Versta Research is a marketing research and public opinion polling firm that helps you answer critical questions with customized research and analytical expertise.
Explore industry trends, research methods, and tips for your own research projects in the Versta Research Blog. All opinions are our own, and some may change over time.
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Omnibus surveys evolved as a way to share costs by combining survey questions from multiple clients. Because the biggest cost in conducting a survey is getting it set up and then finding a statistically representative sample of respondents to answer the questions, for some surveys it makes sense to pool resources and conduct a larger,…
Years ago I watched a film that documented how a new product developed. The idea was to create a pre-packaged sandwich for quick and easy lunches. As the idea made its way to the final product launch, it became something entirely different: a round tubular pretzel with a soft gooey interior – now a snack…
An omnibus survey is a shared-cost survey that can be a good way for you to save money on surveys. It works by combining survey questions from multiple clients and then collecting responses to all questions from the same group of respondents. After that, each client is given the data (the survey responses) to their…
One of the devilish problems with statistics in market research is that we deal with probabilities rather than simple yes/no answers. But you, as a business person, need to make clear-cut decisions: Should you launch the product, yes or no? Which one name should you choose for your new service? Which three areas should you…
In the previous post we noted that our industry is driven by data and information, which meant huge changes in the nature of our work over the last ten years. Looking ahead, here are what we predict will be the five biggest trends that will shape market research challenges in the decade to come:
As an industry driven by data and information, market research and public opinion polling has seen dramatic changes in the last ten years and will no doubt change quickly and in big ways during the next ten. Looking back, here are what we consider to be the five biggest changes that shaped current challenges faced…
For some reason I’m always a little surprised that people tell the truth on surveys. I like to think of my “healthy skepticism” as a professional asset, because it forces us to check and double check, corroborate and triangulate. Before we commit to the findings of a research effort, we need to feel 100% sure…
Bad pollsters give the market research industry a bad name, so it is encouraging when smart people figure out clever ways of ratting them out. What is a bad pollster? One who makes up data to support an agenda, or who asks biased questions to get preferred answers. The only good reason for doing research…
Making sense of data and statistics is not just a matter of being clear and precise, nor is it just a matter of keeping things simple (though all of these are important). To make numbers really compelling, we need to relate them to people’s experiences. If we want our audience to grasp the importance of…
Two paragraphs can be exceptionally thought provoking when they get right to the point. In a simple introduction to the New York Times Book Review last week, the editors highlighted two ideas about statistics and stories that we want to share.