If you know that surveys are a great way to poll the thoughts and preferences of your target audience and your customer base but are not yet sold on the idea of offering surveys, simply continue reading to discover the advantages and disadvantages of surveys as a research tool.
The pros of surveys:
Using surveys as a form of market research is an affordable option:
One reason why you may want to consider using surveys to gain an insight into the mindset of your business’ customers and target audience is that, surveys are extremely cost effective to run. So if you have a limited research and development budget or are the owner of a new or small business, you may want to use surveys to make wise business decisions.
You can offer online surveys:
While in the past it was common for business related surveys to be conducted over the phone or in person, today most online surveys are conducted online. Offering surveys online is great as you’ll be able to collate the data from your surveys in a quick and timely manner. So if you want to collate data quickly in order to customize a new marketing campaign which you’ll be able to release in a matter of days, you may want to consider offering online surveys. You may even want to learn about how to research on mobile survey as many respondents will want to take your surveys on their mobiles, rather than on a desktop or laptop due to the convenience of taking a survey on a mobile.
The cons of surveys:
You may collect inaccurate research data:
One of the biggest downsides of using surveys in order to collect data on your target audience is that you can’t stop your survey respondents from rushing through your surveys or giving incorrect answers, to simply get through your surveys in the hopes of claiming rewards. For this reason when it comes to analyzing the data which you collate from your surveys, it’s important to factor into your analysis, the fact that some individuals may lie or pick random options, instead of answering your survey to the best of their abilities. So before running a survey, make sure to learn how to calculate survey accuracy.
One way to try and gain more accurate data is to host video based surveys in which a member of your team or an independent researcher will be able to gain truthful, real time responses from your survey respondents. As most individuals will be a lot more engaged in the survey process, if they get to engage in a video chat with a real person. Just be mindful that in order for most people to be open to taking the time to participate in video based interviews, you’ll need to offer a lucrative reward such as a voucher to spend at your online store.
So if you have to collate more research data in order to make smart business decisions and marketing decisions, it’s well worth running your first survey.
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