In Part 1 of this 3-part series, we learned that 87 percent of online surveys conducted in the United States in 2006 were deployed using a preexisting survey panel. In Part 2, we explored why panels are the preferred method for online interviewing and how to select a panel provider for a market research project.
In this final installment, we will discuss the pros and cons of another popular method of recruiting respondents for online surveys: Customer Lists.
Customer Lists
Many organizations have their own lists, including:
- Lists of customers
- Lists of prospects
- Lists of people who have taken part in promotions
- Lists of people who have registered at a Web site
These lists can be useful sources for recruiting survey respondents. When considering the use of a private list, there are three key considerations for the researcher:
- Does the list represents an appropriate sampling frame for the research problem? (i.e., are these really the right people to complete the survey?)
- Has the list owner cultivated a good relationship with the members of the list? (as opposed to merely amassing email addresses)
- Have list members given permission to contact them for research purposes?
As a rule, if the answer to all three of these questions is “Yes,” then both the quality of responses and the response rate will tend to be good. Conversely, if the answer to one or more of these questions is “No,” then both the quality and quantity of responses are likely to be poor.
Thus, it can be said that the likelihood of a private list producing an adequate survey response is in direct proportion to:
- The strength of the relationship between the company and the people on the list
- The frequency of previous contacts with the people on the list
- The nature of previous contacts with the people on the list
- The ease with which list members can opt out of future contacts
The bottom line: Customer Lists can produce good results for online surveys, but only if they contain the right audience for the survey content and the owner of the list has cultivated a good relationship with these customers.
