Taking research on the road

Editor’s note: Debbie Peternana is president of Dallas-based ReRez Marketing Research. Kim Harrison is president of Focus Forward, a Blue Bell, Pa., research firm.

Each type of ethnographic research study requires different preparation and processes. Whether you are conducting in-home interviews, party groups, in-office interviews, shop-alongs or dinner groups, often the mistake is made of trying to do them all the same way.

Recruiting for ethnographic studies brings its own special set of procedures and problems. The chances of miscommunication during recruiting are extremely high with ethnographies due to the number of people involved: phone recruiters, another person doing the follow-up, another calling with directions and a reminder, and the person actually conducting the interview. All of them usually possess different levels of experience.

Just as a kickoff call with a client at the start of a project is valuable so is a kickoff meeting with the people who will be doing the phone recruitment, follow-up and actual in-home interviews. Make an internal checklist and train them to what to ask and how to assess what they are hearing the respondent say or not say. It may take an additional hour, but it will be worth it if an interviewer finds him/herself with a respondent who has nothing to say once they are in their home.

Here are a few concerns your potential respondents may have during the call. Add these to your kickoff meeting with the interviewers so that they know what they may be asked.

  • Should I let these people in my home?
  • How many interviewers will be in the home?
  • When will I be paid? How do I know you will pay me?
  • Will this interview be taped by a videographer? What is that tape used for?

The recruiters, as we know, have a difficult job. They must find qualified respondents who are excited about participating and also build trust with respondents. To further build trust, consider having the moderator call the respondent the week of the interview to introduce themselves. This can go a long way toward making the respondent feel much more comfortable!

In-home interviews

The amount of information derived from in-home interviews is only as good as the respondent recruited to do them. This is where quality means everything. What are the challenges to in-home interviews and how do we overcome them? In speaking to fellow researchers and to clients, we have received valuable information on how to handle the challenges associated with conducting this type of interview.

In general, prior to starting the recruiting, review the kickoff call notes and make sure the interviewers are clear on how they are expected to work with the database or list (if applicable) and how the client defines a “good” respondent. Also consider having quotas and a list of harder-to-get “like to haves.”

Challenge: Getting respondents who are not just qualified but also excited to participate.

Solution: Articulation questions are key! Include questions in the screener that help to determine how articulate the respondent is.

Challenge: During the screener, too much information comes at the respondent at one time.

Solution: Put important points in the beginning of the screener and have the recruiter include them at the end of the screener in summary. Include important points in the confirmation e-mail in bullet-point fashion. Request a confirmation that the e-mail was received.

Challenge: Sometimes all information is not covered in the screener and follow-up: details, dates, times, expectations, incentives, etc.

Solution: Have someone review the confirmation e-mail to insure there is nothing missing.

Challenge: Making sure the respondent doesn’t feel ambushed by the number of people who arrive at their house.

Solution: Let the respondent know how many people will be attending the interview, to keep that environment of trust. Don’t send 10 people when two are expected.

Challenge: Keeping the respondent comfortable with having strangers in their house.

Solution: Let the respondent know if the interviewer/moderator will be going into any personal spaces such as bedrooms or closets. Also tell them what they should leave as-is, in terms of cleaning, etc. Some research may be about the space as it is and not after it has been cleaned!

A happy moderator is also important. Consider the following:

  • Travel distances of 20 miles (30-40 minutes) work well. You don’t want to have your moderator running all over town!
  • When doing city and rural interviews, consider doing city one day and rural the next.
  • While respondents may be hesitant to invest over two hours of their time, do not misrepresent time commitment. The moderator will have an impatient respondent on their hands!
  • Double-confirm all contact information and addresses. There is nothing worse then sending a moderator to an interview and arriving at the wrong house.

Party/friend groups

Challenge: The host respondent assists with the recruitment.

Solution: Make sure your hostess knows the details, such as how many friends should be invited, etc.

Challenge: Party groups can be longer than other types of in-home interviews and can end up being less structured.

Solutions: Ask the hostess what will motivate the guests. Serve food and provide an incentive for the best homework. Play a creative game. If alcohol is served, provide a ride home whenever possible or make sure there is a plan to safely get the guests home. If parents will be bringing young children, a babysitter can entertain while the parents share valuable opinions.

In-office interviews

The biggest challenge you may find with workplace or in-office interviews is permission to conduct the interviews in the office and the use of video equipment. In this day and age, some offices simply will not allow a videographer to film the interview or interviews. Ask if you can take pictures instead! Many times, smaller offices (less than 50 employees) will allow you to do interviews and film.

This is where building rapport and trust will come in handy, as you may be required to speak to a manager in order to get permission to conduct the interviews. Make sure the person who is requesting permission comes across as credible and professional and has been trained on how to request clearance for in-office interviews. If need be you could offer an incentive to the gatekeeper, either in the form of cash, lunch for the office or a donation.

Having the moderator call can also alleviate any concerns and build trust. Be prepared to send over information about what the company can expect and explain that the mentioning of proprietary information can be avoided if required. In most cases managers or gatekeepers are just nervous about how it will affect other workers. There may also be concern that proprietary information will be provided and that they may get in trouble.

Challenge: Company managers or gatekeepers may worry that the length of the interview and the timing of it could disrupt productivity.

Solution: Keep the interview to one hour. If two hours are necessary you may consider one hour in the office and the second during lunch. Morning interviews work well also but steer clear of doing interviews at the end of the day. People are trying to wrap up and go home and you may not have their full attention.

Challenge: The phrase “research session” may have negative connotations for respondents.

Solution: Use the term “appointment” instead.

Challenge: Co-workers get involved and the moderator has trouble gaining control.

Solution: If a client would like to speak to the primary respondent first, and then speak to a few co-workers, have the moderator call the primary before recruitment of the co-workers.

Challenge: Your crew is turned away when you arrive. Respondents don’t remember or are too busy.

Solution: Make sure a confirmation e-mail is sent summarizing all expectations and that participation rules are negotiated ahead of time. Get it signed and have it with you so that you can present it upon request.

Shop-alongs

Use the same process to recruit as you would with other ethnographies. As always, be prepared.

Challenge: Trust issues and safety concerns about participating in a shop-along.

Solutions: Meet the respondent in the store to avoid trust issues. If you meet at their home, have the moderator take a separate car to the shop-along.

If you are planning to meet in a smaller store, it is smart to call the store beforehand and ask permission.

Dinner groups

In addition to the standard processes used for group parties or individual interviews make sure that you are communicating your expectations for the interview.

We have seen dinner groups done many ways. Some include dinner as the incentive but we have found that dinner plus a monetary incentive is the most effective approach. Inform the respondents of the distance they will be driving and how long you will expect them to stay. Some people go out to dinner or spend a short amount of time eating dinner and you do not want their expectations to be out of sync with yours.

Let them know during the initial call and the follow-up what they will need to order (if there is a requirement for that) as well as what costs will be covered by the client and what costs are the respondent’s responsibility.