Research S

urveys 101

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The big picture

Developing an effective research survey is a multi-step processThe following order is recommended for developing a survey

Establish the goals of the projectDetermine your sampleChoose interviewing methodologyCreate your questionnairePre-test the questionnaireLaunch invitations Collect and analyze the data

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GoalsResearch surveys allow you to get insight into thoughts and beliefs of clients and consumersSurveys are useless unless accompanied by goals you set to achieve

Ask yourself what you want to accomplish and who you want your market to be Goals determine what you will put on the survey and what people you will be asking

Examples of goals are to discover:The potential for a new product or serviceRatings of current products or servicesEmployee attitudesCustomer satisfaction levelReader/viewer/listener opinions Association member opinionsOpinions about political candidates or issuesCorporate image

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Selecting your sample

Two factors to consider when determining a sampleWhat kind of people you want to interviewHow many people you need

The group of people you select is known as your “target population”

If you do not determine the correct target population to meet your goals then accurate information won’t be obtainedThe larger your sample is the more accurately it reflects the groupDecision on sample size should be based on

Time available BudgetNecessary degree of precision

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Survey design

Make it short and simpleIt should be no longer than 30 to 35 questions Have 5 to 7 questions per page

The first several questions should be demographic and qualification questions

It is important to ask a few questions up front to let you know if the people answering your questions will give you accurate results

After qualifying questions, move onto goal oriented questions

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Completing the survey

After writing the research survey it is important to pre-test the survey internally

Internal testing will weed out readability, grammar and bias errorsPre-testing does not need to be conducted with people representative of your target population because you are testing for functionality issues

After completing pre-testing, submit your survey to a free website such as Zoomerang and Survey Monkey

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Invitation methods

After the survey is completed and the target population is selected, you need to invite your target to take the surveyThe two primary ways to invite the target are through email and social media

It is recommended to use both mediums

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Email and social media invitationEmail invitation

AdvantagesGather thousands of responses within a day or two, no cost involved after the initial setup, very versatile medium, and feels personal

DisadvantagesMay have to purchase a prospect list, may be hard to get by spam filters and some people have an aversion to unsolicited emails

Social media invitationDisadvantages

Must be brief and older clients have a harder time adopting to modern social mediums

AdvantagesInstantaneous deployment, completely free, attracts a younger audience and feels very personal

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To sum up

Research surveys can be a very powerful marketing tool when they are done correctlyIt’s important to follow the steps outlined to ensure that you reach your target population and so you learn valuable and accurate information

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Call to action

Full report: http://crunk.starrtincup.com/researchsurveys William TincupE: tincup@starrtincup.comP: 817-204-0400W: www.starrtincup.com