Online Survey Research - Considerations for the Online Marketer
While most Internet minipreneurs rely on web site log software like the popular Webalizer (distributed under GNU General Public License) only, some also post questionnaires on their web pages. Answers to these web surveys are typed into automated response mechanisms in the form of drop-down menus, radio buttons or simply blank areas for open questions.
Web surveys are only worthwhile for web sites that actually have a revenue model beyond advertising. If the whole point of a web site is to attract traffic and have people click on pay-per-click advertisement, the amount of visits and page views is all the information that is of interest. Asking web site visitors in a web survey where to place Adsense in order to increase the click-through rate is not an option.
If a web site, however, has a revenue model that does not rely on advertising only but strives for stickiness and usability, user engagement and user education, web surveys can be a very valuable and effective way to obtain customer insights beyond the usual log file analysis data.
Possible research topics may include the importance of various site features such as customer service and navigation ease, additional topics for content development and literally any psychographic information.
Web surveys have many advantages but also some disadvantages over traditional offline contact methods. The most obvious and perhaps most important advantages are speed and price, especially when compared with offline methodologies. Web surveys do not require lengthy printing and mailing time, but they are delivered nearly instantaneously worldwide over the Internet. People who complete web surveys usually do so within the first three days, making the process of data collection very quick. Automated response mechanisms usually also reduce data entry errors.
The virtual environment of the Internet makes people feel unobserved, so they tend to be more honest. This especially holds true for rather sensitive questions in web surveys. On top there will be no interviewer bias as sometimes experienced in the offline world.
Finally, data generated from web surveys is already in electronic format, so tabulation and analysis are speedy exercises. A simple search for web surveys in any search engine will produce plenty of viable hosted web survey solutions. Let’s look at the methodological disadvantages: The biggest disadvantages include sample representativeness and measurement validity when compared with the offline alternative. There is no way a scientific probability sample can be drawn because no list of Internet users currently exists. Hence marketers cannot generalize results to the entire population. Measurement validity is not fully given as user may experiences varying conditions while taking the web survey due to connections speeds, different browsers and screen sizes.
Web survey respondents select themselves, which results in a rather considerable bias. And how can we tell that the person responding is really the person she pretends to be? The list of disadvantages is completed by the fact that some answers tend to be frivolous and dishonest and that duplicate submissions may occur.
These are academic concerns towards a proper and statistically valid research methodology, but hey, for the street-smart Internet minipreneurs it is good enough to be aware of these limitations. In the real world, web surveys are a great tool to gain customer insights and, nota bene, add stickiness to a web site.
Svend Nelson is a university lecturer and Internet entrepreneur. He is an online marketing specialist active in various online industries; among his online presences in the real estate and home loan industry are Hawaii real estate for sale and home loans. Svend also just started a blog sharing his experience about web marketing. Svend lived and worked in various countries across Latin America, Europe and Asia before settling in Thailand.
About the Author
Rating: Not yet rated