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

The post Understanding Research Panels; Mobile, Online & How They Work appeared first on GeoPoll.

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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