Choose the right sample approach for your mobile research
Most consumer surveys are taken from a smartphone today, essentially making all survey-based market research “mobile research”. But sampling methods differ. In this post we compare consumer panels to live, mobile sampling.
Up to 57% of market research surveys are taken from a mobile device (B2B International, 2019). Thus, distinguishing between "online" and “mobile” research is becoming obsolete: today, they are essentially the same, as even research conducted in panels where respondents are invited to participate via email, is replied to from smartphones. And this number is increasing rapidly.
Thus, when choosing how to sample respondents, it is important to remember that regardless of your supplier or sampling methodology choice, respondents favor taking surveys from their smartphones, including consumer panel members. You should evaluate any sample provider's respondent interface in light of this fact.
And how respondents are recruited may affect your insights: if your target audience is Gen Z, affluent people, consumers in rural areas, or emerging markets, consumer panels may fall short as these target groups are most often difficult, if not impossible, to recruit for panels. In return, consumer segments from less digitalized generations can be hard to reach using a mobile sampling approach.
In the table below we have compared panel sampling to mobile sampling to help you evaluate what is the right approach for your project.
Mobile sampling
Consumer panels
Respondents are recruited from survey to survey
Good for sampling in audiences like Gen Z, high-income segments, rural areas, emerging markets
Respondent's survey interface is mobile-only
Can sample respondents in all markets
Panel members that may have taken many surveys before
Good for sampling in audiences in less digitalized generations and middle-aged women
Respondent's survey interface may be responsive for mobile but not necessarily
Often needs sub-suppliers to cover all markets and geographies
What is mobile sampling?
Mobile sampling is recruiting consumer survey respondents directly via mobile platforms like apps and social media. It has the advantage of reaching respondents that would never sign up to consumer panels, and, thus, enable you to survey consumers that can otherwise be hard to reach. Moving your consumer research from panels to mobile sampling will provide you with several benefits:
All consumers have a smartphone: While many of us may remember life before the smartphone, few of us can imagine our daily life without it. It was adopted at record speed and in emerging markets mobile technology has already replaced the need to roll out older technology like desktop computers: people and businesses have quickly adapted, and in countries like Nigeria and Bangladesh mobile technology has overtaken many Western countries.
A fresh new sample with each study provides you intuitive survey replies: Most consumers spend very little time thinking about your brand. It is in that unreflected state of mind you want to capture them to get the most truthful insights. Mobile sampling recruits fresh respondents for every survey making sure you do not make costly business decisions based on biased samples.
Extensive quality assurance measures to mitigate questions from panel traditionalists: Evolving from one industry standard to the next has never happened overnight in market research and neither should it: market research is a $118 billion industry and the decisions made based on consumer insights direct even more budget to and from product development, branding, and marketing. Due to the rigorous focus on data quali-ty from market researchers, mobile sampling is the most QA-heavy sampling approach to have ever existed. This includes data quality measures that not even all panel providers implement to obtain as high data validity as possible.
We provide a unique form of mobile sampling through our proprietary Dynamic Sampling technology. Read all about it here.
Find out more about mobile sampling
Check out our Guide on why consumer panels do not work anymore and get inspired on how to evolve your quantitative market research to a mobile world.
Explore the difference mobile sampling makes for CO-RO
“Opeepl’s Dynamic Sampling approach is our opportunity as an FMCG brand to survey consumers in a situation that is closer to the state-of-mind they are in when buying our products. That and being conscientious about not driving survey fatigue through long or difficult questionnaires is the best way to ensure sample representation. As with all other sampling, mobile research and Dynamic Sampling approach requires high diligent quality reassurance and strict standards of operation, which for us is an area, where Opeepl deliver significantly above market standards for similar services.”
Jesper Kvisgaard
CCI Director
