Who We Ask is as Important as What We Ask
Historically market researchers have enjoyed a bountiful supply of people willing to provide opinion and feedback on various products and services within a focus group setting. Some even suggest that initially there was a novelty factor or even a certain prestige attached to participating in marketing research. Whether it was to comment on the taste of soft drinks or the colour of cars, for around $20 participants were happy give up an hour of their evening to provide feedback. Similarly, in a business-to-business environment participants were usually more than willing to be involved, again for a small incentive. In fact, business clients responded most favourably knowing there was a glass of wine involved, perhaps to help them 'unwind' from the days events.
However, the enormous expansion of the marketing research industry throughout the 1990s meant that it was becoming more difficult to recruit respondents for focus groups. The sheer volume of research being conducted resulted in possible respondents becoming far more discerning about what research they participated in.
From a business-to-business perspective, the expansion of the industry has led to an overuse of certain types of participants. An example of this is IT Network Administrators whom it would appear are contacted for comment on almost every new piece of technology being developed. Other sought-after groups for market researchers include Financial Controllers and Procurement Managers. The emergence of privately owned utility companies, as a result of deregulation, resulted in stiffer competition for customers and as such, an increased need for customer feedback.
The increase in the frequency at which people were being approached, saw potential respondents become less obliging. It seemed the prestige had disappeared and the novelty had worn off. In addition, business-to-business respondents were also becoming resistant; some perceiving the frequency in which they were participating in research as disruptive to their working day and ‘wasting time’ on the job.
In order to lure people back to participating in focus groups, incentives had to increase. As a result, participants nowadays are usually offered an incentive of between $60 and $100, and still some only commit if groups are conducted in a location convenient to them and catering is provided!
However, although these increases have in fact boosted participation rates, they have also had a negative effect on the industry. Larger incentives have seen the emergence of individuals who consciously seek out opportunities to participate in research, relying on incentives as a source of income.
Known in the industry as 'groupies', these serial respondents are market research savvy and will often appear on several databases simultaneously, in order to maximise their income from participating in focus groups. Typically these people are aware of participation requirements and will deliberately mislead recruiters in order to participate more frequently. In extreme cases, these serial pests will even go so far as to conceal their true identity by attending market research discussions under assumed names to avoid detection. Although the use of databases and large panels within recruiting companies allows for the 'tracking' and 'quarantining' of these serial respondents, people will go to extraordinary lengths to maximise their opportunities.
In response to this, Market Research Quality Assurance Inc., in conjunction with the Australian Market and Social Research Society and the Association of Market and Social Research Organisations, developed a quality assurance scheme to promote the responsible collection of data. The scheme offers specific guidelines for dealing with serial respondents. The standards stipulate that recruiters must keep their databases as up-to-date as possible, to enable them to monitor respondents and therefore limit there participation in focus groups if necessary. In addition most organisations also ban respondents from taking part in multiple studies for the same company or industry.
Although the problem of serial respondents is not as prevalent in business-to-business recruitment as business-to-consumer, Forethought Research has procedures in place to monitor any potential problems with such people. Recruiters at Forethought are experts at sourcing ideal respondents without disclosing the specific selection criteria. In addition, Forethought dedicates a considerable amount of time and resources to recruiting the best possible respondents and not necessarily those most readily available.
It is important to note though that sufficient time must be allowed to source these people. In fact the process of recruitment itself has become more involved, with discussions between recruiter and potential respondent to determine the suitability of each potential participant being quite in-depth. For business-to-business studies, ever-changing job titles has made the task of ensuring that respondents have the correct expertise even more difficult, costlier, and a more specialised task.
Nonetheless, with the expertise of researchers producing such critical and valuable strategic insight, it simply makes sense to spend the time and effort ensuring that the basis of these findings is as solid and comprehensive as possible. Forethought takes as much care and effort in determining ‘who we ask’ as 'what we ask' and 'how we ask it'.
However, the enormous expansion of the marketing research industry throughout the 1990s meant that it was becoming more difficult to recruit respondents for focus groups. The sheer volume of research being conducted resulted in possible respondents becoming far more discerning about what research they participated in.
From a business-to-business perspective, the expansion of the industry has led to an overuse of certain types of participants. An example of this is IT Network Administrators whom it would appear are contacted for comment on almost every new piece of technology being developed. Other sought-after groups for market researchers include Financial Controllers and Procurement Managers. The emergence of privately owned utility companies, as a result of deregulation, resulted in stiffer competition for customers and as such, an increased need for customer feedback.
The increase in the frequency at which people were being approached, saw potential respondents become less obliging. It seemed the prestige had disappeared and the novelty had worn off. In addition, business-to-business respondents were also becoming resistant; some perceiving the frequency in which they were participating in research as disruptive to their working day and ‘wasting time’ on the job.
In order to lure people back to participating in focus groups, incentives had to increase. As a result, participants nowadays are usually offered an incentive of between $60 and $100, and still some only commit if groups are conducted in a location convenient to them and catering is provided!
However, although these increases have in fact boosted participation rates, they have also had a negative effect on the industry. Larger incentives have seen the emergence of individuals who consciously seek out opportunities to participate in research, relying on incentives as a source of income.
Known in the industry as 'groupies', these serial respondents are market research savvy and will often appear on several databases simultaneously, in order to maximise their income from participating in focus groups. Typically these people are aware of participation requirements and will deliberately mislead recruiters in order to participate more frequently. In extreme cases, these serial pests will even go so far as to conceal their true identity by attending market research discussions under assumed names to avoid detection. Although the use of databases and large panels within recruiting companies allows for the 'tracking' and 'quarantining' of these serial respondents, people will go to extraordinary lengths to maximise their opportunities.
In response to this, Market Research Quality Assurance Inc., in conjunction with the Australian Market and Social Research Society and the Association of Market and Social Research Organisations, developed a quality assurance scheme to promote the responsible collection of data. The scheme offers specific guidelines for dealing with serial respondents. The standards stipulate that recruiters must keep their databases as up-to-date as possible, to enable them to monitor respondents and therefore limit there participation in focus groups if necessary. In addition most organisations also ban respondents from taking part in multiple studies for the same company or industry.
Although the problem of serial respondents is not as prevalent in business-to-business recruitment as business-to-consumer, Forethought Research has procedures in place to monitor any potential problems with such people. Recruiters at Forethought are experts at sourcing ideal respondents without disclosing the specific selection criteria. In addition, Forethought dedicates a considerable amount of time and resources to recruiting the best possible respondents and not necessarily those most readily available.
It is important to note though that sufficient time must be allowed to source these people. In fact the process of recruitment itself has become more involved, with discussions between recruiter and potential respondent to determine the suitability of each potential participant being quite in-depth. For business-to-business studies, ever-changing job titles has made the task of ensuring that respondents have the correct expertise even more difficult, costlier, and a more specialised task.
Nonetheless, with the expertise of researchers producing such critical and valuable strategic insight, it simply makes sense to spend the time and effort ensuring that the basis of these findings is as solid and comprehensive as possible. Forethought takes as much care and effort in determining ‘who we ask’ as 'what we ask' and 'how we ask it'.
