It focused on different problems that can arise when planning and running surveys and showed what we’ve learned over many years of evaluation. Even if you’ve been in the survey game for a while, it’s a great reminder of simple strategies that can help smooth the data collection process.

I also wrote an article for the QualDATA newsletter which gave a bit of an overview of Day 1 of the conference which I was able to attend. Have a read.

With web surveys, if it is too long, many people either won’t start it – or don’t complete it.  With phone surveys, the irritation starts to show as people watch their clock and think of what else they could be doing.  These responses are made worse if you appear to be asking the same thing more than once – or if the questions seem to be outside of the main focus of the survey.

Our way around it is to clearly define the purpose of the survey and design it around that purpose – what is it that we really need to know?  We can then consign the ‘nice to know’ into the bin. Then the realism rule is brought in – what can we realistically expect from respondents in terms of depth and detail in 10-15 minutes maximum?

We also need to realise that most surveys are ‘top of the head’ responses.  So, there is no use asking ‘how much did you actually spend on groceries last fortnight?  A more realistic question would be ‘approximately how much is your weekly grocery bill? – and perhaps give them some options between certain ranges of dollars spent.

We work with our clients to ensure that the balance works – for them and their intended survey respondents.

Last week, I attended the Australasian Pacific Extension Conference (APEN) at Bussleton Western Australia. More than 200 people attended from all around Australia – and internationally – most of whom brought along a paper, poster or creative presentation to share their stories on bringing about change in rural and regional communities.

I was staggered by the enthusiasm of the presenters – and creativity of these sessions!  One was called ‘the soapbox’ where  presenters had 5 minutes (including questions) to make their point to those who clustered at their station.  Some dressed up; some had gadgets (there was a great demonstration of improving communicaiton pathways by having marbles roll down plastic pipes!); and others just talked.  Was great to see!

Meanwhile, I networked and promoted the Rural Survey Specialists and our introductory free survey design offer.  I was happy to see the interest and comments from people about how much this rural focused market service was needed – and the value of the ‘survey cost calculator‘.

Jeff

From now until the end of January 2010, we are offering FREE SURVEY DESIGN as part of our survey packages.  If you look at our survey cost calculator to see what dollars that will save you, you will see that it’s entirely worth comissioning that survey you’ve been meaning to do, or lock in the one you’ve scheduled for next year.

This offer will only last until the end of January 2010, so contact us now, to book your consultation in.

NB: You will need to book the survey in before 31 January 2010, although the actual survey dates may fall later in the year.

Together with affliliate Amy Rebecca P/L who has worked with us for over five years, we have identified that many people who are undertaking such evaluations need to outsource the survey component. This is a role that we are stepping up to take!

There are many critical steps in the survey process including: Questionnaire design; Choosing the best sampling strategy; Undertaking the surveys (phone, web or mail) Survey analysis – qualitative and quantitative; and Reporting – including charts and pulling out key messages and recommendations.

Our services will cover any or all of these critical steps in the survey process.

You can also use our Survey Cost Calculator to create your own cost estimate of running your survey.  Once you have a good idea of costs and want to proceed, we look forward to finalising our quote with you based on a full consultation.