News

Forrester Says Agencies Will Feel Pinch From DIY Survey Software

A boom in corporations choosing do-it-yourself survey software could leave research agencies feeling pinched this year, predicts Forrester Research.

Brad Bortner, an analyst with the IT market research agency says that the increased sophistication and drop in price are making in-house research more appealing for companies. Bortner predicts that at least one-quarter of the Fortune 100 will invest in their own panels this year, where they will engage and learn from their own customers.

“Market researchers are telling Forrester that the use of online panels and sophisticated tool sets are making them reconsider outsourcing the fielding of surveys,” states Bortner in Research Magazine (February 2008 issue).

Vision Critical has already seen this trend developing over the last few years. Since 2000, Vision Critical has developed custom online panels for hundreds of leading brands, such as Bloomingdales, SIRIUS Satellite Radio, Nestle, NBA, Virgin Mobile and TIVO.

To see the Research Magazine article in pdf, click here.

Posted on April 2, 2008
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Webinar: Explore the Next Frontier of Visual Questions

This webinar will explore the next frontier of online surveys using visual and interactive design techniques.

Learn how new advances in interactive visual questions can:
• Maximize respondent engagement
• Encourage more thorough, detailed responses to questions
• Generate higher panel retention rates.

In addition to showcasing the latest examples, we will deliver the findings from a research study comparing traditional text based online surveys with interactive visual question types. We’ll discuss how we tested these techniques, what we learned and how these results are influencing future designs.

These findings were originally presented at the CASRO Panel Conference in February 2008 to a standing room only crowd.

This session is a must for anyone looking for the latest techniques in survey design using interactive, visual question types.

Date: Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Time: 2:00 pm  EST

Click here to register. 

Posted on March 19, 2008
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Vision Critical Discusses Respondent Fatigue in VUE Magazine

The phenomenon of respondent fatigue in the world of online research is one of the most notorious challenges for researchers. This month’s VUE magazine features an article tackling how to take measures to avoid respondent fatigue, written by Amir Bozorgzadeh, Vision Critical’s Account Manager.

The article discusses four techniques designed to overcome respondent fatigue including: position, spread, inject, and enrich. Using these techniques in combination complement each other to maximize data quality and reduce respondent drop-off and flat-lining.

To read the article, click here.

To hear a podcast with Amir talking about the techniques, click here.

To view a presentation where Amir outlines the key strategies to prevent respondent fatigue, click here.

Posted on March 18, 2008
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Vision Critical Joins The Great Debate

Vision Critical will join hundreds of researchers in London to debate how to change business through better customer understanding at the MRS Annual Conference. It’s become more relevant than ever that research effectively contributes to the bottom-line.

Jeremy Holt, Sales Director of Vision Critical’s London office, will be at the event. He will be sharing examples of how Vision Critical clients have been able to generate significant business results from their custom research panel.

An international airline conducted twice as much research with their panel for 1/10th the cost of traditional methods. Another company saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by using their panel instead of an outside agency. A major retailer generated a 235% ROI in the first 6 months of their investment with Vision Critical.

If you’re interested in learning more about how a custom online panel can benefit your organization, watch one of our upcoming webinars or email Jenna Dorman.

Posted on March 17, 2008
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Westfield Insurance Creates Online Community With its Agency Partners

With a corporate culture rooted in its long heritage of building lasting relationships with independent agency partners, Westfield Insurance decided to use a new technology that is taking Fortune 500 companies by storm. Westfield enlisted the help of Vision Critical, a world leader in interactive research, to create an online branded panel with its agency partners.

The panel gives Westfield ongoing access to customer service representatives, sales producers and agency principals who distribute Westfield’s commercial and personal insurance solutions and are willing to participate in the company’s ongoing research. This enables Westfield to target agency personnel of different functions and positions for various research projects (e.g., web surveys, focus groups, polls, communities), to gather the right information from the right people, and incorporate implications into actionable plans.

“We rely on our strong relationships with our employees, agency partners and customers to keep us informed about their needs and expectations. This exchange of knowledge will, in turn, help us to refine our products, services, and resources so we can deliver the most value. It is important we learn about our customers as well as how we can best provide resources and support to our agency partners who solidify customer relationships and advocate our brand,” said Lisa Kozlowski. “Vision Critical’s software provides us with an innovative tool for accomplishing this with more efficiency and effectiveness than we could with more traditional data collection methods.”

“The insights Westfield will collect from their panel will significantly improve its ability to make faster, more informed decisions,” said Angus Reid, CEO of Vision Critical. “Westfield will be able to generate product and service development ideas, validate concepts, refine strategies and measure the effectiveness of different agency programs.”

In business for 160 years, Westfield Insurance, a member of Westfield Group, provides commercial and personal insurance in 18 states and surety services to customers in 28 states.  Westfield is one of the nation’s 50 largest property and casualty insurance groups, represented by a network of over 1,200 independent insurance agencies.  Westfield Group provides banking through Westfield BankSM and agency support through Westfield Services, Inc.  Learn more about Westfield Insurance at http://www.westfieldinsurance.com.

Vision Critical is the world leader in developing custom online panels and interactive research. At a moment's notice organizations can investigate the attitudes, behavior and opinions of existing or potential customers using interactive surveys, discussion forums and 3D environments.  Since 2000, Vision Critical has developed custom online panels for hundreds of leading brands, such as SIRIUS Satellite Radio, Nestle, MLB, Virgin Mobile and TIVO.

Posted on March 12, 2008
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