fast-moving client decisions. To deliver both, MRQual needed a sample partner it could rely on completely. They chose Walr, forming a partnership built on speed, responsiveness and a shared commitment to data quality.
The Challenge
Before Walr, two concerns kept surfacing – and neither could be compromised.
The first was data quality. For the kind of work MRQual does, it is everything. If respondents are not engaged or the right fit, the findings stop being reliable – and once the data cannot be trusted, MRQual loses the ability to advise their clients properly. The quality of the sample sets the ceiling on the quality of the advice.
The second was speed on sample quotes. MRQual’s clients often want a quote or estimate the same day. With previous suppliers, they could be waiting several days – which made things difficult when a client was ready to move and the numbers were not.
MRQual needed a partner that could match the pace of their clients without ever trading away the quality of the people behind the data.
Building a Partnership That Keeps Pace
Richard Clark, Founder of MRQual, explains that from the start, Walr answered both concerns at once.
Quotes came back within hours, sometimes less, and they were competitive too. Just as importantly, they stayed fast when things changed.
“Very often the specs of our quotes change because the client changes something, and Walr have always been prompt and efficient in dealing with those changes.”
Then there was the quality itself. The respondents were noticeably better than what MRQual had experienced before. Speed opened the door. Quality is what kept it open.
How Walr Sets MRQual Up for Success
A named PM on every project. Once MRQual gives the go-ahead, a project manager is assigned promptly and introduces themselves quickly. There is no chasing or wondering who is on the other end.
Timelines kept on track. The assigned PM keeps projects moving and is fair when the interview length or incidence rate is different from what was first expected – the kind of real-world wrinkle that can strain a partnership if it is not handled well.
Quality worked on together. Rather than leaving data quality to chance, the Walr team works alongside MRQual to protect it on every project. This is the human-in-the-loop model in practice – real people accountable for the work, not software left to run on its own.
In Focus: A Premium Bottled Water Brand
One project shows how the two teams work together.
A premium bottled water brand in the UK came to MRQual with several connected dilemmas – brand positioning, front-of-pack messaging, and the precise wording of a consumer-facing statement. MRQual’s role was to turn those commercial questions into a clear, practical survey that could genuinely inform the decision.
This is exactly the kind of work where sample quality decides the outcome. The brand needed thoughtful, credible responses from the right consumers. Walr provided the sample and the fieldwork support to deliver it properly.
The value was never in collecting responses alone. It came from three things working together – good questionnaire design, good sample, and clear interpretation – so the client could make a better decision. MRQual owns the research design, the interpretation and the client advice. Walr brings the responsive sample and fieldwork support that makes it deliverable.
The outcome? The client had a clear direction, highlighting where to evolve the brand while avoiding changes that consumers were unlikely to support.
The Impact
Some outcomes are hard to put a single number on. The clearest proof here is a decision MRQual has made again and again.
Walr has been their sole sample provider since they started working together in early 2023. The improvements were marked enough that they simply stopped shopping around.
The Future of the Partnership
MRQual sees online research heading in one direction: it needs to be fast, commercially sensible, and built on good-quality respondents. Those demands often pull against each other, and MRQual’s view is that they cannot be separated.
“Speed only really helps if the data can be trusted.”
That is the bar Walr is built to clear – and the reason this partnership keeps going.
How Richard Sums Up Walr
“The biggest compliment I can give Walr is that we stopped looking elsewhere.”
– Richard Clark, Founder, MRQual
