A Refreshing Change in Respondent Profiling: Profile Express™
By Hugh Davis, Cofounder, Executive Vice President, Greenfield Online

How do we get more people to participate in the Market Research process? In a very real way, it’s all about respect – respect for panelists’ precious time and, even more importantly, respect for the importance of fresh, relevant respondent data.

Based on proprietary technology, Greenfield Online’s (GFOL) breakthrough approach to respondent profiling, Profile Express™ provides constantly refreshed data, while minimizing respondents’ time commitment. That means that when selecting sample for a research project, you can match panelists to surveys relevant to their lives and interests RIGHT NOW, rather than making hit-or-miss match-ups based on potentially outdated profile data. The end-result? More relevant, focused market data for clients and a more enjoyable experience for respondents.


The Amazing Shrinking Time Commitment
In a world of instant messaging and sound bites, it’s the worst of clichés to say that people are pressed for time. Nowhere does this dearth of available time have a more profound effect than in the market research industry, where surveys continue to get longer and longer and researchers are constantly on the lookout for ways to deal with The Amazing Shrinking Time Commitment.

One critical innovation has been online surveys, which allow respondents to complete questionnaires anywhere, anytime, rather than being at the mercy of survey-interviewers at the mall or on the phone. And wireless market research – a groundbreaking approach GFOL is championing – allows respondents to use their mobile phones or PDAs to take short, targeted surveys while waiting in line or coffee breaks.

But, across the industry, panel companies have failed to modify one important process – profiling – to accommodate today’s time-starved respondents.

Typically, a potential respondent joins a panel by filling out a basic registration form establishing her identity. Then she is asked to answer a number of specific profile questions, which zero-in on lifestyle choices and interests. This initial profiling experience can include hundreds of questions. Why do we ask respondents to answer profile questions? While time-consuming, this exercise allows researchers to match the right respondents to the right surveys, expanding survey opportunities for panelists and providing clients with the most relevant market data. This shotgun profiling approach puts the entire burden of the profiling process on the respondent.

It is understandable that a respondent should be given the opportunity to complete an extensive profile when initiating a relationship with a panel company. But there are two problems: Generally, respondents are asked to wade through and update their complete and extensive list of profile questions to keep the data up-to-date. Not surprisingly, many respondents leap over this process, often leaving their data outdated and limiting the survey opportunities available to them – thus making it harder for researchers to collect the fresh, targeted data they need.

Second, what happens to the respondents who may be willing to participate in surveys but do not want to sit though answering hundreds of profiles questions, many of which are irrelevant to the respondent or are never actually used in survey?

It is time that sample suppliers take on some of the burden of profiling and make it easier for panelists to participate.


A New, Laser-like Focus
That’s where GFOL’s Profile Express™ comes in. Rather than being asked to rewrite history by sorting through and updating a multitude of profile questions, whenever a panelist logs onto the system, he is presented with a short list of questions that may need to be updated. Using advanced, proprietary technology, the system chooses questions based on the panelists’ demographic profile and questions that match real surveys at that time. Typically, that means that every time a respondent interacts with GFOL he is asked to answer a manageable 10 targeted questions, helping to update critical data in this profile. And, because the system is dynamic, it presents a new set of questions with each new log-in, all of which are timely and relevant to the respondent.

In fact, the technology behind Profile Express™ is very similar to that used as the basis for GFOL’s Panel Acquisition and Management™ (PAM™) system. This technology enables the efficient recruitment and management of panels by dynamically profiling members, and providing targeted recruitment and creative campaigns that continue throughout the member experience. Like Profile Express, PAM leads to a positive member experience resulting in increased participation and better data.

Since instituting Profile Express in early 2008, we are already seeing a marked improvement in respondent experience, leading inevitably to larger, more qualified samples. By removing some of the time burden, we have made it easier for well-qualified respondents to avail themselves to participate in surveys. At the same time, we are able to provide clients with the freshest, most relevant data possible.

At Greenfield Online, we’ve developed SMART™ technology to constantly improve the survey experience and ensure optimal data quality. Profile Express™ is just one of component of Greenfield Online’s SMART™ technology platform and another step in a continuous process.