Transcript New Qualitative Research Options: How to Choose

New Research Options:
How to Choose
By Jay Zaltzman
• Bureau West, Inc.
• Market Research & Marketing
Strategy
• Los Angeles, California, USA
• Tel: +1-818-588-6050
• Email: [email protected]
Presented as a QRCA QCast
March, 2011
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Bureau West: research & strategy
• Consortium of independent researchers
– Qualitative research (focus groups,
interviews, online methods)
– Quantitative research (surveys)
– Website-related research (usability,
conceptual)
• “Agnostic” when it comes to methodology
– What’s the best way to answer the
research question?
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decisions, decisions
• Inundated with new qualitative options:
– Online bulletin board focus groups
– Remote webcam focus groups
– Telephone focus groups
– Online chat focus groups
– Mobile phone research
– Online journaling
– Video diaries
– Telephone interviews with “desktop”
(computer screen) sharing
– Online communities/social networks
– And more!
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decisions, decisions
• And then there are the traditional options such
as focus groups and in-person interviews
• Infinite combinations of the above
• How to choose?
– Benefits
– Client comfort level
– “Bells and whistles”
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Online bulletin board focus groups
• Asynchronous
• Less interaction, less
spontaneity
• Greater depth
• More individual opinions
Moderator post
and less influence of fellow
participants
– But still get some of the
synergy of group
discussion
• Anonymous
• Geographic dispersion
• Cost savings
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
Threaded
responses
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Online bulletin board focus groups
• Well-suited for:
– Websiterelated
research
– Discussing
new concepts
– Highinvolvement
topics
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Webcam (video) focus groups
• More interactive than
online bulletin board
focus groups
– Though still not the
same as in-person
• Psychological safety of
home or office
– Less “groupthink”
than in-person focus
groups
• Best of both worlds?
• Geographic dispersion
• Costs: not cheap, but
save on travel
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Webcam (video) focus groups
• Examples:
– Research: reactions
to TV ads
– Home use of
products
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Online chat focus groups
• Moderated discussion conducted online
– Think of a large chat room, with visuals that
can change
– Moderator asks questions and probes while
the comments scroll down the page
– Clients view the online chat in real-time, and
are able to have the moderator ask additional
questions, if needed
• Somewhat interactive
• More immediacy
• No dominators
• Simultaneous responses = large amount of data
in short amount of time
• Anonymous
• Geographic dispersion
• Cost savings
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Online chat focus groups
• Well-suited for reactions to visuals
and to concepts
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Telephone focus groups
• Teleconference
– Can be done as a regular conference call or
using an online conference system like
WebEx or GoToMeeting, so participants can
view stimuli on their computer screens
• More non-verbal communication than online
bulletin boards, less than in-person focus groups
or webcam focus groups
• Fairly interactive
• Geographic dispersion
• Quick and easy to set up
• Cost savings
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Telephone focus groups
• Tend to use when webcam focus groups are too
expensive or too difficult (e.g., no time to send
webcams to respondents)
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Desktop sharing
• Can work both ways
• Moderator and clients see respondent’s desktop
– For remote website usability testing
• Respondents and clients see moderator’s desktop
– For telephone focus groups or interviews with
visual component
• With or without a webcam
• Providers:
– Webex
– GoToMeeting
– AdobeConnect
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Mobile phone (texting) research
• Not just for quant anymore
• Questions asked by text message at predetermined times over the course of days or weeks
• Immediate
• More natural, researcher has less impact on the
behavior being researched
• Well-suited for:
– Learning about behavior (e.g., shopping,
watching TV)
– Getting at feelings, emotional reactions
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Mobile phone (texting) research
• Examples:
– How PR staffers feel about their work
– Reactions to marketing messages
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Online journaling (“immersive research”)
• Participants write their own “blogs”
• Can combine text, photos, video,
audio to get at various aspects of the
topic being researched
• More natural, researcher has less
impact on the behavior being
researched
• Can participate at their convenience
– More “in the moment” than an IDI,
less than texting
– Provides greater depth than
texting
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Online journaling (“immersive research”)
• Well-suited for:
– Learning about behavior
– Getting at feelings, emotional
reactions
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Video diaries
• Questions and answers on video – more
natural and easier for participants
• Portable video cams enable us to
“follow” participants, with minimum
observer impact
• Participants don’t have to write and
organize thoughts, can speak
spontaneously
• Rich visuals for report
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Video diaries
• Well-suited for:
– Learning about behavior as it
happens (“day in the life”)
– Getting at feelings, emotional
reactions
• Examples:
– P&G research about morning
routines
– Midas customer research
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Social media
• Still finding our way – proceed with caution!
– Many consider Facebook and MySpace
to be very personal forums.
• Can temporarily connect to (“friend”)
respondents.
– This provides a deeper and more candid
view of the person than is available
otherwise.
• Data mining opportunities.
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Market research online communities
• Large group of people recruited to a private
online platform to participate in a variety of
research activities over time.
• Uses:
– Co-innovation: involving customers in the
product development process.
– Identifying trends: participants recruited
for MROC’s are engaged, creative types
of people who tend to be at the forefront
of trends.
– Longitudinal input: obtain information over
the whole course of the decision-making
process, or input about product use over
time.
– Speed: answers can be available in days
rather than weeks.
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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So how to choose?
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decision process: start here
Are
people with
broadband internet
representative of
the target?
No
Can’t use remote or
online methods (except
telephone focus groups
and IDI’s)
Yes
Is
confidentiality
absolutely
essential?
Yes
No
Can consider
online methods
Can’t use remote or online methods
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decision process: variables to consider
Time
Geography
Individuals or groups
Top-of-mind or in-depth
Comfort
• Does your research need to happen in real time,
extended time, or some of each?
• Do you need to include just one or a few cities, or
multiple regions or countries? Or people in remote areas?
• Do you need individual interaction, group interaction,
or some of each?
• Do you need input that's top-of-mind/ visceral/immediate,
or in-depth/ thoughtful/ reflective, or some of each?
• Will target participants be able and willing to
participate in the methods you're considering?
Senses
• What will participants need to see, smell, hear, touch, or taste?
Communications
• Will participants be most comfortable expressing themselves in
speech, writing, or other ways?
Client involvement
Unobtrusive or engaged
Techniques
Output
• When/where/how do clients need to observe or engage
with the research while it's in progress?
• Do you need methods that enable qualitative researchers
to be unobtrusive, highly engaged, or both?
• Are there specific qualitative techniques you need to use
(image sorting, laddering, mini-breakouts, montages, etc.)?
• What evidence or documentation will you need to communicate key
learning effectively -- Verbatims? Visuals? Videos? Other?
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decision process: qualitative options
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Decision process – also consider:
• Client comfort level
• Savings in travel cost, time
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Summing up
• “Selling” new techniques to clients
• Consider a combination
Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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Thank you
• Jay Zaltzman
• Bureau West - Market Research &
Marketing Strategy
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Bureau West ▪ Market Research & Marketing Strategy ▪ Los Angeles, CA ▪ tel: (818) 588-6050, email: [email protected]
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