To gather information about the current situation on the ground, GeoPoll conducted a survey in October 2021 amongst urban and rural populations in Afghanistan.

The survey addressed a number of urgent and nationally important topics, including

• Employment and income changes
• Access to essential services (electricity, fuel, water)
• Access to medical care and education
• Food supply and spending
• Humanitarian aid availability and need
• Displacement and migration

Findings from the survey illustrate the severity of the current crisis. Many Afghans have lost their jobs and/or incomes since July 2021, leaving them extremely concerned about paying their expenses. Most are struggling to find or pay for food to feed their families and have experienced shortages of basic necessities, including electricity, fuel and water. On top of those hardships, limited access to medical care, education, or international aid has forced half the respondents in our study from their homes already, with more planning to move within the next 90 days.

Click below to download the full report of the research findings from this study.

Collecting Data For International Development and Relief

As recovery and aid efforts continue in Afghanistan, the humanitarian community will require regular data from the country to assess the situation and track progress. Remote surveys and data collection conducted through mobile devices are a fast and cost-effective mechanism for gathering on the ground data.

Over the past decade, GeoPoll has developed a unique remote research system and methodologies supported by an extensive respondent database, as well as the expertise to be able to assist essential humanitarian interventions through the provision of fast, reliable information in any environment and under any circumstance.

To learn more about GeoPoll’s capabilities in Afghanistan and around the world, please contact us.

GeoPoll continues to collect data as the situation unfolds in Afghanistan. To be notified when GeoPoll releases additional findings from the region or new studies around the globe, enter your email below.

The post GeoPoll Report: On the Ground Data on the Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan appeared first on GeoPoll.

Interactive Voice Response, How It Works

IVR surveys use very basic mobile phone technology to connect with respondents. Any phone that can receive a phone call can be used by a respondent to participate in an IVR survey.

With this mode of research, the survey enumerator is a pre-recorded voice message. A series of voice recordings guide the respondent through how to participate in the survey as well as the subsequent question and answer portion. After recording the questionnaire, GeoPoll uses an automated system to send survey invitations to our panel of respondents via phone calls. When the phone call is answered, the voice recording plays through the device and explains to the user that they were selected to participate in a GeoPoll survey. The recording goes on to have the user opt-in or opt-out of the survey, then proceeds to the question and answer portion if the user is interested in participating.

Respondents provide their answers to the opt-in message and the survey questions by keying-in their answer choice on their phone’s keypad. GeoPoll receives the survey responses that were keyed-in by the respondent. When enough respondents have completed their surveys, GeoPoll can go ahead with organizing the data for analysis.

Pros of IVR

Interactive Voice Response is a wonderful mode of research when a project requires survey responses from illiterate populations because it requires no reading by the respondent. Also, due to advances in technology becoming more widely available in emerging markets, basic phones that contain call and text message capability have become affordable to the average person, even those living with very little income. The accessibility of affordable basic technology is key in this survey mode because it allows for IVR surveys to reach people across many socioeconomic groups.

Cons of IVR

Interactive Voice Response surveys, although cost effective, typically have a longer turnaround time from survey dispatch to project completion. If you have a project requiring a quicker turnaround where you also need to reach illiterate populations, Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing, known as CATI, is is the best choice. CATI surveys also reach illiterate populations through voice on mobile, yet the enumerators are speaking with respondents live, rather than through a recorded message like IVR surveys.

To learn more about GeoPoll’s research modes, download GeoPoll’s Guide to Conducting Research in Emerging Markets. There you will find full descriptions of the pros and cons of GeoPoll’s various survey modes, as well as information on special considerations to make when performing research in emerging markets. GeoPoll offers a variety of remote, mobile-based survey research mode options to clients. Our team of experts is committed to finding the best mode of research for your individual project needs. GeoPoll’s research process is a quick and cost-effective way to reach populations of people in emerging markets across the globe, contact us today to learn more about how GeoPoll can help your company accomplish research goals.

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For the marketing research industry, the explosive growth of mobile phone use presents a new opportunity to gain access to people and data that might otherwise be inaccessible using different modes of data collection. IVR is a widely used mode for collecting large amounts of data through voice calls. This mode is especially useful in places like Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, where literacy rates are low, and respondents may not be able to read or respond to SMS-based or online surveys.

According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), Sub-Saharan Africa is among the regions with the lowest literacy levels at 64.0% in 2015. Over 75% of the world’s 781 million illiterate adults are found in South Asia, West Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, and women represent almost two-thirds of all illiterate adults globally.

Traditionally in developing countries, polling exercises have been carried out through in-person interviews.  However, making in-person contact with individuals with low literacy levels is often expensive and time-consuming.  Data can easily be lost, compromised, and/or fabricated. By harnessing the growing power of the mobile phone through a service such as GeoPoll, which specializes in research in the developing world, IVR and other mobile survey modes can be used reach those in remote areas and conflict zones, while achieving results that are consistent with those from more traditional methods.

According to Market Research World,  IVR systems are often integrated with other computer based surveying platforms when used for research. This means that survey responses can be captured in many ways – from online surveys and mobile phones, to kiosks. IVR surveys are ideally suited to high volume surveys and based on the project, over traditional CATI and telephone based interviewing, as they do not require the training of survey enumerators.

Key Features of IVR Surveys

Some of the benefits of using IVR in data collection for market research purposes include:

• Decreasing the time required to conduct a survey from months to days
• Capturing real-time data directly from the respondent
• Accessing millions of people regardless of geographic area
• Effectively capturing large sets of data and analyzing trending information
• Remotely conducting surveys in areas of low literacy rates

Considerations When Conducting Surveys via Interactive Voice Response:

• Surveys are typically 10 questions total. Surveys can be longer based on needs but short, clear surveys have proven to be most effective.
• Response rates for IVR can be quite low – to achieve your desired sample size, you will need a large respondent base or to partner with a company like GeoPoll that can provide sufficient sample

When conducting an IVR survey with GeoPoll, our team will provide expert guidance and assistance:

• Survey questions can be customized to fit specific project needs. GeoPoll provides assistance in reviewing the questions and optimizing for the mobile phone.
• Results are delivered within days of a survey run, typically within one week. GeoPoll delivers both raw datasets organized by respondent and high-level pivot table analysis.

GeoPoll’s Experience with IVR

GeoPoll uses Interactive Voice Response (IVR) or voice recorded surveys which enable respondents to answer a voice call and respond to survey questions by pressing 1, 2, or 3 on their key pad. Once mobile phone users pick up the call, they opt-in to complete the survey and receive airtime credit as an incentive upon completion.

GeoPoll has successfully completed hundreds of IVR surveying projects in countries around the world. This direct experience has taught GeoPoll the technical and operational nuances of IVR, and we work closely with partners to ensure questions and methodology are appropriate for IVR. Use cases for IVR surveys have included conducting one-off surveys, collecting baseline data, monitoring indicators, engaging communities, and tracking beneficiaries of aid.

GeoPoll can conduct IVR surveys as part of a multi-modal project or as a standalone method in any country throughout the world, and we have expertise in conducting IVR surveys in Africa, Asia Latin America, and the Middle East.

If you would like to know more about how IVR could help you collect data from hard to reach regions, please get in touch with us by filling in the form below.

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