“Real-Time” Qualitative in Three Not-So-Simple Steps
The online qualitative world is full of exciting possibilities for gathering “real-time”
qualitative data. If a company wants feedback on their customer’s experiences while shopping, dining, viewing entertainment, traveling or just about any business activity, there are an abundance of online methodologies from which to choose.
Designing a “real-time” methodology for a strategic partner with a client whose customers go to their place of business for a commonly enjoyed experience has made me very aware of the options. To make this blog post easy to read I have reduced the real-time study design process to three not-so-simple steps.
- Choose the online response tool (smartphone, tablet, notebook, laptop, desktop) that works best in the target environment and that has the proper data-generating capabilities (text entry, audio, photo and/or video).
- Select the online qualitative hosting service that will best fulfill your needs; evaluate the following:
- Does the host make it easy for your participants to report their experiences?
- Is it easy to view and analyze the data?
- Can data be gathered in the ideal manner i.e. individually or in small or large groups?
- Can data be gathered with the ideal amount of interactivity? (Can participants interact with each other and/or with the moderator before, during or after the experience?)
- Determine whether or not to enhance the “real-time” data with another methodology.
Applying these steps to the earlier mentioned proposal, I chose smartphones because the customer demographic is likely to own one, know how to use it and because it is the least intrusive of the potential response tools. Also, I am aware of two online hosting services that could potentially fulfill my needs.
I also thought it important to follow the short, “real-time” smartphone survey with brief telephone interviews with a small proportion of the participants to gain more depth and detail. The ability to select telephone interview participants based on their smart phone survey responses intrigues me and I believe provides a unique opportunity to mold the respondent profile to the client’s needs.
Here are some projects I would love to field because they touch on my interests and/or provide unique opportunities for “real-time” methodologies: taking medications, using technological or medical devices, book or magazine reading, banking, work quality experiences, dining, wine tasting, skiing, exercising, travel experiences, real estate interactions, recycling endeavors, gardening products, responses to political or social campaigns, home repair and more!
Do you have a customer experience you want to know more about? Let’s talk about a “real-time” study design that will suit your needs.
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