FreshNetworks Blog

I’ve been asked to address an international market research conference in October this year on the future of the industry. The conference is the ESOMAR Panel Research conference and I’ll be talking about how online research communities are changing both the client experience and the dynamics of the market research industry. My thesis is that online communities are not totally replacing more traditional market research panels, but offer new ways of doing new things. At times the two can work together quite successfully.

Below are my initial thoughts in preparation for the conference. If you’re interested in finding out more about the conference or going, then look at the ESOMAR website here. If you have any thoughts on the below then let me know.

Changing the dynamics of the research industry

Research is about engaging in a conversation with a brand, but to date traditional research panels have not enabled this. They let you ask questions but not listen, get responses from individuals but not an understanding of why, and they are transactional rather than really engaging respondents.

Online communities provide a real step-change in research. They allow you to truly engage with your customers and build a research community that becomes an extension of your internal team. Rather than contacting participants through a research agency on a periodic basis, you can engage them directly and ongoing. The agency acts as the glue between you and the community.

Online communities will fundamentally change the way agencies work. They will:

1. allow participants to take part when it suits them not us
2. need agencies to work differently with respondents – collaborating on the research and letting them drive the agenda
3. require agencies to work differently with clients – the brand is much more highly involved in the research and the agency just the glue with the community

Online communities in detail and in practice

Online research communities are different to panels. They do different things and have different advantages. Compared with research panels, online communities:

• get faster responses – the 24/7 nature of the communities mean that they are always available as a resource. Responses typically get a week to get on a panel, whereas results can emerge in less than 24 hours from a community

• ensure more brand contact – the communities are branded and participants feel that they engaging in a direct conversation with the brand rather than answering the questions of a research agency. Feedback through the community adds to the positive and involved feelings towards the brand

• reduce surveying costs – panels rely on incentives to get responses to questionnaires when you ask them. A community grows and develops, with members taking part in activities and conversations at all times. The stickiness created, the ongoing community management and the brand engagement mean that incentivisation is not needed and you no longer needed to pay each respondent each time they complete a survey

• provide a richer quality of response – a panel will typically offer a restricted amount of time for input – the length of the questionnaire. An online community allows people to contribute when they want and as much as they want. The quantity and depth of responses is greater. People give reasoned responses and are encouraged to come back regularly to add more.

Some more reading

• Hosted tool helps companies study online opinions about products, services
• Companies that Track Discussions in Forums and Communities
• Incentives In Online Social Communities
• Don’t Treat Web 2.0 Like Web 1.0
• Social media is not a focus group
• The Art of Conversation – It’s About Listening Not Marketing