Telephone Market Research...Its demise has been greatly exaggerated!
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Nov 05, 2009 @ 10:00 AM
I am a Mark Twain fan. At one point when Twain had been traveling in Europe and the Middle East, he was reported to have passed away (although he was consistently writing and sending articles to a publisher within the United States.) On return to the US, in a conversation with reporters, he smugly announced (and it has become one of my favorite quotes by Mark Twain)..."The rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated."
This year, I think that, among other things, the telephone side of the market research industry is feeling a little like Mark Twain's quote...The rumors of its demise have been greatly exaggerated. Yes, it has been a challenging year for a lot of market research organizations...even for the best of us. The economy has had an impact on market research in ways that were very difficult to predict. It has impacted our industry in general and the market research methodology used to conduct many market research projects. It has even had an impact on whether market research projects are conducted at all.
I like Thomas Edison's quote when he said, "Keep on the lookout for novel ideas that others have used su
ccessfully. Your idea has to be original only in its adaptation to the problem you're working on." This coming from the man who is credited for inventing the lightbulb, when really it was invented by a couple of guys in Canada who couldn't find a market for it (it's true...look it up here).
The market research industry is evolving. Many of us use online methods in many forms, we continue to collect large-scale telephone surveys (though many have announced their demise), we have found new and innovative ways to conduct our market research, and we're adapting to new and everchanging demographic shifts. Most importantly, we're figuring out how to use all of these available methods and technologies simultaneously in ways that are relevant to the business landscape and current market research needs.
We are not the archaic manufacturers of the buggy whip used in Twain's era, but professional organizations that understand the market research process, can minimize costs using multi-modal market research techniques that are fiscally responsible and provide important answers to market research questions. We have become adept at thinking outside of the box to ensure that the right methods are being used for each project...whether that is a mixture of quantitative market research & qualitative market research, automated market research, online market research, telephone market research, the use of panels or communities, or a host of other research techniques. We have and will continue to adapt our techniques...adapt or die. Some time ago, Mark Twain announced that the rumors of his demise were greatly exaggerated. I'd say that the rumors of telephone market research's demise have also been greatly exaggerated...although...I must admit that they are evolving and adapting and, for the best of us, are not as they once were.
1. Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?
2. Do you think telephone market research is here to stay (at least for a while)? Why or why not?