Running head: THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF SURVEYS Unit Six Assignment Essay Nicholas George Christakis California Intercontinental University MKT 645 -2016 CT4 June 20, 2016 To: Dr. Debra McCoskey-Reisert MARKETING RESEARCH Market research is a systematic way to gather, evaluate and present it in a form that explains various facts and figures to the business. Collected information acts as a vital tool to have increments in business activities, qualitative work done and improved profits. Any company, whether small scale or large scale, can perform market research before marketing its products or services. It can also be useful when launching a new product or diversifying the business. It is useful as well when a company has to expand its business globally. It avails numerous benefits to the businesses. Among the different methods of data gathering for research purposes, many researchers due to its various advantages, strengths and benefits prefer the survey method. However, surveys also have their disadvantages and weak points that must be considered. Advantages of Marketing Surveys Market research is a scheduled method to collect, analyze and correlate beneficial data for the benefit of business to make strategic decisions. Collected information acts as a vital tool to have increments in business activities, qualitative work done and improved profits. Any company, whether small scale or large scale, can perform market research before selling its products or services. It can also be useful when launching a new product or diversifying the business. It is useful as well when a company has to expand its business globally. It avails numerous benefits to the companies. Among the different methods of data gathering for research purposes, many researchers due to its various advantages, strengths and benefits prefer the survey method. However, surveys also have their disadvantages and weak points that must be considered. Online surveys and mobile surveys tend to be the most cost-effective modes of survey research, yet they may not reach those respondents that can only respond using alternate modes. Results of online surveys and mobile surveys may suffer and differ greatly if important respondents are left out of the research. Hard-to-reach respondents may be easier to reach using more traditional methods such as paper surveys or face-to-face interviews. The self-completed postal or mail survey is a recognized form of data collection in marketing research (Dillman 1978). There are well- documented practical problems with this form of data collection: poor response rates, slow response, and manual transcription of data from a hard copy questionnaire to an appropriate statistical analysis tool. Non- response and data entry errors may result. Consequently, research into online data collection methods increased significantly during the late 1990s. This was preceded by (1) a growing number of Internet and email users, which started ...

1. Running head: THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
OF SURVEYS
Unit Six Assignment Essay
Nicholas George Christakis
California Intercontinental University
MKT 645 -2016 CT4
June 20, 2016
To: Dr. Debra McCoskey-Reisert
MARKETING RESEARCH
Market research is a systematic way to gather, evaluate and
present it in a form that explains various facts and figures to the
business. Collected information acts as a vital tool to have
increments in business activities, qualitative work done and
improved profits. Any company, whether small scale or large
scale, can perform market research before marketing its
products or services. It can also be useful when launching a new
product or diversifying the business. It is useful as well when a
company has to expand its business globally. It avails numerous
benefits to the businesses.
Among the different methods of data gathering for research

2. purposes, many researchers due to its various advantages,
strengths and benefits prefer the survey method. However,
surveys also have their disadvantages and weak points that must
be considered.
Advantages of Marketing Surveys
Market research is a scheduled method to collect, analyze and
correlate beneficial data for the benefit of business to make
strategic decisions. Collected information acts as a vital tool to
have increments in business activities, qualitative work done
and improved profits. Any company, whether small scale or
large scale, can perform market research before selling its
products or services. It can also be useful when launching a new
product or diversifying the business. It is useful as well when a
company has to expand its business globally. It avails numerous
benefits to the companies.
Among the different methods of data gathering for research
purposes, many researchers due to its various advantages,
strengths and benefits prefer the survey method. However,
surveys also have their disadvantages and weak points that must
be considered.
Online surveys and mobile surveys tend to be the most cost-
effective modes of survey research, yet they may not reach
those respondents that can only respond using alternate modes.
Results of online surveys and mobile surveys may suffer and
differ greatly if important respondents are left out of the
research. Hard-to-reach respondents may be easier to reach
using more traditional methods such as paper surveys or face-
to-face interviews. The self-completed postal or mail survey is a
recognized form of data collection in marketing research
(Dillman 1978). There are well- documented practical problems
with this form of data collection: poor response rates, slow
response, and manual transcription of data from a hard copy
questionnaire to an appropriate statistical analysis tool. Non-
response and data entry errors may result. Consequently,
research into online data collection methods increased

3. significantly during the late 1990s. This was preceded by (1) a
growing number of Internet and email users, which started to
mirror the general population in some countries (Kehoe et al.
1998), and (2) various computer-assisted data collection
techniques, such as Computer-Assisted Personal Interviews
(CAPI) and Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviews (CATI).
Investigation into the validity of online data collection has been
grounded mainly in comparisons between online surveys
and mail surveys (Schaefer & Dillman 1998; Stanton 1998;
Sheehan & Macmillan 1999). The need for mastering new tools,
incorporating the latest technology in data collection, has been
identified by Craig and Douglas (2001). They advise that
international marketing researchers will need to broaden their
capabilities in order to design, implement and interpret research
in the twenty-first century.
Advantages of Marketing Surveys
Surveys are easy to develop, especially when using the
advanced survey software solutions available today. Many
researchers are tempted to do much of their data collection
online; however, it is not always the preferred mode of data
collection, especially if respondents are in hard-to-reach areas.
Whether a researcher uses an online survey, mobile survey,
paper survey, or a combination of all modes, the mode should
depend on the type of study and the demographics of
respondents.
Online surveys and mobile surveys tend to be the most cost-
effective methods of survey research, yet they may not reach
those respondents that can only respond using alternate modes.
Results of online surveys and mobile surveys may suffer and
differ greatly if important respondents are left out of the
research. Hard-to-reach respondents may be easier to reach
using more traditional methods such as paper surveys or face-
to-face interviews.
Advanced survey software solutions have multi-mode
capabilities for online surveys, mobile surveys, email surveys,
paper surveys, kiosk surveys, and more, giving researchers the

4. ability to survey even the hardest-to-reach consumers, and
analyze data from all survey modes collectively.
The ability to reach respondents is one challenge of surveys.
However, surveys have several advantages. The chief advantage
to surveys is they are relatively easy to administer and can be
developed in less time which in turn makes it more cost-
effective, depending on the survey mode. Surveys can be
conducted remotely via online, mobile devices, mail, email,
kiosk, or telephone, which makes it convenient to collect data
from a large number of respondents.
With survey software, numerous questions can be asked about a
subject, giving extensive flexibility in data analysis and the
advanced statistical techniques can be utilized to analyze survey
data to determine validity, reliability, and statistical
significance, including the ability to analyze multiple variables
and the surveys, are relatively free from errors.
Major benefits are as follows.
1. Market research provides accurate information about market
trends, industrial changes, consumer behavior, etc. It helps to
know different market opportunities present worldwide.
2. Research reports reveal uncertainties that may arise due to
changes in business activities or introduction of a new product
in the market. It guides companies to take decisive actions to
cope with threats in a niche market.
3. The Internet facilitates to get free or low-cost market reports
online for small and medium sized business. Affordable price
for doing online research work acts as a benefit to all
businesses.
4. Organizations can get to know about marketing strategies of
rivals so that they can be prepared with innovative ideas and
impressive sales targets. This way they can get a competitive
advantage over its competitors.
5. By knowing consumer preferences, companies can develop
their products and services and take hold of the huge
competitive area. Moreover, companies can develop
international marketing strategies to promote products

5. worldwide.
6. Latest market research reports help companies to have in-
depth analysis of industry and future trends. Companies can
have global perspective for their international business by
studying market statistics.
7. Industry analysis helps to formulate growth strategies to
increase sales and build brand image in the market.
8. Diversity
Surveys provide a high level of general capability in
representing a large population. Due to the usual huge number
of people who answers the survey, the data being gathered
possess a better description of the relative characteristics of the
general population involved in the study. As compared to other
methods of data gathering, surveys can extract data that are near
to the exact attributes of the larger population.
9. Economical
Due to drastically lower overhead, collecting data does not have
to cost you thousands of dollars. When conducting surveys, you
only need to pay for the production of survey questionnaires. If
you need a larger sample of the general population, you can
allot an incentive in cash or kind, which can be as low as $2 per
person. On the other hand, other data gathering methods such as
focus groups and personal interviews require researchers to pay
more.
10. Convenient for respondents
They can answer questions on their schedule, at their pace, and
can even start a survey at one time, stop, and complete it later.
Surveys can be administered to the participants through a
variety of ways. The questionnaires can simply be sent via e-
mail or fax, or can be administered through the Internet.
Nowadays, the online survey method has been the most popular
way of gathering data from target participants. Aside from the
convenience of data gathering, researchers are able to collect
data from people around the globe.
11. Good Statistical Results
Because of the high representativeness brought about by the

6. survey method, it is often easier to find statistically significant
results than other data gathering methods. Multiple variables
can also be effectively analyzed using surveys.
12. Observer Subjectivity
Surveys are ideal for scientific research studies because they
provide all the participants with a standardized stimulus. With
such high reliability obtained, the researchers own biases are
eliminated.
13. Precise Results
As questions in the survey should undergo scrutiny and
standardization, they provide uniform definitions to all the
subjects who are to answer the questionnaires. Thus, there is a
greater precision regarding measuring the data gathered.
14. Automation and real-time access.
Respondents input their data, and it is automatically stored
electronically. The analysis thus becomes easier and can be
streamlined, and is available immediately.
15. Less time.
Rapid deployment and return times are possible with online
surveys that cannot be attained by traditional methods. If you
have bad contact information for some respondents, you'll know
it almost right after you've sent out your surveys.
16. Design flexibility.
Surveys can be programmed even if they are very complex.
Intricate skip patterns and logic can be employed seamlessly.
You can also require that respondents provide only one response
to single-choice questions, which cuts down on error.
17. No interviewer.
Respondents may be more willing to share personal information
because they're not disclosing it directly to another person.
Interviewers can also influence responses in some cases.
Advanced survey software solutions have multi-mode
capabilities for online surveys, mobile surveys, email surveys,
paper surveys, kiosk surveys, and more, giving researchers the
ability to survey even the hardest-to reach consumers, and
analyze data from all survey modes collectively.

7. The ability to reach respondents is one challenge of surveys.
However, surveys have several advantages. The chief advantage
to surveys are they are relatively easy to administer and can be
developed in less time which in turn makes it more cost-
effective, depending on the survey mode. Surveys can be
administered remotely via online, mobile devices, mail, email,
kiosk, or telephone, which makes it convenient to collect data
from a large number of respondents.
With survey software, numerous questions can be asked about a
subject, giving extensive flexibility in data analysis and the
advanced statistical techniques can be utilized to analyze survey
data to determine validity, reliability, and statistical
significance, including the ability to analyze multiple variables
and the surveys are relatively free from errors.
Major benefits are as follows.
1. Market research provides accurate information about market
trends, industrial changes, consumer behavior etc. It helps to
know different market opportunities present worldwide.
2. Research reports reveal uncertainties that may arise due to
changes in business activities or introduction of a new product
in the market. It guides companies to take decisive actions to
cope with threats in niche market.
3. Internet facilitates to get free or low cost market reports
online for small and medium sized business. Affordable price
for doing online research work acts as benefit to all businesses.
4. Organizations can get to know about marketing strategies of
rivals so that they can be prepared with innovative ideas and
impressive sales targets. This way they can get competitive
advantage over its competitors.
5. By knowing consumer preferences, companies can develop
their products and services and take hold of huge competitive
area. Moreover, companies can develop international marketing
strategies to promote products worldwide.
6. Latest market research reports help companies to have in
depth analysis of industry and future trends. Companies can
have global perspective for their international business by

8. studying market statistics.
7. Industry analysis helps to formulate growth strategies to
increase sales and build brand image in market.
8. Diversity
Surveys provide a high level of general capability
in representing a large population. Due to the usual huge
number of people who answers survey, the data being gathered
possess a better description of the relative characteristics of the
general population involved in the study. As compared to
other methods of data gathering, surveys are able to extract data
that are near to the exact attributes of the larger population.
9. Economical
Due to drastically lower overhead, collecting data does not have
to cost you thousands of dollars. When conducting surveys, you
only need to pay for the production of survey questionnaires. If
you need a larger sample of the general population, you can
allot an incentive in cash or kind, which can be as low as $2 per
person. On the other hand, other data gathering methods such as
focus groups and personal interviews require researchers to pay
more.
10. Convenient for respondents
They can answer questions on their schedule, at their pace, and
can even start a survey at one time, stop, and complete it later.
Surveys can be administered to the participants through a
variety of ways. The questionnaires can simply be sent via e-
mail or fax, or can be administered through the Internet.
Nowadays, the online survey method has been the most popular
way of gathering data from target participants. Aside from the
convenience of data gathering, researchers are able to collect
data from people around the globe.
11. Good Statistical Results
Because of the high representativeness brought about by the

9. survey method, it is often easier to find statistically
significant results than other data gathering methods.
Multiple variables can also be effectively analyzed using
surveys.
12. Observer Subjectivity
Surveys are ideal for scientific research studies because they
provide all the participants with a standardized stimulus. With
such high reliability obtained, the researchers own biases are
eliminated.
13. Precise Results
As questions in the survey should undergo careful scrutiny and
standardization, they provide uniform definitions to all
the subjects who are to answer the questionnaires. Thus, there is
a greater precision in terms of measuring the data gathered.
14. Automation and real-time access.
Respondents input their own data, and it is automatically stored
electronically. Analysis thus becomes easier and can be
streamlined, and is available immediately.
15. Less time.
Rapid deployment and return times are possible with online
surveys that cannot be attained by traditional methods. If you
have bad contact information for some respondents, you'll know
it almost right after you've sent out your surveys.
16. Design flexibility.
Surveys can be programmed even if they are very complex.
Intricate skip patterns and logic can be employed seamlessly.
You can also require that respondents provide only one response
to single-choice questions, which cuts down on error.
17. No interviewer.
Respondents may be more willing to share personal information
because they're not disclosing it directly to another person.
Interviewers can also influence responses in some
cases.Disadvantages of Surveys
1. Inflexible Design

10. The survey that was used by the researcher from the very
beginning, as well as the method of administering it, cannot be
changed all throughout the process of data gathering. Although
this inflexibility can be viewed as a weakness of the survey
method, this can also be a strength considering the fact that
preciseness and fairness can both be exercised in the study.
2. Not Ideal for Controversial Issues
Questions that bear controversies may not be precisely answered
by the participants because of the probably difficulty of
recalling the information related to them. The truth behind these
controversies may not be relieved as accurately as when using
alternative data gathering methods such as face-to-face
interviews and focus groups.
3. Possible Inappropriateness of Questions
Questions in surveys are always standardized before
administering them to the subjects. The researcher is therefore
forced to create questions that are general enough to
accommodate the general population. However, these general
questions may not be as appropriate for all the participants as
they should be.
A good example of this situation is administering a survey,
which focuses on affective variables, or variables that deal with
emotions.
Over the past decade, the use of online methods for market
research has skyrocketed. Due to ever-increasing technological
advances, it has become possible for do-it-yourself researchers
to design, conduct and analyze their own surveys for literally
a fraction of the cost and time it would have taken in the past.
But are there any drawbacks compared to traditional methods
(such as mail, telephone and personal interviewing)? Today I'll
provide a list of several main advantages and disadvantages of
conducting market research surveys over the Internet. While
the choice of mode is entirely dependent on your specific

11. topic, purpose and goals, Internet questionnaires are a great
option in many instances.
Limited sampling and respondent availability. Certain
populations are less likely to have Internet access and to
respond to online questionnaires. It is also harder to draw
probability samples based on e-mail addresses or website
visitations.
Possible cooperation problems. Although online surveys in
many fields can attain response rates equal to or slightly higher
than that of traditional modes, Internet users today are
constantly bombarded by messages and can easily delete your
advances.
No interviewer. A lack of a trained interviewer to clarify and
probe can possibly lead to less reliable data.
Though the list is not exhaustive, you can see that the benefits
may outweigh the drawbacks for researchers in most situations,
especially for shorter, simpler projects.
The reliability of survey data may depend on the following
factors:
Respondents may not feel encouraged to provide accurate,
honest answers
Respondents may not feel comfortable providing answers that
present themselves in an unfavorable manner.
Respondents may not be fully aware of their reasons for any
given answer because of lack of memory on the subject, or even
boredom.
Surveys with closed-ended questions may have a lower validity
rate than other question types.
Data errors due to question non-responses may exist. The
number of respondents who choose to respond to a survey
question may be different from those who chose not to respond,
thus creating bias.
Survey question answer options could lead to unclear data
because respondents may interpret certain answer options
differently. For example, the answer option “somewhat agree”
may represent different things to different subjects, and have its

12. own meaning to each individual respondent. ‘Yes’ or ‘no’
answer options can also be problematic. Respondents may
answer “no” if the option “only once” is not available.
Customized surveys can run the risk of containing certain types
of errors
Though they’re numerous advantages, there also exist some
problems.
1. The research work on large basis requires funds to be
invested by companies. Small-scale companies may not be in
condition to assign large budgets just for research purpose.
2. Research reports prepared by organizations may lack
somewhere due to inexperience in data collection, market
analysis or absence of market intelligence to do research work.
3. There are various methods used for research which are
appropriate for some searches and are not so for others.
Inaccurate methodology will result in wastage of time, money
and efforts.
4. Sometimes while taking interviews, consumers may not
respond truly. Primary data collection will not be effective or
precise if there is no real insight into exact market condition.
Besides having problems, market research serves an important
purpose of business. Smart entrepreneurs use it in profitable
ways and try to reduce its deficiency.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of mail surveys?
The advantages of mail surveys are:
No interviewer bias
Cheap
Repeatable
Often gains thoughtful answers
The disadvantages are:
Doesn't ensure qualified respondent
Low response rate
Inability to gain further detail / probe
Poor turnaround time
What are the advantages and disadvantages of telephone

13. surveys?
The advantages of telephone surveys are:
Ensure qualified respondent
Ability to probe / Gain further detail
Fast turnaround time
Good response rate
The disadvantages are:
Distribution bias (difficult to reach certain segments)
Use of phone mail and answering machines
No absolute assurance of confidentiality
Interviewer bias
What are the advantages and disadvantages of in-person or face-
to-face surveys?
The advantages of in-person surveys are:
Ensure qualified respondent
Ability to probe and can show objects etc.
Good response rate
Respondent involvement
The disadvantages are:
Potential exists for interviewer bias
Expensive due to travel and other costs
Interviewer bias can be extreme
Poor turnaround time
What are the advantages and disadvantages of Internet surveys?
The advantages of Internet surveys are: A significant advantage
of email surveys is the speed of data collection (see Table 1).
This is at very low cost to the researcher (no postage and
printing costs and no involvement of interviewers), and instant
access to a wide audience, irrespective of their geographical
location, which makes it very appropriate for cross-sectional
studies and/or international comparisons. A web-based survey is
appropriate for a wide audience, where all the visitors to
certain websites have an equal chance to enter the survey.
However, the researcher’s control over respondents entering the
web-based survey is lower than for email surveys. Another
advantage of web-based surveys is the better display of the

14. questionnaire, whereas email software still suffers from certain
limitations in terms of design tools and offering interactive
and clear presentation. However, these two modes of survey
may be mixed (i.e. multimode approach), combining the
advantages of each. Short response time is certainly one of the
greatest advantages of online surveys. online surveys allow
messages to be delivered instantly to their recipients,
irrespective of their geographical location. The same applies to
the speed of the response. Responses to online surveys reported
in different surveys took under a month. Ray et al. (2001),
Online surveys have minimal financial resource implications
and the scale of the survey is not associated with finances, i.e.
large-scale surveys do not require greater financial resources
than small surveys. Expenses related to self-administered postal
surveys are usually shaped in outward and return postage,
photocopying, clerical support and data entry, none of which is
associated with online surveys. Furthermore, the respective
questionnaire can be programmed so that responses can feed
automatically into the data analysis software (SPSS, SAS,
Excel, etc.). This adds to the time-saving advantages of online
surveys on the one hand and avoids all the data input
(and associated transcription errors) on the other.
A significant disadvantage of email surveys relates to the
confidentiality of the participants in the survey. Mail surveys
give respondents the choice of being anonymous, whereas
emails always disclose the sender’s identity. Perhaps response
rates would be higher if respondents’ anonymity was somehow
guaranteed beforehand.
Low cost
No interviewer bias
The disadvantages of Internet surveys are:
Doesn't ensure qualified respondent
Biased respondent demographics (not projectable)
Inability to probe (can ask only a couple of questions)
Poor response rates - facility exists for survey to be terminated

15. What are the major advantages and disadvantages of focus
groups?
A focus group survey is a survey method wherein the
respondents from the target population are typically put in a
single group and interviewed in an interactive manner. The
participants in a focus group are given the opportunity to freely
talk about and discuss their ideas and opinions towards the
object of the survey.
The term “focus group” was created by Ernest Dichter, a famous
market expert and psychologist. Robert K. Merton, a sociologist
and the associate director of the Bureau of Applied Social
Research headed the first focus groups in the United States.
When used as a survey method, the focus group approach
presents various pros, strengths and benefits, as well as cons,
weaknesses and drawbacks.Advantages of Focus Group Survey
One of the advantages of a focus group survey is that it is
effective for a group of respondents that comprise of young
children, people who use English as a second language and
people with lower literacy levels. Another advantage of this
type of survey is that respondents can answer and build on each
other’s responses, improving the richness of data being
gathered.Disadvantages of Focus Group Survey
A major disadvantage of a focus group survey is that it the
survey results may not fully represent the opinion of the larger
target population. In addition, the facilitator must be well-
trained to handle any situation that may arise from the focus
group interaction.Types of Focus Group Survey
1. Single and Two-way
First, there is the single, one-way or traditional focus group
wherein all the respondents are placed in just one focus group to
interactively discuss the object of the survey. This typical focus
group is composed of 6 to 12 members. On the other hand, the
two-way focus group involves two focus groups – one focus
group discussing the object, and the other focus group
observing and discussing the interactions of the members of the

16. first focus group.
2. Dual Moderator, Dueling Moderator, and Respondent
Moderator
The dual moderator focus group involves two moderators – one
moderator monitoring the smooth progression of the focus group
session, and another moderator observing if all the questions in
the survey are asked during the discussion. In contrast, the
dueling moderator focus group includes two moderators who
purposely get on opposing sides regarding the object. For
example, one moderator is saying that the product is effective,
whereas the other moderator is arguing that it is ineffective. On
the other hand, one of the respondents temporarily becomes the
moderator of the focus group in respondent moderator type.
3. Teleconference and Online
Focus groups can be conducted either in a telephone network or
in an online or Web network. Free online video providers such
as Skype can be used in this subtype of focus group survey.
The advantages of focus groups are:
Can include product demo's, visuals, and food service
Good idea generator (brain storming)
The disadvantages are:
Can be very expensive (recruiting, incentives, etc.)
One focus group session represents only a single data point (not
statistically valid)
A group leader may appear and adversely affect overall results
Participants may not attend (risk of failure)
Recruiting is limited - participants must be able to attend and
therefore limited to those who work or live nearby.
Client personnel may coach participants or edit transcripts.
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