Unique education and development program to create career path into the digital era for moderators

Saskatoon, SK – July 14, 2009 – Itracks, international online data collection specialists and online qualitative patent holders, today announces the launch of a global initiative to support moderators as they move into the online market research world.

Itracks - encouraged by a huge 40% increase in online bulletin board focus group activity and the success of its Populis online community platform – is launching the Itracks Online Moderator Community, the first ever program of its type, with a mission to provide the foremost location for online moderators to learn, discuss and generate ideas about online qualitative research.

“Qualitative research is going online – and it’s going there very, very quickly,” said Itracks’ President and CEO, Dan Weber.

“I’m very proud that a Canadian company – my company – has established itself as the world leader in this exploding market, but it’s vital that we take world class moderators with us into this incredible new communications era. The Itracks Online Moderator Community is designed to do just that and it will be a win-win situation for both us and the people who get involved.”

“This is an important milestone day for online qualitative research – make no mistake about it”.

The Community will give moderators the chance to achieve training, discuss best practices and stay current with online qualitative technologies. They will receive their own account and training, receive 24/7 support and become a part of Itracks’ RFQ process. It is open to all moderators, whether they are independents, members of market research organisations or perform an in-house role.

This is the latest initiative from Itracks, which has grown from a small Canadian start-up into a globally-recognised expert in its field within the last ten years. Founder Dan Weber – a former winner of the Canadian Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year award – now heads an operation with offices across the United States, customers worldwide and the ability to work in more than 20 languages.

The Community will operate across a wide range of industry sectors. These will include agriculture, construction, energy, technology, financial, consumer packaged goods, retail, telecommunications, medical, travel, transport and government.

“We have tried to be leaders at Itracks since the day we started and today’s announcement is a continuation of that commitment to our market,” concluded Mr Weber.