Victoria Gamble presented on her experience with online qualitative research and what she wished she knew before starting. She discussed that online qualitative is still emerging but has strengths like asynchronous responses. She outlined her approach, including a 3-10 day discussion forum with daily tasks. Her "7 big tips" were to use the first day for setup, plan for problems, use simple language, be realistic in tasks and expectations, get the right tone, structure incentives, and consider your target audience and topic. She also challenged myths about online qualitative and discussed why she enjoys the approach.

1. Main
Stage,
November
3,
2011
Taking Qualitative Online:
What I wished I’d known before I started
Victoria Gamble - WorkINProgress
A
Presenta*on
from
the
Fes*val
of
NewMR
Main
Stage
–
November
3,
2011

2. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Taking Qualitative Online:
What I wished I’d known before I started
Victoria Gamble
WorkINProgress || Qualitative Research

3. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
Why did I create this
presentation?
Online
qualita+ve
research
is
s+ll
an
emerging
technique
There
are
many
ways
of
approaching
it,
but
no
‘right’
way
There
is
s+ll
a
lot
of
confusion
about
what
it
is,
when
to
use
it
and
if
it
is
any
good
at
all!

4. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
Complementary sides
of the story
Online
qualita+ve
research’s
strength
is
in
its
asynchronous
nature
Allows
for
more
considered
and
reflec+ve
responses
Gives
less
confident
par+cipants
a
chance
to
voice
their
views
Increases
comfort
with
disagreeing
Provides
a
level
of
anonymity,
gives
freedom
to
express
different
views

5. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
Different
people have
different
approaches,
this is what
has worked
for me…
What it looks like…
An
online
discussion
forum
–
las+ng
between
3
and
10
days
…
could
be
longer…
depending
on
the
objec+ves
• Par+cipants
given
a
specific
number
of
tasks
to
complete
in
one
day
• These
could
be
a
combina+on
of
task
types
-­‐
forums,
photo
uploads,
polls
etc
• A
combina+on
of
closed
/
private
ac+vi+es
and
open
/
public
ac+vi+es
–
to
get
a
balanced
picture
of
the
issues
• An
itera+ve
discussion
plan.
Start
out
with
a
plan
but
change
it
based
on
responses
throughout
the
project
• Ac+ve
modera+on.
Acknowledge
contribu+ons
(par+cularly
on
first
days)
and
be
responsive
to
queries.
5

6. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
My 7 big tips
6
Things
I
wish
I’d
known
before
I’d
started

7. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
Use
first
day
as
a
‘sign
up
day’
Irons
out
technical
kinks
Makes
sure
you
have
par+cipants
before
cri+cal
tasks
Start out slow
#1

8. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
You
need
nerves
of
steel
Hope
for
the
best
Plan
for
the
worst!
Don’t Panic
OnlineQualitative
#2

9. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Don’t
use
‘the
lingo’
Consumer
friendly
language
Be
clear,
friendly
and
cha[y
in
tone
Remember who
you are talking to
OnlineQualitative
#3

10. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
How
long
would
the
task
take
a
‘real’
person
to
do
Respect
par+cipants
+me
Tasks
that
take
too
long
will
lead
to
a[ri+on
Be honest and
realistic in your
expectations
OnlineQualitative
#4

11. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Tone
needs
to
be
cha[y
but
clear
Each
task
/
ac+vity
should
be
asking
about
one
thing
But
you
might
need
to
ask
for
that
one
thing
in
mul+ple
ways
Get your tone
right
OnlineQualitative
#5

12. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
How
will
you
deal
with
people
who
only
complete
half
the
task?
How
can
you
mo+vate
people
to
complete
the
board
when
their
week
gets
busy?
How
will
you
pay
your
par+cipants?
Structure your
incentives
OnlineQualitative
#6

13. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Is
your
topic
sufficiently
engaging
to
mo+vate
people
to
par+cipate?
How
savvy
is
your
target
demographic?
What
implica+ons
does
that
have
for
your
tasks?
The
best
online
par+cipants
are
not
necessarily
who
you
would
think!
Consider your
target and your
topic
OnlineQualitative
#7

14. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
3 Myths to challenge
Online
Qual
is
cheaper
than
Face-­‐To-­‐
Face
Qualita+ve
approaches
Bigger
is
Be[er
Only
suited
for
par+cular
demographics
–
youth,
tech
savvy
etc

15. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
OnlineQualitative
Why I love it…
For
topics
that
require
considera+on
or
reflec+on
Complements
offline
approaches
Cost
effec+ve
for
wide
geographic
reach
Increased
par+cipant
engagement
Rich
and
detailed
outputs
Itera+ve
and
adaptable
Client
engagement

16. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Thank you
Victoria Gamble
WorkINProgress || Qualitative Research

17. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Q & A
Victoria Gamble
WorkINProgress
Greg Coops
Asian Strategies

18. Victoria Gamble, WorkINProgress Qualitative Research, Australia
Festival of NewMR 2011 - Session 1 Schedule: 00:00am-02:00am (GMT)
Victoria Gamble
Read Victoria’s blog @ http://wipqrtalks.com.au/
Follow Victoria’s tweets at @ http://twitter.com/gamblegamble
Connect with Victoria on LinkedIn @ http://au.linkedin.com/in/gamblegamble
Check out WIPQR @ http://wipqr.com.au/

19. Main
Stage,
November
3,
2011
Taking Qualitative Online:
What I wished I’d known before I started
Victoria Gamble - WorkINProgress
A
Presenta*on
from
the
Fes*val
of
NewMR
Main
Stage
–
November
3,
2011