The document discusses online marketing research and provides information on several topics: - It describes how online marketing research can now be effectively used by small and medium-sized businesses, not just large corporations. - It outlines different online data gathering techniques like email surveys, web-based surveys, and online focus groups. - It discusses both the advantages and disadvantages of conducting internet surveys and online focus groups. - It provides tips for designing effective online questionnaires and recruiting internet respondents.

1. Online Marketing Research Isn’t Just for the Big Guys Anymore Fritz Robinson, MBA, PRC Senior Research Manager/Owner wwww.surveydepartment.com

2. What Will You Learn? How can my company effectively use online marketing research? Which online data gathering technique fits my needs? How do I start building an online marketing research program?

3. Who am I and what do I do? Fritz Robinson , M.B.A., P.R.C. Fritz Robinson is the senior research manager with surveydepartment.com. He received his B.G.S. from The University of Kansas and his M.B.A. from Wichita State University. Fritz has held research management and product development positions at Multimedia Cablevision, Bank IV and INTRUST Bank. He received focus group research training at the Burke Institute in Cincinnati, OH, and also attended the AMA School of Marketing Research at Notre Dame University. Fritz is a Past President of the Wichita Chapter of the American Marketing Association and a current board member. He is also a member of the Marketing Research Association and Interactive Marketing Research Organization . Fritz has received the Professional Researcher Certification from the Marketing Research Association. Fritz Robinson has served as an adjunct professor at Webster University, Kansas Newman University and Butler County Community College. He is a current member of the United Way of the Plains marketing committee and has been involved with many other community organizations and events.

4. Do-It-Yourself Research DIY (Do-It-Yourself) is cheap (Survey Monkey, Zoomerang, and those with email marketing solutions like Constant Contact and Vertical Response.) DIY is quick DIY may be poorly designed DIY results may be misinterpreted Professional ethics Non-professionals don’t know professional ethics codes Legal knowledge Non-professionals don’t know laws Privacy laws like HIPPA, GLIBA, CANSPAM, Child protection laws Use consultants to help with research objectives, survey design and analysis. You do the work The tools are adequate for most online surveys

5. Introduction Computers have impacted the way we conduct marketing research Tremendous explosion in internet usage Research industry is have trouble with telephone interviewing Major corporations are turning to the internet Some are reluctant to trust internet research Researchers consider at internet research because of budget cuts

6. Introduction (continued) Significant increase in primary research on computer-mediated communications Lessons learned about when to use internet survey methodologies Conduction internet surveys was difficult until recently Most of the large successful consumer product firms are using internet research

7. Types of Internet Research Email surveys Web-based surveys Internet focus groups Internet interviewing Hybrid methodologies

8. Advantages of Internet Surveys Less expensive methodology for the same sample size Faster turnarounds possible Answering machines don’t prevent connection with respondents Online surveys can be interactive Elimination of interviewers Opportunities for researches to access a variety of populations

9. Advantages of Internet Surveys More internet survey software packages available Don’t have to open attachments anymore Respondents can go back Question and response category randomization Can isolate questions from one another Open-end questions allow unrestricted answers Quick feedback from customers and/or employees Internet surveys better than website feedback forms Telephone survey response rate has dropped to 30% or less

10. Advantages of Internet Surveys Small business is moving to the internet quickly Easy to provide space for additional comments. Good response rates Can create and maintain a customer or product usage panel Easily “Test Drive” internet surveys Relief for your research department or IT department Shows that your company is on the leading edge

11. Disadvantages of Internet Surveys Not sure who is really responding Sampling issues: May not be representative of the population Little may be known about people in an internet community No guarantee that demographics are accurate Bad email addresses Not all virtual groups or organizations membership may provide email lists Multiple email addresses from the same person

12. Disadvantages of Internet Surveys The poor and elderly Impact of “Lurkers” in newsgroups Not considered a mainstream research methodology Difficult to pay incentives to respondents Respondents may “flame” you and suggest others to do so Upset respondents might send you a “letter bomb” Easier to “probe” respondents during a telephone interview Self-selection bias

13. Disadvantages of Internet Surveys Technical problems may occur Email list size limitation If technology makes internet survey methods too easy then… Regulation Extra work for you IT department. Survey replication is the best defense Many disadvantages are also shortcomings of other methods

14. The Correct Balance Can be best method when the population mimics the internet population Can be an effective supplement to traditional approaches Can be a subjective “quick impression” of your customers The internet populations is looking more like the general population Using electronic incentives will help

15. Recruiting Internet Respondents Create a web presence E-mail a specific sample Post invitations to newsgroups Watch out for pitfalls: Difficult to know size of the population Develop a strategy to discard data Do not send out mass e-mail invitations Conceal respondents e-mail address

16. Recruiting Internet Respondents Communicate with moderators first E-mail to groups separately Use multiple contacts with respondents Communicate that your invitation is not an advertisement If you use incentives be careful. It’s difficult to estimate response consider your privacy policy Include contact information, information about the study and something about credentials within the invitation If you receive rude responses, resist the urge to retaliate

17. Who Can Use Internet Survey Methods Major corporations (over $50 million in annual revenues) Small businesses (under $50 million in annual revenues) Micro-businesses Academic researchers Non-profit organizations Political organizations Membership groups Individuals Government and more… and more… and more…

18. Designing the Internet Questionnaire Keep it short and simple Ask only questions whose answers are important State the importance of the survey State the benefit of the research to the participant Address confidentiality Easiest or least controversial questions at the beginning of the survey Place questions about the same subject together Use clear specific wording Don’t ask leading questions Make sure you’ve anticipated every appropriate answer Make categorical answers clear and logical

19. Designing the Internet Questionnaire Offer “Don’t Know,” Not Applicable”, “None” and “Other” answers Include a comment section Can use many types of question formats Use filtering questions Be careful not to use too much HTML Monitor the survey Watch out for “top three reasons” questions Consider mixed mode survey Consider sending a request that invites people to take the survey Give respondents a chance to print their survey

20. Designing the Internet Questionnaire Use screeners upfront when recruiting panelists Use clear concise instructions Use a progress bar Be honest about how long the survey will take Design the survey style and incentives to fit the audience Make survey relevant Ask, “Would I enjoy taking this survey?”

21. Designing any Questionnaire from Survey Bounty What is the purpose of the survey? Title the survey Do not make the survey any longer than it needs to be Use plain English, avoid jargon and acronyms, maintain consistency and do not use questions that may result in ambiguous answers If using another language don’t use automatic conversion, use a service Avoid long questions Ask one question at a time Avoid influencing the answer Ensure that the answer format used allows the respondent to answer the question asked At the same time that you compile the survey consider, when the survey is the compiled data actually going to be analyzed

22. Designing any Questionnaire from Survey Bounty Ensure that the questionnaire flows Target your respondents Allow the respondent to expand or make comments If the survey you are conducting is to be confidential ensure that it is Weigh up the benefits of allowing respondents to be anonymous or identified Give careful consideration to the best response format Give the respondents an idea of hw much time the survey will take Inform the respondents of the end date Pilot the survey Before publishing the survey proof read the survey several times Remember to say “thank you”

23. What is an Online Focus Group Similar to the traditional focus group methodology, but uses internet technology Organized and structured online event in real time It is unfortunate online focus groups are called “focus groups” because they are really something else entirely

24. A Cutting Edge Methodology InterQue system, compatible with most computers and browsers Password-protected names Clients can add questions in real time by communicating with moderator Client to Moderator communication helpful when moderator doesn’t have technical knowledge of the clients product or service Technical support is available Clients view from their office or home Focus group invitation system Participants called by telephone to confirm

25. Types of Users Moderator – The group leader who asks the questions Respondent – The people who are asked questions by the moderator Client – People who observe comments and can communicate with the moderator

26. The Process Project Definition Project Objective Development Project Value Evaluation Project Design Screener Development Respondent Recruitment Telephone Confirmation Conduct Online Focus Group Session (s) Transcript Delivery Requested Reports

27. Applications Internal group interviews Organizational strategic planning Employee satisfaction Business-to-business interviews Product development Satisfaction Consumer interviews Product development Satisfaction Advertising appeal and copy testing Software evaluation Website usability testing Concept testing Product name testing Focus Group Follow-up What if we’d just asked… Testing revised concepts Can you think of more applications?

28. Advantageous of Online Focus Groups Fast turnaround Change questions Real-time documentation Convenient for all users Responses are often more objective Some shy respondents may be more likely to contribute Can recruit from a wide geographical area Cost effective Easy to “kick” off participants who are rude Easy to combine with other techniques Exhibits and links within expandable windows Less intrusive

29. Disadvantages of Online Focus Groups Technical error User technical abilities Typing is slower than speech for most participants Same disadvantages of traditional and telephonic focus groups No face-to-face communication, not experiential Can’t evaluate facial expressions Moderator can’t observe and react to body language Not appropriate for evaluation of many physical objects People can’t type as fast as they can talk

30. Current Web Software Solutions www.zoomerang.com Zoomerang www.websurveyor.com WebSurveyor www.surveysite.com SurveySite www.surveymonkey.com SurveyMonkey www.surveycrafter.com SurveyCrafter www.supersurvey.com SuperSurvey www.sumquest.com SumQuest www.ridgecrestsurveys.com Ridgecrest www.quask.com Quask www.pollpro.com PollPro www.perseus.com Perseus www.keysurvey.com KeySurvey www.netreflector.com InstantSurvey www.infopoll.net InfoPoll www.hostedsurvey.com HostedSurvey www.formsite.com FormSite www.raosoft.com EZSurvey www.creativesurvey.com CreateSurvey www.apian.net Apian Software www.actiewebsotwares.com Active Websurvey

31. Summary Types of internet research Advantages of internet research Disadvantageous of internet research The correct balance Recruiting internet respondents Who can use internet survey methods Designing the internet questionnaire Designing any questionnaire What is an online focus group A cutting edge methodology Types of users The process Application of online focus groups Disadvantages of online focus groups Current web survey software and services

32. Conclusions Internet surveys and focus groups are less expensive and projects have faster turnarounds that traditional marketing research methods. Most large consumer and b2b firms are now using internet research. Small businesses can take advantage of internet research as well. Now, it is easier for small business to conduct internet research because of new software and online marketing research services. What’s next: IPhone and IPad surveys with GPS location – Already exists

33. References Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Research. DSS Research 3 Reasons to use Online customer surveys, Kim Komando, Microsoft Small Business Center Researching Internet Based Populations: Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Survey Research, Online Questionnaire Authoring Software Packages, and Web Survey Services, Kevin B. Wright, Department of Communication, University of Oklahoma. (2005) Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication . Are Online Surveys as Accurate as Offline surveys? By Bruce Paul, Vice President, International Research, AC Nielsen. Online Surveys: Information Technology Services, The University of Texas at Austin. The Transition of Social Research: The Ins, Outs, and Possible Solutions for Internet Research 20 Top Tips To Writing Effective Surveys. Survey Bounty. Fortuna Online Solutions, Inc.

34. Q&A Background of your company and what it does/ provides for other companies. Your position in the company and what you do. How marketing plays a role and how it drives success. Advice for students preparing to graduate and enter the job market. Anything else that you would like to discuss is appreciated. Q & A if there is time.

35. Online Marketing Research Isn’t Just for the Big Guys Anymore Presented by: Fritz Robinson Senior Research Manager surveydepartment.com Email: [email_address] Phone: 316.258.6442 Primary Website: http://www.surveydepartment.com Secondary Website: http://www.focusgrouproom.com Blog: http://onlinemarketingresearch.blogspot.com/ Podcast: http:// surveydepartment.podomatic.com /

36. Online Marketing Research Isn’t Just for the Big Guys Anymore Fritz Robinson, MBA, PRC Senior Research Manager/Owner wwww.surveydepartment.com

37. Internet Panels

72. Big Business