Pros and Cons of Using Mktg Rsch Panels

Was talking with a client yesterday about the pros and cons of using panels for marketing research so I thought I’d blog a lil `bout it.

There is no denying that panels are HUGE.  Tons of companies use them to conduct all manner of studies. With the exception of the migration away from pen/pencil surveys to online ones, the emergence of panels is arguably the biggest development in the marketing research industry of the last decade.

This is a good article if you want to read about the basics of panels.  They are essentially comprised of groups of people who have agreed to participate in research studies.  So, while you can randomly select research participants from with a panel, the panel as a whole are not necessarily representative of any population…….except, well, people who like participating in surveys so they can win prizes.  (Did a lil hint of condescension creep out there?)

As is the case with ANY form of data collection, there are pros and cons to panels.  Here’s a good article that lays them out.  Here are also two directories for research panels: Green Book and Quirk’s.

Elizabeth Scarborough

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