Quantitative research and qualitative research are often used together to tell the whole story - diving deep on new topics then validating those insights across a wider field of respondents. Learn more about the quantitative piece and how quality design can impact your business for good.
What is quantitative research?
Quantitative research is a process of gathering large amounts of close-ended data through surveys, large scale observation (like tracking website traffic), and secondary data analysis. This research is typically used to measure customer satisfaction, test product features and pricing, identify a company's target market, understand the size of a market, or track the effectiveness of a brand's messaging and branding.
What are the methods of quantitative research?
Quantitative research is typically conducted through online surveys (web, mobile and email), though direct (postal) mail surveys, point-of-purchase surveys, and in some cases telephone surveys are all still in use.
Quantitative research can include secondary research as well. When analyzing large data sets from sources such as government reports like census data or public health information, or data collected in prior studies, whether internally or from other sources, this is considered secondary quantitative research.
What are some common business questions that are answered with quantitative research?
Some common applications of quantitative research include, but are not limited to identifying:
- In customers' minds, who are your main competitors?
- What is the awareness of your current spread of products?
- What is the ideal combination of features for your next product or service offering?
- What are consumers' purchase drivers and how does your product or service stack up?
When combined with qualitative research (which explores the underlying “why” of aspects like those noted above), businesses obtain a reliable picture of what is really happening in their marketplace, and can use this insight to achieve significant, if not in many cases unprecedented gains to everything from market penetration, to customer satisfaction, to revenues and profits.
How do you design a good quantitative research study?
The design of a survey takes more than just the ability to program one. It also takes some understanding of the objectives of a research project, the audience, and how to test and measure questions and their responses. Good planning is essential, as is a bit of ground testing, before the final roll out.
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Clarify Your Objectives - Without clear objectives, your entire project may end up being focused on answering the wrong question, making it a waste of time and money. When you solidify the objectives ahead of time, every member of the team has a guiding light to follow.
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Target the Right Audience - When making costly business decisions, it's critical that the insights you rely on be accurate. If you send your survey out without targeting, you may end up with answers from people that are not representative of the group you are working to understand.
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Word Questions Concisely - Questions should be clear, concise, and in easily understood terms. Don't use jargon, ensure that your questions are unbiased, and make sure that answer choices cover all possible options without overlapping.
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Use Scales for Answers - Utilize scales where possible rather than yes or no answers. You will get more specific answers when you ask where someone stands on a 5 point scale of Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree rather than agree or disagree.
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Test the Survey - After internal testing, launch surveys with a "slow launch", meaning collect just a couple of responses from your target market and see how the survey is operating. Look for any issues that may arise and fix them before they become larger issues.
Learn More
To learn more about quantitative research design, and how your business can use it to reap a range of rewards and measurable ROI, contact the Qlarity Access team today. If you currently have a research plan, we would be pleased to review it and share ideas and insights to put you on track for long-term success!
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