D-Day is coming to Europe next spring, and no, we’re not talking about World War II. For us in the here and now, the “D” in D-Day stands for Data. In May 2018, new data protection regulations will take effect in the EU, and the impact on businesses and consumers will be enormous. Continue reading “What to Expect from the New European Data Protection Regulations”
Marketing researchers are all facing two important challenges to data quality. First is the question of representativeness: with response rates plummeting, we need to make surveys shorter, more engaging, and easier for respondents to complete. Second is the issue of data accuracy: we must make sure that survey questions measure what we think they measure. Continue reading “Quality Starts with Survey Design: Tips for Better Surveys”
Pretty much everyone in the survey business understands the value of a satisfied panel. We want our surveys to be well-received and satisfying. We want our panelists to be engaged, and when we invite them again, we want them to participate eagerly. Continue reading “Reap the Rewards: Finding the Right Incentive Mix for Your Panelists”
“Smart Survey Design” is a loose term (bordering on a catch-all) that you’ve probably heard pitched to you. Maybe you have used it yourself when piecing together a study.
It’s not a hollow term, by any means. Smart design has advantages for both designers and respondents. Designing “smart” simply means maintaining data integrity, both in terms of capturing statistically relevant data as well as reducing the amount of bad data caused by poor survey takers (straight liners, short responders for OE’s, speeders, cheaters, etc.). Continue reading “Smart Survey Design: 3 Forgotten Pain Points to Avoid”
It was my first year attending the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Annual Conference, and I was feeling a little nervous. AAPOR is one of the most influential conferences in the survey industry. My goal was to actively participate in events and networking opportunities on the conference list. ResearchHack 3.0 was one of them.
ResearchHack is AAPOR’s version of a “hackathon”, where teams of participants (aka. “hackers”) were asked to devise a plan for a mobile app that would inform various uses of the Census Planning Database. Continue reading “How I Learned to Love AAPOR’s ResearchHack 3.0”
Geo-targeting. We all know what it means, but for the sake of this article, let’s get at the essence of the concept. Geo-targeting is a way to pinpoint an audience based on location. Accuracy is everything. Geography is the fundamental basis for every sample frame – be it individual streets, Census geography or Postal geography. Continue reading “Taking Aim with Consumer Cellular Sample”
The research industry needs volunteers. Here’s why you should consider playing a part.
Many of us here at MSG serve as active volunteer members of market and survey research industry organizations. It’s part of our company culture to get involved and make a difference. Recently, I attended back to back chapter events, and I began to reflect on the benefits of volunteering. Was it really worthwhile to devote my time to a local chapter organization? Continue reading “Why Volunteer?”
Say you have a list of cell numbers for consumers and you want to message them. Then you use an automatic dialing system to send text messages out to those numbers. This simple and apparently innocuous action could have drastic consequences that could actually cost millions of dollars.
This could happen to you Continue reading “Who Really Owns the Cell Numbers on Your List?”
You’ve probably heard the story before. It begins, “The study started with a client list….”
I can’t tell you how many times I had a client call and tell me that. The stories follow a pattern. The client says it’s a great list and you should be able to easily complete the study with it. Sounds great, right?
Here comes the plot twist. They forgot to tell you the list is 4 years old and hasn’t been touched since. Oh, and by the way, only 30% of the records have a phone or email address. Suddenly, easy street is filled with potholes.
This isn’t the end of the story, and it can have a happy ending. A sub-standard client list can be rescued with these investigative approaches and performance enhancements: Continue reading ““Hope for the best, prepare for the worst”: salvaging the client list”
Almost every week I hear in the news about another data compromise, whether it be a large corporation having their customers credit cards and personal information stolen or even computer hacks rumored to be effecting the election. Personally, it is very scary thinking about myself and my family’s data getting into the wrong hands.
If I was managing a large database of panelists or other sensitive data which my business relies on, I am not sure I would sleep well at night knowing that there may be many different potential access points for this information to be exposed or accessed by someone else.
I was speaking with one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies recently and was told that the use of “brand x” survey platform has been 100% forbidden to use moving forward with the potential of losing a job if you are caught using this off the shelf tool. Continue reading “Using this software? Your data is NOT secure!”