Have you seen the enormous volume of publicly available data, as well as written analyses, tables and maps? Whatever stats make your skirt fly up, you’ll find them at the US Census Data website.
You may find some interesting bits of info to share with your client or maps to to add depth to your next pitch or proposal. I could go down the Census Data rabbit hole for days, literally. In addition to raw data, they provide analysis tools as well as written analyses on a ton of topics. Quick Facts, cross-tabs, and even infographic maps can be conjured up with a few clicks.
Have you heard of Megalopolis? Thanks to this jaw dropping visual, it’s easy to see why this population dense region was so named. It’s also fun to say. Megalopolis.
Jean Gottmann penned the term in his 1961 study about urban trends. He determined Megalopolis to be a region within the northeastern United States that extends from northern Virginia to southern New Hampshire. The area includes popular cities like Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston.
Today, approximately 50 million people live in this band of 103 counties, representing about 15% of all Americans.
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.
Visual representation of how quantitative + qualitative data differs
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? 😉
