Weds, March 24, 2010
Do online focus groups work and are they useful? |
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Yes, online focus groups do work, but they do not replace the traditional face-to-face group option. Online focus groups give practitioners a new approach. One option to consider is the asynchronous group. To learn more see our series Focus Groups: Principles and Practice on the MRRC page |
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
What is the one social media task you should do every day? |
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The short answer is there is no one thing! Essentially, the premise of the question is flawed. Successful social media marketing campaigns are multi-pronged and should be carefully planned addressing objectives that you clearly articulate. It is similar to designing any marketing plan or for that matter a research project, which requires numerous decision points. |
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Is there a best practice research approach for getting a handle on sales? |
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One of the most powerful approaches you can use to better understand the market is a sales cycle analysis. Gaining a strong appreciation for the good and bad news about your market positioning in relationship to your competition isn’t always easy and if there’s bad news it’s difficult to hear. However, not knowing where you stand is at best dangerous and could prove fatal.
Sales cycle analysis is about understanding why you do or don’t get on the short list of your prospects (or stay on the short list of your customers) and what will facilitate or impede your progress toward becoming a preferred supplier – the position we obviously all want. If knowledge is power than sale cycle knowledge is royalty.
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Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Analysis plans have always given me trouble do you have any advice? |
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Here is a five step approach we've used for quantitative studies. The first step of the process will be familiar to those of you who have read other AtHeath publications from the Market Research Resource Center (MRRC). Research has the greatest chance of success when the objectives are clearly stated and that is where we begin. Use these five (5) straightforward steps:
| 1. State the key study objectives clearly at the beginning of the analysis plan (AP) and refer to them throughout the process. |
| 2. Describe the major comparisons for the analysis (e.g., major cross tabulations for the study such as: Customers versus Non-customers, Companies by size, Customers that are Satisfied, Neutral, or Dissatisfied). |
| 3. State how each question is used to answer a specific objective of the study either on its own or in combination with other data points. Think through how you expect to present the results from each question. What statistics, if any, will you use in the analysis? |
| 4. Write a clear justification for including the information from the question in the study and perform a section by section “So what” litmus test. |
| 5. When the analysis plan is finished, go back and make sure each key study objective has been addressed. |
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Friday, October 30, 2009
Recently a number of people have asked questions that I will summarize as follows: How important is a panel provider's recruitment method with respect to data quality? |
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I believe there is a direct relationship between recruitment methods and the quality of your data. If respondents are not who they say they are, than the responses cannot be generalized and are essential worthless.
I wanted to see if others were as concerned about this issue and we ran a poll on LinkedIn to find out (very unscientific, but interesting nonetheless).
We asked: When you select a sample provider, how much importance do you place on their panel recruitment process?
Here are the results updated for Nov 7th, N=91
| Not at all important |
1% |
| Somewhat important |
13% |
| Important |
16% |
| Very important |
37% |
| Extremely important |
31% |
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Thursday. Sept 24, 2009
Should we conduct our study on the telephone or use a Web-based approach?
Telephone vs Web-base approach |
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This is an important question. The short answer is that it depends on what you want to accomplish because each approach has its merits. The objective of the study should dictate the data collection method. How you decide which method best fits your objectives requires more space than we have here. However, you can download our White Paper: Telephone versus Web-based Data Collection: Trade-offs and Decisions for more guidance on this topic. |
Thursday. Sept 24, 2009
Double Barrel Questions
What is a double barrel question?
Example: Double Barrel Questions (Avoid at all cost)
D10. [ASK ALL] What proportion of your workforce currently spends at least some time away from a desk as a mobile employee or works entirely away from the office?
____ ____ %
999. Don't Know
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Double barrel questions are more common than most of us realize. It's a question that asks about two (or more I have seen triple and quadruple questions) topics or time periods, but allows for only one answer, such that when you try to interpret the data it is unclear what the respondent told you. It can also be a source of frustration for respondents.
A double barrel question may seem harmless at first glance, but think for a moment about how the results will be reported. What will the reported percentage refer to, the portion of employees who "spends some time away" or the portion who "works entirely away from the office?" The only truthful statement is both, but some companies will have a higher proportion of one situation than the other. Perhaps the respondent did some mental calculus for us to weight the answer giving more importance to the employees that are away all the time. The respondent was trying to be helpful, but we are unaware of each respondent's solution to this two-pronged question. The fact is we have no good and clear way to interpret the results. Therefore, we're at a loss to present any insights from these data.
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Thursday. Sept 24, 2009
Defining the Unit of Analysis
What is the unit of analysis? Why does it matter?
What assumptions have you made regarding the unit of analysis and how does it affect questionnaire design, analysis and reporting of results? |
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In business research, we are typically asking questions about the organization, but too often the questionnaire is designed to ask questions that address the person taking the survey rather than addressing the company (e.g., by phrasing the questions with "you" rather than "your company"). This practice ignores the fact that in many cases, if not most, the researcher's intent is to discover what the company will do not what the person is likely to do. The respondent is a "key informant" presumably someone who can accurately report on the company's activities and future plans.
Unit of Analysis = the Person: Which of the following statements best describes the barriers you face in executing........ ?
Unit of Analysis = the Company: Which of the following statements best describes the barriers your company faces in executing........?
Unless the research is about the behaviors, perceptions, opinions, and plans of specific people within an organization, business research questions should focus on the organization or some part of the organization as the unit of analysis.
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