The Handbook of Mobile Market Research: Tools and Techniques for Market Researchers

13 Panels, Lists, and Communities

INTRODUCTION

This chapter looks at three key ways that researchers connect with research participants, particularly when seeking to conduct quantitative research. These three routes are:

1. Access panels, i.e. a database of people who have signed up to take part in market research
2. Customer lists, i.e. the customers of the research client
3. Research communities, for example, MROCs, community panels, and insight communities.

All of these three routes are used to recruit participants for quantitative and qualitative research. However, traditional recruitment methods are also important for qualitative research, including mobile qualitative market research.

In addition to reviewing the key characteristics of these three approaches, the chapter includes a brief overview of alternative approaches.

ACCESS PANELS

Access panels are typically run by companies (or divisions of larger companies) specializing in making research participants available to other market research companies, independent market researchers, and organizations using research. In the language of the online access panel business, they are suppliers of sample. For example, companies like Research Now and Survey Sampling International specialize in providing sample, as does LightSpeed, which is part of the Kantar Group.

Access panels create databases of large numbers of people who have agreed to take part in market research, usually in return for incentives. The core business of an access ...