IMAGINE you are Solomon Lew limbering up to fight for your Coles Myer board seat. Who are you going to call?

Last year Lew called CrosbylTextor, the brand new strategic polling company set up by former Liberal Party federal director Lynton Crosby and pollster Mark Textor.

Lew's very public bid to retain his board seat in November was a flame out, but for CrosbylTextor it was just the beginning. The market is awash with consultancies staffed by people with Liberal Party connections, not the least being Ian Kortlang, currently attempting to sort out problems besetting public relations firm Burson-Marsteller. And last month former government whip Michael Ronaldson joined Fleishman-Hillard Stratcom's international advisory board, joining the likes of former US secretary of defence William Cohen and former speaker of the US House of Representatives Newt Gingrich.

When CrosbylTextor started it was just the two men as joint managing directors. The two say the company is not about public affairs, not about market research and not about lobbying, which Crosby feels many companies should undertake themselves rather than engage consultants. Rather, the company is a ``strategic polling company''. ``Our focus is understanding how people think and using the understanding to help change behaviour,'' he says.
The Canberra-based company promises clients research, strategy and results. Textor says the company goes beyond market research because it ``measures what motivates behaviour ultimately rather then just simple opinion''. Says Textor: ``It's impossible for some consumers in respect of some issues to self-diagnose.'' Issues have to be linked to possible action consumers can take.

Work for the Liberal Party is less than 10 per cent of business, says Crosby. Corporate strategic communication makes up a lot of the rest, particularly representational management for chief executives and corporate directors. ``I'm not sure they really understand what's motivating shareholders,'' says Crosby.
Although the company still hasn't had a formal launch, is still constructing its website and searching for a Sydney office, the company has eight full-time staff and several casuals.
Staff include Mark Domitrak, former national public affairs manager for the Australian Hotels Association. Former Nine network political reporter Fleur Bitcon is the Melbourne-based communications director. Former Roy Morgan pollster John Scales is based in the River Murray town of Echuca. The company chairman is former mining executive Robert Champion de Crespigny.

Textor was one of 15 international team leaders in charge of the Pacific New Zealand and Australia for polling group Wirthlin Worldwide. It has now left the Australian market and last week CrosbylTextor signed an exclusive partnership agreement with it.
The company has decided discretion is a virtue, and a selling point. It will not name its clients but has been hired by television networks, banks, an investment house, an airline, five industry associations, an entertainment company, several top 100 resource companies and two agribusinesses.