One of these research terms is ‘a panel’ which, more often than not, is used interchangeably with ‘sample’. What exactly is a research panel, why is it often confused for a sample, how does it work and are there tips on working with panels?

Understanding Research Panels

A research panel is a group of respondents recruited by research companies to that take part in a survey by answering specific research questions in several sessions over a period of time – a week, month or even years.

Many panels are constituted for quantitative research as a representative sample of a general population. Research panels are more often than not created around interests or around specific products and services such as media audience measurement or consumer insights for the FMCG sector. Through a panel, a researcher is able to track changes in behavior over a period of time – this is also referred to as longitudinal data.

Is There A Difference Between A Panel And A Sample?

A sample is a pool of survey respondents recruited by a research company who are eligible to participate in surveys which can or daily surveys meant to understand behavioral change. A panel is a subset of a sample where survey respondents within the large pool of a research company’s database are recruited based on similar traits to answer questions for the collection of longitudinal data (data from the same person over a set amount of time)

Importance Of Panel Research

The most important trait of panel research as a marketing research method is the quality and usefulness of the data (pdf) which is ultimately determined by the measurements applied by using statistical methods in data analysis that translate the data into information and eventually insights that drive decision making.

The analysis of panel research data such as the continuous consumer purchasing behavior can provide guidance in areas such as pricing, competitor analysis (share of shelf) advertising effectiveness and sales projections.

Benefits

• This method gives you a high response rate as the respondents have expressly opted in and are willing to set aside time to participate in the surveys.
• Due to the diversity and size of panel members, marketers are able to record behavioral changes across different demographics.
• There is more depth in detail in the panel research insights as data analysts are able to co-relate psychographic & demographic data to have a better understanding of the research subject.
• Recruitment of research panels on mobile and internet are cheaper and more convenient due to the growing population of mobile and internet users in the world.
• The cost of recruitment for mobile/online panels is minimal as there is no need to print out questionnaire or travel (focus groups). However, the form of incentives to respondents can drive up the cost.
• Because the panel has been created around a specific focus area of interest it is easier to engage the respondents as they are familiar with your organisation and the information you are seeking from them

Challenges

• The cost of acquiring and retaining a panel can drive up the overall project cost due to a high churn rate which is sometimes as a result of the length of questions or low incentives.
• Sometimes respondents can compromise the quality of data by failing to give honest information about themselves or their behavior. More often than not, such respondents are in it for the incentives and didn’t sign up to help you. It’s therefore important to routinely validate your panel for authenticity randomly and on a regular interval to preserve the quality of data.
• Although emerging markets such as Africa are seeing increased mobile and internet penetration rates, there is still a huge percentage of the population that remains offline. Naturally, those who will be recruited to join mobile or online panels are those with devices or are online. It is therefore advisable to combine various modes for your panel depending on topic or area of focus and if there is a need to have a nationally representative sample.

Panel Research Methods

In order to carry out research studies using a panel to evaluate the thoughts and feelings of a population, there are several different styles of collecting data that you may choose depending on your needs. These include:

1. Filling out a diary
2. Focus groups
3. Online surveys
4. Mobile surveys

The Growth Of Mobile & Online Panels

Traditionally, panel research has been used as a qualitative method. Under this method, the most popular and effective tool for collecting longitudinal data has been focus groups which are interview based sessions in which moderator interviews panelists to collect the data from the same sample over and over again.
Another tool within panel research has been the diary method where respondents take notes in a book or journal documenting what they did, watched or bought over time. This diary tool has been very popular in the past especially in collecting audience measurement data.

Due to advancements in technology coupled with the need for market research agencies to deliver fast, reliable and cost-effective solutions to a data-driven marketplace has led to the adoption of mobile and online surveys which have proved effective in efficiency, quicker turn-around times, and at times, at a fraction of the cost.

Recruiting A Research Panel

There are various channels and modes that can be used to recruit respondents who will become an active sample in a panel. GeoPoll has found that two modes, mobile & online, are the most effective for recruiting new panels of survey respondents, with mobile being the most ideal in emerging markets.

The channels within the mobile mode can vary, going from text messages (SMS), mobile web or mobile app, to voice calls such as those used in Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) methods. Online recruitment modes include email, social media, and digital advertising. In order to effectively recruit a panel, we send them a short survey that collects crucial demographic information such as their gender, age, education level, and social economic status. 

Our Panels & Capabilities

We currently have a database of over 240 million active users. As the leading mobile surveying platform in emerging markets, our media audience measurement, brand health tracking and customer satisfaction tracking solutions provide marketers with consumer insights drawn from our numerous mobile-based research panels.

Apart from recruiting panels for our research solutions, GeoPoll provides multiple ways for market research agencies who need to use our platform to recruit panels through either mobile SMS, mobile web or mobile app.

If you have questions on how to utilize our sample or you’d like to partner with us to recruit a panel, please get in touch with us

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In a recurring monthly mobile survey conducted by GeoPoll on household essentials from October 2014 to date with an average of 3,000 respondents per month, the report provides some interesting insights on advertisement recall, frequently purchased brands, and brands consumers would not consider buying or recommending. Data is not just available for Kenya, but all of our markets. Contact us if you’re interested in ourFast Moving Commodity Goods (FMCG) data.

According to our survey, Kenyans buy bath soaps more frequently than they do toothpaste or washing powder.

Kenya’s top FMCG brands according to the survey are:

Beauty Soap- Geisha

Geisha- beauty soap brand from Unilever has been the leading brand for a while now (as far back as our survey data goes). They control 44% of the market with Dettol coming in a distant second with a 25% market share.

Interestingly, 27% of respondents last month (September) indicated that they would not consider using Dove soap. Also, amidst the ongoing aggressive marketing campaign by Imperial Leather, the brand has been a distant third with an average of 12% market share.

Toothpaste- Colgate

Colgate remains the number one toothpaste in Kenya controlling over half the market at 54%. Aquafresh has been a distant 2nd place capturing only 16% of the market.

Washing Powder- Ariel

Ariel has for a while now dominated the washing powder market, however, what’s surprising is the next brand that has been steadily rising eating into Ariel’s market share especially in urban areas. Sunlight though at a distant 2^nd position, has been growing at a fast pace and reducing Ariel’s market share.  Interestingly, when it comes to washing powders, most of the respondents indicated ‘None’ when asked which powder they would not consider buying.

Hair Treatment- Movit

As of March this year, Nice & lovely found a formidable opponent in Movit – a new kid in the hair treatment block. Movit is from Movit products Ltd in Uganda. Nice & Lovely, an indigenous Kenyan company was acquired by L’oreal in 2013 and despite this significant change in ownership placing the Nice & Lovely brand in the globally players league, this has not prevented the company from losing out its market share significantly.

As it turns out, those weird ads by Movit peaked the interest of many Kenyans. Movit has been competing neck to neck with Nice & Lovely in the hair treatment category as of March his year. As at September this year, Movit and Nice & Lovely had an equal share of the market at 28.1% with Dark & Lovely coming in a distant 3rd.

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 Juices- Afia

Although Afia by Kevian Kenya continues to dominate the Juices market after taking on Delmonte which has a foreign shareholder majority, Delmonte had, in the month  of February this year, recaptured its lead. It steadily dipped thereafter and continues to do so. The surprise card in this category is Quencher which sprung from an being an almost non player in July this year to the third position ahead of Minute Maid and Pick n’ peel in the months of August and September.

Beer- Guinness

Tusker is no longer Kenya’s top beer brand, and has not been for quite a while (This is according to the Geopoll data, that goes back to Aug 2014). Diageo’s global brand, Guinness has been the most consumed. The highest peak for Guinness was in  April this year with a 40% market share.

Interestingly, Guinness had the highest consumption among women in January this year at 52%. However, From May – August this year, most women switched to Tusker then switched back to Guinness last month(September). Among men, Guinness has been consistently the drink of choice.

About Retail Measurement

GeoPoll’s Retail Measurement Service delivers daily data on key performance indicators of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs), including awareness and market share of brands and availability of products in the market. This service is the first of its kind in emerging markets and provides valuable local knowledge which allows FMCG brands to better understand the needs of their customers.

The Retail Measurement Service provides accurate market intelligence in real-time, allowing brands to immediately track trends and compare their performance to competitors’ in the same space. Data is displayed through an interactive, easy-to-use online dashboard, enabling anyone to interpret results and make data-driven decisions. GeoPoll’s Retail Measurement Service currently includes top brands in several categories, and can be customized based on client needs.

For a more detailed report on FMCGs or data from our other markets, contact us. You can also create your own survey using our GeoPoll On Demand service. Get consumer insights straight to your email  as we publish them {{cta(‘abdce7d8-c8cb-47d9-b637-625dabe4a1d9’)}}

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