In such a crisis, the challenges that response and relief teams face cannot be overstated. Accessing the victims and assessing immediate needs is critical, but this can be an arduous task when areas are difficult to reach, as was the case with Mozambique when Cyclone Idai – and Cyclone Kenneth soon afterward – landed to great destruction.

After Cyclone Idai, data was required to help guide the humanitarian response. But, with challenges accessing affected areas, there was a need for a way to gather data both quickly and remotely. Leveraging our existing respondent database in Mozambique and mobile survey platform, GeoPoll deployed a series of remote SMS-based surveys to the regions hardest hit by the Cyclone in Mozambique. Data gathered included information on infrastructure damages, food security, and the aid needed most by the communities.

Due to the fast nature of SMS surveys, we were able to pass on this invaluable on-the-ground information to humanitarian organizations in real-time, enabling them to offer the humanitarian and health assistance needed.

Collecting Data During Disease Outbreaks

The Mozambique case is just one example of how data can be collected immediately and remotely following various humanitarian crises. Another use case is during infectious disease outbreaks when it is not safe or feasible for workers to collect data in-person.

During various outbreaks of Ebola between 2014 and 2019, GeoPoll conducted several SMS and CATI surveys in the worst-hit parts of Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and the DRC to measure its impacts on the livelihoods of people and indicators such as food insecurity.

Currently, GeoPoll is running a series of research surveys to assess the impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in several countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This freely available data is helping policymakers, international development organizations and brands make better decisions to reduce the spread and effect of the virus.

Data on Conflicts and Violent Extremism

Conflict is another humanitarian issue affecting many regions of the world from time to time. During a conflict, on-the-ground data is imperative for humanitarian aid groups and governments looking to measure the severity of the crisis and aid those in need. For instance, in April 2018, GeoPoll deployed our remote mobile data collection tool to collect vital information on food insecurity, levels of displacement, relief needs, and individual opinions from respondents in the war-ridden Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The data collected helped focus humanitarian aid efforts on protecting civilians from the side effects of war.

Data for humanitarian development and relief

Research points out the realities of broader populations. In times where it is otherwise impossible to get information from people on the ground, remote data collection can play a pivotal role in capturing the sentiment and realities in hard-to-reach areas. Over the years, GeoPoll has developed unique remote research systems, a large respondent database, and the experience to be able to assist essential humanitarian interventions through the provision of fast, reliable information in any circumstance.

We have worked with several international development groups and governments on a myriad of topics, including humanitarian aid, education and employment, monitoring and evaluation, food security, health, combatting violent extremism, governance, resilience, energy and climate, and financial inclusion among others. For more information and capabilities, please contact us here.

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The proliferation of mobile phones in sub-Saharan Africa opens up new possibilities for data collection. Businesses and the international development community can now collect data via short message service (SMS), interactive voice response (IVR), surveys with a live interviewer (also known as computer-assisted telephone interviewing, or CATI), and through the use of a mobile application. Collecting data via mobile phones also allows for the collection of longitudinal data – meaning data from the same person over a set amount of time. Unlike conducting panel surveys face-to-face, which is still cost prohibitive for most projects, mobile research reduces this cost whilst still providing quality insights as and when they are needed for quick decision making.

The development of Africa as a mobile-first continent has led to great interest in collecting panel data using mobile phones in sub-Saharan Africa. Although research agencies that previously fully relied on traditional data collection methods are now warming up to the idea of using mobile in research, there is still some uncertainty regarding their use in surveys either for qualitative or quantitative research.

As the leading mobile surveying platform, conducting over 7 million surveys per year through the mobile phone, we have encountered and answered numerous questions in various forums and meetings regarding mobile research. In this article, we pick some of the most frequently posed ones and provide answers based on our policies and industry best practices which we have adopted into our operations.

What is mobile sampling?

Access to mobile phones is becoming more widespread across all parts of the globe, and research agencies like GeoPoll are leverage the ubiquitous nature of mobile phones to recruit survey respondents who form a sample.
A sample is a representative number or an entire population. Sampling is the science of using a subset of a population in order to make observations of a larger population.

What is a mobile research panel?

This is a group of respondents recruited via a mobile phone to take part in a number of market research sessions over a period of time in order to collect longitudinal data. This data helps to paint a dynamic picture of people’s economic livelihoods and social well-being – supporting program design, implementation, and evaluation. In contrast, single cross-sectional surveys or repeated cross-sections cannot prospectively show how circumstances in people’s lives change over a time period.

How are active panels of respondents recruited via mobile?

A respondent panel can be built through multiple methods including partnerships with Mobile Network Operators, random digit dialing, and both online and face-to-face recruitment. GeoPoll incrementally invites all mobile phone numbers in a country to complete the GeoPoll registration survey and be eligible for future surveys. GeoPoll then builds an active panel consisting of respondents who have taken a GeoPoll survey in the past and who GeoPoll is able to target by demographics including age, gender, and location.

Are panelists recruited via mobile nationally representative?

Access to mobile phones is becoming more widespread across all parts of the globe, however, the mobile population does not always perfectly match the national population. To account for this, at GeoPoll, we compare the demographic distribution of mobile survey respondents to the most recent census population estimates by age, gender, and the first administrative political geographic boundaries in order to ensure that the surveys are as representative as possible of sampled populations. In addition, GeoPoll regularly recruits respondents to widen our demographic reach and can support face-to-face interviews to reach non-mobile populations.

What is the optimal number of questions in a mobile survey?

In our experience, mobile respondents are often likely to drop out of a survey. Not all mobile respondents complete a survey they have been served. To help reduce the drop-off rate it is important to have an optimal number of questions that ensure that respondents don’t get fatigued. A standard 10- 15 question mobile survey sent either via SMS, mobile web or via a mobile application is the optimal number to ensure a high response rate.

What is the normal response rate for mobile surveys?

As seen in the US for mobile surveys, the response rates for new respondents can be often around 10% or less. The response rates will vary by survey mode, by country, and by project so this can be discussed further with your research agency project team since they are fully responsible for ensuring the highest possible completion rate. Additional research by Lau et. al. 2018 indicate that higher or lower response rates do not necessarily dictate a more ‘valid’ survey when looking at mobile surveys in emerging markets.
For GeoPoll panelists who have completed at least one survey with GeoPoll before, the response rates can be as high at 80%, for example with a daily panel.

Do mobile surveys require smartphones?

Not all of them, there are mobile surveys that can be sent to respondents on their feature phones via SMS or via call. Based on our experience in emerging markets, one is more likely to have a more nationally representative sample when mobile surveys are sent via SMS. This is due to the high penetration rate of feature phones compared to a smartphone or other internet-enabled mobile devices. GeoPoll surveys can be taken on any handset, including basic feature phones, and do not require access to the internet.

How can data security be assured and data privacy be protected when utilizing mobile devices?

Data privacy has become of great concern in recent months following the Cambridge Analytica scandal among other recent events.  As market researchers continue to leverage the new capabilities that modern communication technology brings, concerns arise on how we can safeguard the privacy of our respondents as an industry.

This access to personal data by market research agencies is why it’s so critical that market research industry associations like ESOMAR continue to distinguish market research practices from platform practices. The market research industry, including companies like GeoPoll, abide by a set of ethics in the management of personal information. Not marketing or trying to sell services to survey respondents is critical for ongoing trust and honesty in market research.

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