Recently I participated in a webinar in which Google Consumers Surveys sparked the latest conversation that an industry transformation is not as far off as some might think. The transition on the horizon (or more realistically already here) is that there are faster, cheaper, and bigger means to data and sample. While other companies may have been left in fear and/or sweat following their webinar, “What’s Next for Google Consumer Surveys,” at KL Communications we felt confident.
Google Consumer Surveys maintains that among most research buyers there is a gap between the importance of data quality and the belief online panel sample provides high quality data. GCS feel that long and complex surveys contribute to less than optimal data quality. In addition, they believe that market research ignores the respondent. (KL Communications strongly disagrees with this argument, but more on that later.)
As a result, Google Consumer Surveys is introducing new features they think will maximize value to the researcher. Their new features include shorter, simpler surveys and clear incentives which produces a better respondent experience and therefore has led to improved data quality in their consumer surveys. This helps GCS create a balance between optimum respondent experience and increased value to the researcher.
To create a better respondent experience, Google Consumer Surveys promotes the movement toward “smarter modularized surveys,” which is breaking a survey into smaller pieces to accommodate higher response rate and higher data quality. Within their platform they also offer demographics, screening, automated analysis, survey creator, and cross-tabs. They follow this up with an overview of their attractive sample costs (on average 40% lower per project than the competition). It is safe to say that both factors likely instilled fear in some of the audience taking in the webinar.
Here’s the good news. At KL Communications, we saw this transition coming before Google told us it was. We have been preparing for this shift for years. There may be a philosophy of “Bigger is Better,” but we think co-creation and collaboration are better. Relationships and trust are better. New discoveries and opportunities are better.
With our CrowdWeaving® solution and Online Communities platform, we don’t just collect data from a sample of respondents trying to get somewhere else. We ask respondents to work with clients to create solutions to business and consumer issues that directly affect them. Participating isn’t just a means to an (unrelated) end. It is a tangible stake in the outcome.
KL Communications was ahead of the bandwagon when surveys went online and panels became MROCs. This latest industry shift is no different. We’re not scrambling to prepare, we’re already there, and think others within our industry should be too.