Imaginative online market researcher BrainJuicer has squeezed out impressive annual numbers and is winning more repeat business as its award-winning techniques gain momentum.

Online market research is growing at around 30% per year, mostly fuelled by its cost advantages over traditional forms. Now, however, BrainJuicer’s argument that the medium has the potential to be more imaginative and even more accurate than the phone calls or clipboards of the industry’s history is winning over even more conservative industries, as recent client wins of Roche, RBS and HSBC suggest.

Changing the entrenched views of the research buyers in the advertising industry is difficult, but it is happening. ‘They move at glacial speed,’ complains ‘chief juicer’ John Kearon, but he can boast a client list that grew from 80 to 115, with 80% of total revenues now coming from repeat business.

A first global mandate was won during the year, with a large ‘Dutch electronics company’ (guess who?), meaning every single one of their potential products has to be tested by BrainJuicer. ‘We don’t expect to win another [mandate] this year as the market is conservative,’ says Kearon, ‘but we’d look to win one in 2009.’

Its results for 2007 show sales advancing 42% to £6.6m and profits before tax up more than eightfold to £844,000. House broker Landsbanki forecasts continued growth to £8.1m and £1.2m this year, with 6.7p earnings. Kearon wants to add a new office in China or Europe, either organically, by acquisition or by a licensing deal.

At 147.5p, the shares are an improvement on 2006’s 108p issue price but down from last year’s 225p spike. Hold.

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