Trends and News
8/31/09
Social media and research
We recently blogged about phone apps and research. One of the draws of phone app research is that it can be immediate. Just saw a movie? Review it while walking out of the theater. Just left the store without buying that flat-screen TV – what kept you from buying? While actively seeking feedback through phone […]
By David KennedyRead More
8/17/09
Phone apps role in research
As online surveys have become ubiquitous and response has declined, researchers have had to move on to new modes of data collection. We’ve blogged before about mobile surveys, and with today’s smartphones, mobile apps seem to be the next logical extension. This post discusses Dunkin’ Donuts’s iPhone App and touches on its research potential. While […]
By David KennedyRead More
8/3/09
Research gone wrong – online polls
We’ve all seen quick online polls on news sites, in our email, and on social networking sites. While the purpose of these polls is often for entertainment the way they are executed is often too similar to that of real surveys – anyone can take it and can take it as many times as they […]
By David KennedyRead More
7/20/09
Virtual stores
Online and virtual research has grown in popularity as technology has improved and costs have become an even greater concern. For years we have seen an increase in online surveys, then research in online communities, and now virtual stores. The Shopper Culture blog had this post about virtual store studies and their apparent success. While […]
By David KennedyRead More
3/23/09
8 ways to save on market research
We’ve spoken before about the importance of research in an economic downturn, but we also understand that when you don’t have the budget, you don’t have the budget. So, here are 8 ways you can tackle your research with no, or at least less, budget. Has your company already conducted similar research? No point in […]
By David KennedyRead More
3/16/09
2009 forecasted to be a rough year for market research
The 2009 Annual Survey of Market Research Professionals reports that buyers of market research services expect nearly a 10 percent drop in their market research budgets. (The report also has other stats on the state of the industry beyond revenue.) While this may be expected in a down economy, it should not be an excuse. […]
By David KennedyRead More
3/12/09
An interview with a professional respondent II
We recently posted a satirical video of an interview with a professional focus group respondent. Today I ran across this article written by another professional respondent. While somewhat old, I believe it still rings true nearly five years later. For reasons that are probably apparent from watching the video and reading the article, the current […]
By David KennedyRead More
2/12/09
Facebook opening up to research
Facebook is adding another service as a means to bring in revenue. No, it’s not video, applications, or another new advertising system. Facebook is turning to market research as a means of generating revenue. Sounds great on the outside – and like Google Insights, businesses have been drooling over access to that kind of information […]
By David KennedyRead More
1/19/09
Tradeoffs between survey length and cooperation
In a previous post we discussed how survey length can indirectly drive up participation recruitment costs. Another often-ignored consequence of long surveys is poor quality data that may or may not be easy to identify. Even conscientious participants lose the desire to be cooperative as a survey drags on. By the sixth page, or the […]
By Beth MulliganRead More
1/14/09
Is Detroit now asking the right questions?
A few weeks ago there was an article in the Denver Post about the reason for the demise of the US auto industry (thanks to Chuck, our finance manager, for passing it along to me). In the article, Ed Quillen mentioned an age-old anecdote about asking consumers what they want. When US automakers built and […]
By David KennedyRead More