Online research has become a staple in our business and, under the right conditions, can even be used to mimic focus groups.
When being used for qualitative research, respondents participate in interactive, moderated sessions.
Typically respondents are shown a video clip of a commercial or new product. They are then asked a series of typical quantitative survey type questions related to what they saw as well as open-ended questions.
The moderator can send a note to individual participants and ask for clarification from any of the people taking part.
Respondents also get to indicate whether or not they agree with the other participants’ comments by use of “agree” and “disagree” buttons.
Advantages of this Method
- You get people to self-select their participation – and can then qualify them using a series of questions upfront. This can significantly reduce recruiting costs.
- It’s quick and relatively easy to administer.
- Respondent fees are replaced with contest entries and points – again a substantial costs savings to clients.
- You avoid costs related to focus room use, food, taping and transcribing, etc.
- All comments are automatically entered making for easy tabulation, sorting and analysis.
- You can get input from people living anywhere without having to incur travel related expenses
- It’s much easier to get rural area respondents.
Disadvantages of this Method
- People self-select their participation, which can introduce a bias into the research, even if you qualify their participation.
- It’s much harder to probe the reasons “why” people believe something in an online setting, so it is almost impossible to get the same depth of understanding that is possible in face-to-face focus groups.
- Although people can see and comment on one another’s answers, online sessions miss out on points that are often raised when groups build off one another’s answers. Group dynamics can play a powerful role in helping get to heart of important matters.
- Not all respondents complete these interactive sessions. The degree of compliance is influenced by the topic (and the respondents interest in it), the length of the session... and how well the technology works. If respondents can’t answer the questions, it’s a waste of client’s time and money. An inability to complete answers not only causes respondents to shut the window, it can severely impact the likelihood of the respondent being willing to take part in future surveys.
A Couple of Things to Remember
- Ensure that your respondent can indeed see the video by first showing a couple of mini test videos and asking questions about the two images and sound tracks. This lets you know that the person will be able to see the research videos as intended.
- Provide downloads / plug-ins for the tools needed to view your videos and interact with your discussion forum and/or session moderator.
- Limit the participation time to a maximum of 15 minutes (or less).
- Offer participation rewards that appear generous in relation to the time investment required of the respondent – and yes, you always let the person know this upfront.
- Test regularly to make sure that all technology-related tools are working properly.
- Capture participants’’ e-mails addresses so that you can contact people who churn off part-way through to a) determine why and b) request they complete the survey (much easier than locating another person who fits the desired profile).
My next post will provide some of the results of research conducted to help determine what women want from men and their relationships with them. In the meantime, if you have any research-related questions, please feel free to drop me a line. JMC
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