Author: InsideHeads
The Power of Empathy
And yep, it can be learned.
It has become pretty clear to me these past few years that as humans, we have an epic amount of room for improvement. With an uncertain future lying ahead of all of us, what should we do? What can we do?
Knowing What Matters
Well, the University of Maryland is not only acknowledging the current challenges, but guiding students in the direction to help humanity. It’s not about how many Pottery Barn candle holders you have, or even what kind of car you drive. Today? Today, what matters is so much more than what fits in your cart. Natural disasters, global conflicts, a human pandemic – the last few years have been a coffee grinder experience that is impacting human behavior.
Mind the Gap
Remember Maslow’s need hierarchy? If you have a foundation of security, safety, love, and support, etc, your path forward leads to the supposed nirvana of self actualization. The stinger of his theory is that it’s linear and 2-dimensional. We’re not rulers. His thoughts on human development and behavior may be right, but he neglected to include the sub-foundation of opportunity, resources, and education required to even get on this tour.
Change the World, Really?
So when the University of Maryland (UMD) decided to double down on its mission to change the world with the addition of a broader Do Good mission, I was intrigued by their unique over-arching approach. I see UMD students, faculty and staff who are passionate, inspired, motivated, jazzed. Who are these people?
With forward thinking and problem solving leadership, UMD is leaning in for humanity and humanity is responding. Love breeds love. I could not be more proud of the collective force at UMD who are determined to help students be better humans. We all know it takes a village of unsung heroes, with a thoughtful leader like this guy.
Joy Found
There’s joy in learning about students like Marie, who started simply by opening her eyes and giving a shit. Read for yourself what else UMD students are bravely doing! May it give you a shred of hope for our collective future together. Here’s to more joy!
Yam or Sweet Potato?!
Sweet potatoes are prevalent in the Americas and come in a number of varieties of substance and sweetness. These are typically the orange colored ones, though you might see them in purple and other colors.
Yams, on the side of the tubular continuum, are common in Africa and are more fibrous and whiter on the inside than a sweet potato. In fact, you likely have never seen a Yam.
Bonus Tip: Best Scalloped Sweet Potato Dish: 3 easy ingredients. You got this.
Research Project: Living Organ Donations
Imagine if you had to find blood before you could have a surgery. What would you do? Where would you start? This is the situation if you need a kidney. Or a Liver. Or some other spare human part.
InsideHeads is researching this topic and welcoming feedback on ways to normalize living organ donations in society, as well as improve the experience for both donors and recipients.
To begin, we have an initial list of ways to improve the donor experience and need feedback. Would you be so kind to please take a quick moment to read through and comment on what goes through your mind?
Any surprises? Any you would champion? Any you disagree with? What might you change or add? All feedback is much needed and greatly appreciated, as we begin our initial fact finding mission to design a comprehensive, long term, and effective research study. Thank you!
15 Identified Improvements to Improve the Living Organ Transplant Patient Experience
1) Healthcare team member bios and genuine introductions to the donor candidate
2) Clear understanding of the donor advocate/social worker position and the donor patient’s rights
3) Who sees what when regarding confidential donor patient data
4) Access to, and explanation of, donor patient test results
5) Secure private messaging with the donor healthcare team
6) Clear explanation of everything that will happen to the patient (and their body) from pre to post op
7) Notification, transparency and consent for invasive supplemental procedures the hospital considers standard
8) Who will be allowed in the OR and why, and how privacy during the operation will be maintained
9) Steps taken to ensure patient privacy and dignity, and how those are guaranteed
10) The opportunity to make reasonable requests for increased privacy, and how those requests will be ensured
11) Telehealth zoom meetings with healthcare team that are guaranteed secure and private
12) How all communication with the healthcare team complies fully with HIPAA
13) Visitor ID checks and appointment verification upon entrance to the hospital.
14) Donor patient escort out of the hospital and assisted into their ride when released after surgery
15) An official operative report where the original record is accurate, complete, and transparent to the patientd post surgery
If you are interested in participating in the data collection (help with distribution of surveys and recruiting for focus groups), please call! The non-profit we work for is looking to build a research army across the country to gather much needed data on consumer thoughts and behavior. We need you!
If you have received or donated an organ, we want to know what your experience was like and what improvements, if any, you would like to see. Let’s talk, please!
Quant or Qual
How to choose the best method for your research study
Quantitative and qualitative research are both scientific methods for data collection and analysis. They can be applied alone, or in combination, to maximize insights.
The Basic Difference: Going Beyond What vs. Why
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH, AKA QUANT
Quantitative research relies on large sample sizes to collect numerical data that can be mathematically analyzed for statistically significantfindings. Surveys are structured, questions are typically closed-ended, and answer choices are fixed. However, quantitative research may also include a limited number of short-answer open-ended questions to help clarify why people responded the way they did to a closed-ended question. Eye tracking, facial coding, and even Big Data fall under the umbrella of quantitative research, with computers analyzing enormous volumes of data incredibly fast.
Quantitative studies produce numerical data, which allows for statistical analysis and ultimately precise findings. The US Census is a great example of a quantitative research study – fixed and close-ended questions, an enormous sample size, a collective review of many respondents, and measured population segments.
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH, AKA QUAL
In contrast, qualitative research seeks to understand the reasons behind the numbers, as well as what is not yet known. Sample sizes are smaller, questions are unstructured, and results more subjective. Unlike quantitative research, qualitative studies insert the researcher into the data collection process. The researcher probes responses and participants provide more detail. Qualitative data is collected through interviews, group discussions, diaries, personal observations, and a variety of other creative and ever-expanding means.
Qual studies work with textual and visual data, interpreted and analyzed for directional findings. Qualitative research studies include fluid and open-ended questions, a smaller sample size, an in-depth review of each respondent, and emerging themes.
A quant study collects specific data from a large number of people, and a qual study goes deeper to collect greater insights from a small number of people.
How to Choose
The answer to whether you proceed with quantitative or qualitative research lies in your research objective and available resources.
- Why you’re doing the research
- What you need to know
- Your budget, staff, + schedule
- How the findings will be used
Consider these possible scenarios the next time you’re stuck and don’t know which way to go:
Quant + qual can come together in other ways. A questionnaire with open-ended questions, while ultimately coded numerically, can offer a window into the unknown. Focus groups that also include poll questions or surveys can produce hard data when analyzed in total, even if the results are not statistically significant.
With good planning, quantitative and qualitative research come together like a dance, guiding the marketer’s success with every step.
I Say Hybrid, You Say Multi-Method
Combining quantitative and qualitative research approaches is an ancient strategy, but the names continue to change with the times. I did a bit of research and found the following terms being used to describe that ideal combination of quantitative and qualitative research. What term do you use? And why? 😉
Personalized Attention from InsideHeads
“I really appreciate the personalized attention and customer service from InsideHeads. I have recommended the InsideHeads online focus group platform to several research colleagues.”
Why are Some Marketing Research Studies Doomed to Fail?
Regardless how you intend to get your data, the first few steps to achieving success are often brushed over or pushed aside on the way to the finish line. Before identifying the best means of engagement, it’s critical to clearly define both the research objective and the target audience.
- Where you’re going and why
- Who you need to interview and why.
Like a beacon of light, a well considered objective propels a project purposely forward to the finish line. Without it, findings flail and resulting recommendations are at risk.
Knowing who to interview to achieve the objective must also be clearly defined. Recruiting appropriate participants starts with a client conversation to identify demographic, lifestyle, and behavioral attributes of prospective participants. Well designed, unbiased screening questionnaires and extensive identity verification procedures ensure accurate and effective recruiting.
Despite the simplicity of this secret sauce, InsideHeads surveyed research buyers on LinkedIn and discovered “actionable insights” to be “most desired”, yet also “rarely achieved”.
InsideHeads clients always receive pointed recommendations. Born from a deep understanding of both data collection and strategic direction, InsideHeads delivers intelligent insights that will move your unique initiatives forward.
More Tips
Which Online Qual Research Method Has the Lowest CPI?
Calculating cost-per-interview (CPI) of different qualitative research methods can be an eye-opening exercise. Excluding recruiting and incentives, which vary, we can estimate typical costs of different methods.
CPI estimates below assume:
- 4 focus groups
- focus facility & support
- project management
- moderator fees (guide design, interviews, & analysis)
In-Person Groups – Face to Face in Real Time
6-8 Participants for 2 hours
Average CPI $650
Multi-Media Bulletin Board Over Time
15-20 Participants for 3-5 days
Average CPI $353
Text Chat in Real Time
15-20 Participants for up to 2 hours
Average CPI $191
Webcam (Video Chat) in Real Time
3-5 Participants for up to 2 hours
Average CPI $988
Contact InsideHeads for a free estimate on your next online marketing research study. Call +1-877-In-Heads or email info@insideheads.com.
When Did Online Qual Begin?
The moment people could connect and communicate online, researchers were there. In the beginning the research was technical, paving the way for a vast network of open communication that was to follow.
As this virtual network of people grew, marketing researchers strapped on their boots and began exploring new ways of mining and collecting data. It wasn’t long before social researchers suited-up and started using email, group chats, and bulletin board systems to gather information. All of these initial efforts cleared the way for what is now known as online qualitative research.
While the first online focus group via group text was conducted by Marian Salzman in a pimped-out AOL chat room in 1992, it was actually research boards that came first. As early as 1984, when the “internet” was limited and accessible by only government researchers and universities, one student at Syracuse University was using a bulletin board system over NSFNET to interview students at UCLA.
Learn more about the history of online qualitative research in Qual-Online, the Essential Guide, available on Amazon.
Online or In-person Focus Groups?
When comparing the costs to conduct focus groups online to in-person (face-to-face), it’s important to consider which elements are, and are not, included in each. First, let’s compare the basics of four popular types of focus groups:
In-Person Face to Face in Real Time
6-8 Participants for 2 hours
Multi-Media Online Bulletin Board Over Time
15-20 Participants for 3-5 days
Online Text Chat in Real Time
15-20 Participants for up to 2 hours
Webcam (Video Chat) in Real Time
3-5 Participants for up to 2 hours
Now let’s take a look at the cost categories each of those focus group methods will include:
Recruiting & Incentives
Recruiting for online or in-person requires effort, attention, and reliable sources. Cost per recruit are comparable across methods.
Facility & Live Support (in-person or virtual)
Whether your interview is conducted within a brick and mortar building or using an online research platform, people need a place to gather. Multimedia Bulletin Boards and Webcam Groups are still ripe for tech issues, so going with providers who offer significant support is both wise and costly.
Research Services (e.g., discussion guide design, moderate, report)
Expert researchers put in the hours to design studies that will yield reliable data and reveal keen insights. Research expertise is needed to conduct any focus group , but the amount of time required will vary. Bulletin boards and Webcam groups require the most time and attention, while chats are the most time and energy efficient. In-person groups means everyone has to travel, and you’ll also incur ancillary facility costs for food and administrative help.
When figuring costs, consider the volume and quality of conversation that results from each of the four group interview methods listed.
In both in-person and webcam focus groups, only one person can speak at a time, yet bulletin boards and online chats enable everyone to talk simultaneously. This multi-synchronous response maximizes the volume and depth of data you can receive in the same amount of time.
Also consider the fact that in-person and webcam conversations provide helpful facial cues, yet boards and chats prompt more candid responses from participants.
Bottom line? There’s no easy answer. The options available for conducting group interviews each have their pros and cons for different situations. Checkout average CPI for each method in this post.
Before you pick your platform and plow ahead, consider first taking stock of your research needs. You may find a perfect fit in a more budget-friendly method!
Contact InsideHeads for a free assessment, +1(877)-In-Heads.