Avansa
Avansa is a Guatemala-based market research and customer experience firm founded in 2005, serving banks and enterprises across Central America and the Caribbean with mystery shopping, surveys, and AI-powered analytics tools delivered through its Smart AXS platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersGuatemala City, Guatemala
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Avansa does
Avansa is a Guatemala-headquartered market research and customer experience analytics firm founded in 2005, operating across more than 10 countries in Central America and the Caribbean. Its core service portfolio spans traditional research methodologies — mystery shopping (in-person, digital, and telephonic), surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, benchmarking, pricing studies, and internal customer (employee) studies — alongside a growing suite of AI-enabled technology products: Demographix (computer vision footfall and demographic analytics), Lucy (a conversational AI bot for phone-based customer interactions), mobility studies using anonymized telecom big data, Hello Emily query stations, and social media listening with sentiment analysis. All outputs are delivered through Smart AXS, Avansa's proprietary client portal that provides dashboards and reporting across the service lines.
The company operates a sales-led B2B go-to-market targeting enterprise clients, with a primary vertical concentration in Guatemalan banking and financial institutions (more than ten named banks plus cooperatives) and secondary exposure to retail, automotive, restaurants, real estate, healthcare, and services. Pricing is custom and quote-based per project scope, with no public rate cards, and engagement cadences range from one-off studies to multi-year contracts. Avansa is the first company in Central America and the Caribbean to obtain MSPA (Mystery Shopping Providers Alliance) certification and claims a cumulative base of over 100,000 mystery shopper evaluations and 4 million surveys.
Revenue mechanics are predominantly professional services, with a stated subscription/recurring revenue layer tied to its technology products (Demographix, Smart AXS, etc.) and an add-on training revenue stream built from insights surfaced in prior brand studies. The firm is privately held, founder/management-controlled, with no disclosed institutional investors, funding rounds, or M&A activity. Its operating geographies, multidisciplinary team (market researchers, anthropologists, data analysts, developers), and proprietary Smart AXS platform together form the structural basis for a regional CX-measurement franchise rather than a global research conglomerate.
Avansa firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Avansa
- Legal name
- AVANSA
- Website
- https://grupoavansa.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Avansa is a Guatemala-based market research and customer experience firm founded in 2005, serving banks and enterprises across Central America and the Caribbean with mystery shopping, surveys, and AI-powered analytics tools delivered through its Smart AXS platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Avansa industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Market Research Services
- NAICS
- Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910), Advertising Agencies (541810), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511), Other Services Related to Advertising (541890)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising (7310), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Advertising, Marketing & Customer Personalization (HDAAAGAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Contact Center Speech AI (agent assist, IVR automation) (HDAAAFAL), AI & Automation in Customer Service (Chatbots, Agent Assist) (EDABACAO)
Keywords
Where Avansa is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Guatemala City
- HQ country
- Guatemala
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Avansa business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Market Research Services: Professional market research services including mystery shopping, surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, benchmarking, and pricing studies. Delivered as custom consulting engagements to enterprise clients.
- Technology Solutions: AI-powered technology solutions including Demographix visitor counting, Hello Emily query stations, conversational bots, mobility studies, and social media listening tools.
- Training Services: Customized customer service training based on findings from previous brand studies, covering teamwork, communication, leadership, and service standards.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom project-based pricing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Avansa product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Avansa delivers professional market research and customer experience measurement services for enterprise clients, including mystery shopping (in-person, digital, and telephonic), surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, benchmark studies, pricing studies, internal customer studies, and customized training. Complementing the research services, Avansa operates proprietary AI-driven technology products such as Demographix (visitor counting and demographics via smart cameras), Hello Emily (query stations), Bot Conversacional Lucy (conversational AI), mobility studies via Big Data, and social media listening, all unified under its Smart AXS client platform.
Product overview
Avansa is a market research company headquartered in Guatemala operating across Central America and the Caribbean, offering a comprehensive portfolio of research services and AI-powered technology products organized around its Smart AXS proprietary platform. The service portfolio is divided into three main categories: traditional research services (Mystery Shopper in-person/digital/telephonic, Market Research/Investigación, Surveys, In-depth Interviews, Focus Groups, Benchmark, Pricing, Internal Customer Studies, and Training); technology products (Mobility Studies via Big Data Telefónica, Hello Emily consultation stations, Demographix visitor counting, Bot Conversacional/Lucy, and Social Media Listening); all unified under the Smart AXS digital platform that delivers dashboards, reports, and data visualization. The company serves clients across banking/finance, retail, automotive, restaurants, real estate, services, and healthcare sectors.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Smart AXS: Customer management and survey platform operated by Avansa for conducting and managing market research activities.
Products and services
- Mystery Shopper
Quantifiable outcome
- Improved customer retention through service quality measurement and targeted training
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Avansa
Customer profileNamed customers20 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Avansa technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability9 records
Feature6 records
Avansa partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Avansa competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Second to None: US-based mystery shopping and customer experience measurement provider. Comparable to Avansa's Mystery Shopper (in-person/digital/telephonic) and customer experience evaluation services, though focused on the US market.
- Shoppers Anonymous: International mystery shopping and CX evaluation firm. Directly comparable to Avansa's mystery shopper services (presencial, digital, telephonic) and benchmark offerings for retail and consumer-facing clients.
Broad incumbents
- NielsenIQ: Global consumer research and retail measurement company with strong presence across Latin America. Comparable to Avansa's market research, pricing studies, and customer experience analytics for retail and consumer-facing clients.
- Ipsos: Global market research and customer experience analytics leader with extensive LatAm operations. Directly comparable to Avansa's core market research and customer experience measurement services, but operates at a vastly larger scale with multinational client reach.
- GFK (NIQ): Global market research firm with consumer behavior, brand, and customer experience analytics. Comparable to Avansa's research and customer experience services, especially in benchmarking and pricing studies.
- Kantar: Global market research, consumer insights and CX analytics firm with established LatAm presence. Overlaps with Avansa's market research, benchmarking, and customer experience measurement offerings for large enterprise clients.
Regional players
- Pretor: Mexico-based mystery shopping and CX measurement firm serving Latin American clients. Direct functional peer for Avansa's mystery shopper and customer experience evaluation services in the LatAm region, though focused on Mexico.
- IBOPE Inteligencia: Latin American market research firm offering consumer insights, media research, and brand studies across multiple LatAm countries. Closely comparable to Avansa's market research and social media listening capabilities at a regional scale.
- Datum Internacional: Mexico-based market research and public opinion polling firm serving LatAm clients. Comparable to Avansa's market research, surveys, and focus group offerings within the broader LatAm research services landscape.
Others
- Service Quality Institute: Customer service training and certification organization. Comparable to Avansa's Capacitación (training) revenue stream, which delivers customized service training based on prior brand-study findings.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Avansa social profiles
Digital presenceAvansa compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Avansa financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Avansa leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Avansa funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Avansa M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Avansa
What does Avansa do?
Avansa delivers professional market research and customer experience measurement services for enterprise clients, including mystery shopping (in-person, digital, and telephonic), surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, benchmark studies, pricing studies, internal customer studies, and customized training. Complementing the research services, Avansa operates proprietary AI-driven technology products such as Demographix (visitor counting and demographics via smart cameras), Hello Emily (query stations), Bot Conversacional Lucy (conversational AI), mobility studies via Big Data, and social media listening, all unified under its Smart AXS client platform.
Is Avansa a public or private company?
Avansa is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Avansa founded?
Avansa was founded in 2005. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Avansa based?
Avansa is headquartered in Guatemala City, Guatemala, in the Latin America region.
How does Avansa make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Market Research Services are the primary driver. The others are technology Solutions and training Services.
Who are Avansa's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Second to None and Shoppers Anonymous. Broad incumbents are NielsenIQ, Ipsos, GFK (NIQ) and Kantar. Regional players are Pretor, IBOPE Inteligencia and Datum Internacional. Service Quality Institute is listed as an others.
Does Avansa have an API?
No public API is recorded for Avansa.
What industry is Avansa in?
Avansa's product category is Market Research Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAAAGAC, Advertising, Marketing & Customer Personalization, with a secondary code of HDAAAFAL, Contact Center Speech AI (agent assist, IVR automation). Its NAICS code is 541910 and its SIC code is 7310.