51) The newest and currently most popular form of data collection is the use of social media,
which are immense groups of potential respondents who are recruited and compensated by
companies that provide access to them for a fee.
52) Though not economical, survey methods allow the collection of significant amounts of data
in a systematic, efficient manner, and involve large sample sizes.
53) Key advantages of surveys include standardization, ease of administration, ability to tap the
“unseen,” suitability to tabulation and statistical analysis, and sensitivity to subgroup differences.
54) In the past two decades, there has been a dramatic increase in the willingness of the general
public to take part in surveys.
55) Computer and telecommunications technology has advanced significantly and opened new,
efficient ways for marketing researchers to collect data.
56) Rising nonresponse rates have caused marketing researchers to rethink the use of traditional
data collection methods.
57) Technology opened doors to new data collection methods, which helped solve the
nonresponse problem.
58) Two primary reasons for the technology push are the rising costs of traditional data
collection such as CATI and consumers’ adoption of new communication systems.
59) Changes due to technological advances are making the data collection process faster,
simpler, more secure, and less expensive with corresponding increasing levels of participation
globally.
60) Despite the impression that online surveys are eclipsing all other methods, data collection is
currently a blend of traditional, or low technology, methods and contemporary, or high
technology, approaches.
61) In a person-administered survey, an interviewer reads questions, either face-to-face or over
the telephone, to the respondent and records his or her answers with the use of a computer.
62) Personal interviewers can create trust and understanding that nonpersonal forms of data
collection cannot achieve, which eases the ability to collect needed data.
63) Personal interviewers should not adapt to differences in respondents, since it may result in
alteration of the meaning of a question.
64) While there are disadvantages of person-administered surveys such as human error, slow
data collection, and interview evaluation apprehension among respondents, they are less
expensive than other methods.
65) Interview evaluation may occur when another person is involved in the interviewing process
and some respondents are apprehensive that they are answering “correctly.”
66) While person-administered surveys were the industry mainstay, computer-assisted survey
methods have grown to a dominant position in emerging countries.
67) The immediate capture of data by computer-administered surveys is both an important
advantage and disadvantage of this data collection mode.
68) While computer technology can result in increases in productivity, there can be high setup
costs associated with getting some of these systems in place and operational.
69) In a self-administered survey, the respondent completes the survey on his or her own with
the aid of a human or computer agent.
70) There are three important advantages to self-administered surveys: reduced cost, respondent
control, and no interview evaluation apprehension.
71) The disadvantages of self-administered surveys are respondent control, lack of monitoring,
high cost, and high questionnaire requirements.
72) In a computer-administered survey, a computer plays an integral role in posing the questions
and recording respondents’ answers.
73) While computer-administered interviews are faster and error free, they may make
respondents feel less at ease because of the technology challenges.
74) Generally, mixed-mode surveys afford better coverage of the population, result in somewhat
higher response rates, sometimes shorten questionnaire lengths, and may lessen total survey
costs.
75) There are four common variations of person-administered/computer-assisted interviews: the
in-home interview, the mall-intercept interview, the in-office interview, and the telephone
interview.
76) A company develops a new type of countertop toaster oven that is designed to remain
perfectly clean, which requires special set-up including set up according to different cooking
situations. The mall intercept would be the most appropriate data collection method.
77) Recent growth of non-mall retailing concepts, such as catalogs and stand-alone discounters
such as Walmart and online vendors such as Amazon, mean that more mall visitors are
recreational shoppers rather than convenience-oriented shoppers, resulting in the need to
scrutinize mall-intercept samples as to what consumer groups they actually represent.
78) Interviewing businesspeople face-to-face has essentially the same advantages and drawbacks
as mall intercept interviewing.
79) A review article concluded that, compared to face-to-face interviews, telephone interviews
elicit more suspicion and less cooperation, generate more “no opinions” and socially desirable
answers, and foster more dissatisfaction with long interviews.
80) The most advanced central location telephone interview companies operate with computer–
assisted telephone interviews (CATI).
81) The drawbacks of computer-assisted interviews is that they do not vary by the method of
delivery, meaning with or without an interviewer or, if an interviewer is present, by face–to-face
or telephone administration.
82) CATS has been successfully employed for customer satisfaction studies, service quality
monitoring, Election Day polls, product/warranty registration, and even in-home product tests
with consumers who have been given a prototype of a new product.
83) Online data collection has profoundly changed the marketing research landscape, particularly
in the case of online panels.
84) A group self-administered survey entails administering a questionnaire to respondents in
groups rather than individually for convenience and to gain economies of scale.
85) Samples and surveys gained through self-selection are representative of the general
population.
86) Because of the almost universal reluctance of the population to take part in surveys, panel
companies, a special kind of marketing research institution, have risen to the forefront of data
collection
87) Panelists do not provide large amounts of demographic, lifestyle, purchase behavior, and
other descriptive information as part of the sign-up process, which is a major drawback of using
panel companies.
88) Panel companies not only provide efficient data collection, but also often have questionnaire
design capabilities, data analysis and dashboards, preset survey schedules, tracking studies, and
qualitative research capabilities such as online focus groups, in-home usage tests, and more.
89) Clients who desire high data quality, access to special types of respondents, fast data
collection and other advantageous aspects of panel companies understand that these factors will
result in considerably more expense than do-it-yourself research.
90) Knowing that even the most sophisticated techniques of analysis cannot make up for poor
data, the researcher must attempt to choose a survey method that achieves the highest quality of
data allowable.
91) Excellent choices under the condition of a short time horizon would be in-home interviews
or mail surveys because their logistics benefit from quick turnaround times.
92) Data collection method constraints and realities tend to diminish data quality.
93) A data collection method that can screen respondents easily and inexpensively, such as with
telephone or Internet modes, is desirable with a low-incidence-rate situation because a great
many potential respondents must be contacted but a large percentage of these would not qualify
to take the survey.
94) There are distinct advantages and disadvantages of survey research methods over qualitative
methods. Describe and compare the advantages of survey research methods.
95) How has computer technology dramatically changed data collection in recent years? Give
specific examples of the new uses of computer technologies and their role in data collection.
96) Compare the advantages and disadvantages of person-administered and computer-assisted
interviews. Explain the added advantages of computer-assisted interviews.
97) Mixed-mode or hybrid surveys use multiple data collection methods. Explain the use of
mixed-mode surveys and why they can be complex.
98) Explain how online data collection has profoundly changed the marketing research landscape
along with reasons the Internet-based questionnaire has become the industry standard for surveys
in virtually all high-Internet-penetration countries.
99) Rising to the forefront of data collection is a special kind of marketing research institution
known as a panel company. What is a panel company? Under what circumstances would a
researcher consider/not consider the use of a panel company?
100) Researchers must take into account several considerations when deciding on a survey data
collection mode. Describe and discuss the considerations associated with decisions related to
survey data collection modes.
101) Because every survey is unique, it is not possible to list all other considerations related to
deciding on a survey data collection mode. However, there are two considerations that are almost
always part of the survey method decision: 1. incidence rate. 2. situational factors. Define and
discuss both of these two considerations.