Quester

What Quester does

Quester is a Des Moines, Iowa-based market research and brand strategy agency founded in 1977 by Dr. Charles E. Cleveland, operating under the legal entity Knowledge Technology Solutions, Inc. The company provides narrative-driven consumer insights, brand strategy, and innovation consulting to enterprise consumer brands, with a client roster spanning CPG (Nestle Purina, Kellanova, WK Kellogg, PepsiCo, Kimberly-Clark), technology (Apple, Spotify, HP, Oura), financial services (Wells Fargo, Edward Jones), and other sectors. Its core technology stack centers on Socrates, an AI-powered virtual moderator that has conducted over 3 million automated one-on-one interviews since 2001, paired with Aristotle, a text analytics platform that surfaces representative phrases from interview data for linguistic analysis. The Social Narratives practice combines AI-moderated qualitative research with social listening data, while the SPARQ and DRIVE methodologies (launched in 2023) package research findings into repeatable innovation and brand-building frameworks.

Quester operates as a professional services firm with project-based pricing ranging from $5,000 to $200,000 per engagement, typically structured as multi-year contracts. Go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, leveraging the Perspectives thought leadership blog, keynote events with industry figures, and direct consultative engagement with enterprise and mid-market consumer brands. The July 2024 acquisition of ProdigyWorks added a Mensa-based global network of elite thinkers to power a new breakthrough innovation offering, expanding the company from pure research into adjacent innovation consulting. The firm holds GDPR, CCPA, SOC 2 Type 2, and NIST 800-53 certifications, supporting enterprise data governance requirements.

Name

Quester

Legal name

Knowledge Technology Solutions, Inc.

Website

https://quester.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Quester is a Des Moines-based market research agency providing narrative-driven consumer insights, brand strategy, and innovation consulting to enterprise consumer brands, powered by its proprietary Socrates AI moderator and Aristotle text analytics platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research Services

NAICS

Marketing Consulting Services (541613), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Creative Concepting & Campaign Development (BPAFAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Digital & Technology Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAH)

Keywords

• Market research services
• Brand strategy consulting
• Consumer insights
• Innovation consulting
• Qualitative research

Headquarters

HQ city

Des Moines

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Marketing Research and Consulting Services: Quester provides qualitative and quantitative marketing research services to consumer brands, including narrative-driven insights, brand strategy, and innovation consulting. Revenue is generated through project-based engagements ranging from small studies to comprehensive research programs. Project costs range from $5,000 to $200,000 depending on size and scope.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Quester provides narrative-driven market research, brand strategy, and innovation consulting services to enterprise and mid-market consumer brands. The firm operates proprietary AI-powered technology platforms (Socrates virtual moderator and Aristotle text analytics) to conduct qualitative research and produce actionable brand and innovation insights. Through its ProdigyWorks sub-brand, Quester delivers breakthrough innovation services leveraging a global network of elite thinkers and creatives.

Product overview

Quester is a transformative brand and innovation agency that operates as a platform of interconnected services. The core offerings include Narrative Driven Insights (social listening and AI-moderated research), Brand Strategy, and Brand Innovation services. ProdigyWorks, acquired in July 2024, serves as the innovation powerhouse leveraging a global network of elite thinkers. Technology products include Socrates (AI virtual moderator conducting over 3M conversations) and Aristotle (text analytics). Methodologies include DRIVE for brand building and SPARQ for human-centered innovation. Social Narratives practice combines social listening with AI-moderated qualitative data. The company was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Des Moines, IA.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ProdigyWorks: The innovation powerhouse inside Quester, providing breakthrough innovation through a global network of elite thinkers including Mensa-level thinkers, breakthrough inventors, visionary creatives, cultural provocateurs, and seasoned industry leaders.
• SPARQ
• DRIVE

Products and services

• Narrative Driven Insights Proprietary research service that uncovers unique consumer narratives driving strategic advantage through social listening, AI-moderated qualitative research, and advanced linguistic analytics. Offered to enterprise and mid-market consumer brands seeking deeper human understanding than quantitative data alone provides.
• Brand Strategy Consulting service providing deep functional, emotional, and social understanding of brands and competitive landscapes to craft narrative-driven brand architecture and positioning strategies. Designed for Chief Marketing Officers, Brand Strategists, and Insights Professionals at consumer companies.
• Brand Innovation Innovation service that uncovers category Demand Spaces and Jobs to Be Done to enable breakthrough innovation opportunities through the ProdigyWorks thinktank. Targets Brand Strategy and Innovation Leaders at consumer brands seeking whitespace and category-disrupting concepts.
• ProdigyWorks Innovation agency service offering outside-disruptive thinking for breakthrough product, service, and business operation ideas through a global network of Mensa-level thinkers, breakthrough inventors, visionary creatives, cultural provocateurs, and seasoned industry leaders. Targets enterprise innovation teams seeking 3-5 year pipeline development.
• Socrates AI Virtual Moderator Automated online interviewing software acting as an AI virtual moderator that conducts interactive one-on-one qualitative interviews, adjusting follow-up questions based on respondent responses. Built using psychiatric evaluation methods and available via API for custom applications. Has conducted over 3 million conversations.
• Aristotle Text Analytics Text analytics software that processes large volumes of textual interview data and highlights the most representative phrases and statements for linguistic analyst review. Codifies themes into quantitative variables for statistical analysis including cluster analysis.

Quantifiable outcome

• Consumer segmentation work resulted in improved website conversion rates and increased user time on site
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and supporting.

• OTX (Ipsos)coreTechnology or IntegrationOTX, a global consumer research firm, integrated Socrates into its AdCEP ad testing system. This partnership allows OTX to leverage Quester's AI-moderated qualitative interviewing capabilities to obtain richer consumer understanding beyond quantitative measures, helping clients understand emotional response and engagement with advertising.
• Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQuester conducted research at no cost to help the CVB understand national perceptions of Des Moines, assisting in branding and identity-shaping initiatives for the region.
• Microsoft 365supportingTechnology or IntegrationService provider for productivity and collaboration tools supporting Quester's operations.
• 11:11 SystemssupportingTechnology or IntegrationService provider supporting Quester's technology infrastructure and cloud operations.
• ShareFilesupportingTechnology or IntegrationService provider for secure file sharing and document management supporting Quester's research operations.
• ForstasupportingTechnology or IntegrationSurvey research platform and service provider supporting Quester's data collection and research methodologies.
• Insights AssociationsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry association for market research professionals. Quester is a member and upholds their Best Practices for market research, including ethical standards for respondent confidentiality and data protection.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• NielsenIQ: Global consumer intelligence firm combining panel data, retail measurement, and qualitative insights for CPG and retail clients — a scaled competitor that Quester regularly competes against on enterprise research RFPs.
• Kantar: One of the largest global market research and brand consulting firms, offering qualitative insights, brand strategy, and innovation services to the same Fortune 500 CPG and consumer brand clients that Quester targets.
• Ipsos: Global market research and consulting giant with a deep qualitative and quantitative practice serving consumer brands; Ipsos's OTX division has actually partnered with Quester to integrate Socrates, making it the closest direct incumbent comparable to Quester's narrative-driven insights model.
• Mintel: Global market research firm specializing in consumer products, food, and innovation trends — overlapping significantly with Quester's CPG, food and beverage, and innovation pipeline work.

Direct peers

• Hall & Partners: Brand and communications research consultancy focused on qualitative insights for global brands; similar mid-sized, narrative-led positioning and similar client roster of Fortune 500 consumer companies.
• Schlesinger Group: Qualitative research firm offering focus groups, in-depth interviews, and online qualitative methods to consumer brands; the most direct methodology peer given the overlap in qualitative interviewing services to enterprise clients.
• Prophet: Brand and marketing consultancy combining consumer research, brand strategy, and innovation — a closely comparable integrated narrative-driven approach serving similar enterprise brand clients.
• Material+ (formerly LRW Group): Insights and strategy firm offering qualitative research, brand strategy, and innovation consulting to enterprise consumer brands; comparable in offering mix, mid-market scale, and Fortune 500 client orientation.
• C Space: Customer-led growth consultancy that uses private online communities and qualitative engagement to deliver consumer insights for major brands — a closely comparable narrative and community-driven research model.
• Marketcast: Research and analytics firm providing qualitative and quantitative insights to entertainment, technology, and consumer brands — overlapping with Quester's brand strategy and consumer narrative work for similar enterprise customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/QuesterMR
• Facebookfacebook.com/QuesterMR
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/questermarketresearch

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Quester