Marketing in Real Life

Earlier this week, I watched an AMA webcast on data quality and the role of questionnaire design in ensuring it. It was much better than most of the seemingly hundreds I have watched on this topic and had three main take-aways. Researchers need to take the time to construct a well thought out questionnaire that incorporates both research needs AND the respondent experience It is essential to pre-test new methods, question sets, and complex designs prior to using them in a live study Using technology and interactivity is essential, but make sure you are applying the right approach for the task. I couldn't agree more! Incorporating logical thought into the research process is key to higher quality and engagement and using technology built with engagement in mind (like Invoke and Vision Critical) makes the end result far more useful. Watch the webcast here.

Some tidbits from the Confirmit Research Software report in this month's Quirk's... MR professionals across the world consider falling response rates to be the No. 1 challenge facing the industry. So-called professional respondents and availability of sample to conduct research are problems two and three, respectively. All of the nominated top three sit squarely on the respondent-facing side of the research triangle, revealing an industry concerned about its raw material above all else. Time and cost - classic business issues - are rated highly in the overall mix (we asked respondents to select up to three challenges) but come well down the list of No. 1 worries. These are issues more within the control of the research companies themselves. Ten percent of respondents consider turnaround time (from fieldwork to delivery) the top issue, but 37 percent have it as one of their top three concerns, just one point behind professional respondents and availability of sample as overall...

“…Qual and Quant are natural bedfellows. Data should be borne in mind when a qualitative study is being reviewed, and conversely, the “why” question should be top of mind when weighing up the results of any quantitative research.” - Sven Arn; HTP Concept from the ESOMAR Global Market Research Report 2007