The Harris Poll

What The Harris Poll does

The Harris Poll is a U.S.-headquartered market research and consumer insights firm founded in 1956 by Louis Harris, currently operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW) following Stagwell's 2014 acquisition from Nielsen. The firm operates a platform-plus-modules architecture centered on HarrisQuest, an AI-powered market research and brand management suite that integrates QuestBrand (real-time brand equity tracking), QuestDIY, and Quest CX, supplemented by Harris On Demand (48-hour turnaround omnibus surveys in 27 countries), BERA.ai (predictive brand-to-ROI intelligence, acquired 2024), PRophet (AI PR forecasting), SmartAssets (creative optimization), Storyline Strategies (thought leadership), and Emerald Research Group (technology-trend research). Its syndicated offerings include the annual Axios Harris Poll 100 corporate reputation ranking, conducted in partnership with Axios since 2019, and vertical franchises such as AutoTECHCAST and the State of Real Estate.

The firm generates revenue through four streams: custom research engagements (project-based professional services), SaaS subscriptions for HarrisQuest and QuestBrand (annual, quote-based enterprise pricing), syndicated research reports (subscription/lead generation), and thought leadership/storytelling services. Go-to-market is horizontal enterprise sales targeting Fortune 500 corporates, media organizations, nonprofits, educational institutions, government, and HR/professional services firms across more than 90 countries, supported by 40M+ unique survey respondents, 67,000+ annual media mentions, and a multi-channel marketing mix spanning content marketing, earned media, newsletters, and industry conferences. The firm maintains offices in New York (headquarters), Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., London (regional HQ, formerly Maru), Toronto, and Buenos Aires.

Name

The Harris Poll

Legal name

The Harris Poll

Website

https://theharrispoll.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Harris Poll is a U.S. market research and consumer insights firm, founded in 1956 and a Stagwell subsidiary, that provides custom research, AI-powered brand tracking via HarrisQuest and BERA.ai, and the Axios Harris Poll 100 reputation ranking to enterprise clients across 90+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research & Consumer Insights

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418), Other Services Related to Advertising (541890)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Audience Measurement & Media Research (Ratings, Attribution, Media Mix Insights) (MPAAALAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Brand & Advertising Research (Brand Health, Copy Testing, Campaign Effectiveness) (MPAAALAG), Syndicated Market Research (Panels, Omnibus, Tracker Studies) (MPAAALAB)

Keywords

• Market research services
• Consumer insights
• Brand tracking
• Public opinion polling
• Reputation measurement

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Custom Research Services: Bespoke market research engagements tailored to specific client questions, conducted on a project basis with deliverables including surveys, analysis, and strategic recommendations.
2. Subscription Platforms (HarrisQuest, QuestBrand): SaaS subscriptions providing always-on brand tracking, reputation monitoring, and consumer insights. Includes enterprise system access with AI-ready data formats.
3. Syndicated Research Reports: Pre-packaged research reports covering specific industries or topics (e.g., Axios Harris Poll 100, AutoTECHCAST, State of Real Estate), available for purchase or as lead generation.
4. Thought Leadership Services: Strategic storytelling and media amplification services that help clients transform research into industry-shaping narratives, often partnered with custom research engagements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Harris Poll provides custom market research engagements, syndicated reports (e.g., Axios Harris Poll 100), and subscription-based SaaS platforms including HarrisQuest, QuestBrand, and Harris On Demand. It delivers brand tracking, reputation monitoring, consumer insights, and strategic storytelling services to enterprise clients across industries. The firm combines traditional polling methodology with AI-powered analytics and proprietary RQ reputation scoring.

Product overview

The Harris Poll is a global market research and advisory firm operating as a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product is HarrisQuest, an AI-powered market research and brand management suite that integrates brand tracking (QuestBrand), DIY survey tools (QuestDIY), and customer experience research (Quest CX). This platform is complemented by Harris On Demand for rapid-turn omnibus surveys, BERA.ai for AI-powered brand intelligence (acquired in 2024), Storyline Strategies for strategic storytelling, and Emerald Research Group for human-centered research services. The company also offers The Marketing Cloud containing PRophet (PR prediction) and SmartAssets (creative optimization). Syndicated offerings include the flagship Axios Harris Poll 100 annual reputation ranking. Recent innovation includes the AI-Ready Research Packet developed with NeuIQ for enterprise AI system integration. The company traces its heritage to 1956 and operates as a Stagwell Company with global reach across 90 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HarrisQuest: AI-powered market research and brand management suite providing always-on consumer insights capabilities.
• BERA.ai
• Storyline Strategies
• Emerald Research Group

Products and services

• HarrisQuest AI-powered market research and brand management suite providing always-on brand and reputation tracking, QuestBrand, QuestDIY, and Quest CX capabilities for enterprises to monitor brands in real-time through SaaS tools.
• Harris On Demand

Quantifiable outcome

• 67,000+ media mentions annually demonstrating reach and influence of research
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and core.

• European MarketsstrategicChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 26 March 2026Expansion of HarrisQuest brand and reputation tracking product across Europe, broadening always-on consumer insights capabilities to new geographic markets.
• Jonathan GardnercoreOthers · 3 December 2025Jonathan Gardner appointed as CEO of Harris Quest, bringing over 30 years of market research experience. Previously COO at The Harris Poll for nearly a decade.
• BERA.aicoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024Acquired in 2024 as a leading predictive brand technology platform with cutting-edge AI capabilities, expanding Harris Poll's AI-powered research offerings.
• AxioscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Strategic annual partnership for the Axios Harris Poll 100, the premier corporate reputation ranking in the United States. The partnership combines Harris Poll's methodology with Axios' media reach to deliver the most authoritative measure of corporate reputation since 2019.
• NeuIQstrategicTechnology or IntegrationPartnership to develop AI-Ready Research Packet converting traditional research deliverables into structured, governed formats optimized for enterprise AI systems.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Ipsos: Paris-based global market research and polling firm offering custom research, syndicated tracking, and public opinion studies across industries that overlap directly with Harris's portfolio.
• GfK: Germany-based market research company providing consumer and brand insights across industries, with overlapping product scope in brand tracking and consumer intelligence.
• Morning Consult: U.S. decision intelligence company combining proprietary polling, brand tracking, and consumer research; competes for the same enterprise and media-partnership customers as The Harris Poll.
• YouGov: Online survey-based market research and public opinion firm with a large global panel, offering syndicated and custom research directly comparable to The Harris Poll's offerings.
• Kantar: Global evidence-based insights and consulting company providing brand tracking, consumer research, and media measurement that compete head-to-head with HarrisQuest and Harris On Demand.
• Nielsen: Global measurement and data analytics company that sold The Harris Poll to Stagwell in 2014; competes in audience measurement, consumer insights, and media research.

Emerging players

• Toluna: Digital consumer insights platform operating a global panel and end-to-end research technology, providing an automated, self-service alternative to Harris's traditional research engagements.
• Dynata: First-party data and insights platform providing survey respondents, sample, and research technology that competes for the data-layer input that underpins Harris's research products.
• Zappi: AI-native consumer insights platform focused on advertising and product innovation research, representing the new generation of automated, fast-turn research tools competing with HarrisQuest.

Broad incumbents

• Gallup: Long-established U.S. public opinion and analytics firm with deep methodology heritage in polling and workforce research; competes for similar enterprise and media-partnership demand.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HarrisPoll
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/harris-poll

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Harris Poll