Re: Email surveys

From: Tom Lehman <tlehman_at_ansible.com>
Date: Tue 08 Feb 2005 09:51:30 -0600

Nick,

Large market research firms are not set up to do this level of research at
a competitive price. And for many, selling access to panels is one of their
major revenue sources. I really don't like using paid panels. I have no
objection to paying people to respond in some fashion, but that's not the
same as tapping into people who sign up to get paid to do surveys. This is
particularly a problem in the consumer market where there are lots of
people spamming all the time to get people to do this. However, this is
probably NOT the case with a reputable MR firm. Yes they have developed
panels, and yes in some cases they pay those individuals. But they also
carefully control how often a given respondent is invited and / or allowed
to participate.

Sounds like most of the cost you've been quoted is for the sample. The
design doesn't hard.

With a sample in hand, for example (and without really knowing the
details), we'd probably charge about half of that to run and analyze the
survey. Obtaining the sample would be the most challenging part. And of
course, the quality of the list is critical. But it also has to be designed
with the scale and required accuracy of the survey in mind. With only 10-12
questions and the anticipated number of respondents, it sounds to me like
you are trying to get a directional sense and perhaps some comparisons
across markets. Note that a roughly 300 sample size can yield 95% levels of
confidence, but only as it applies to the full group. If you want that
level of accuracy for each country, for example, you'll need nearly that
number from each. (You can still make statistical comparisons with the
smaller sample; you just can't cite specific figures for the subgroups.)

Shoot me an email off-line if you'd like to discuss this further. Hope
this helps as you pursue this project.

Cheers

Tom

_____________________________________________________
Lehman Associates, LLC Minneapolis, MN
Performance Consulting - Strategy, Research, e-Business
612-343-2100/ 888-221-0081 TLehman_at_ansible.com
612-343-2101 fax http://www.ansible.com





Received on Tue Feb 08 2005 - 09:51:30 CST