Australia is the sixth largest country in the world by total area, but only ranks around 54th in terms of its population. The population is highly urbanised, with the majority living in major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. As the cities with the largest populations, Sydney and Melbourne are the main centres for face-to-face market research.
About 30% of Australia’s population was born outside the country. The countries contributing the most to this total are the UK, India, China, the Philippines, New Zealand and Vietnam.
Australia was granted partial independence from the UK in 1901 and full independence in 1942, although the British monarch is still the head of state. The country has a federal democratic system of government with two main political parties and compulsory voting. The federal government is based in Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, an area ceded by New South Wales for the new capital in 1911.
Australia has a troubled history with the indigenous Australians, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who represent about 3.2% of the population. In recent years there have been various moves towards reconciliation between the indigenous and non-indigenous populations, but major differences remain in areas such as health, education and economic prospects.
Australia has an advanced mixed economy dominated by services but much of its recent growth can be attributed to the extraction and export of minerals. Commodities make up two-thirds of the value of Australia’s exports so the economy tends to do well when commodity prices are high and badly when they are low.
UTC +8 Australian Western Standard Time (Perth)
UTC +9:30 Australian Central Standard Time (Adelaide)
UTC +10 Australian Eastern Standard Time (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane)
These time differences may increase from October to April when some states operate Daylight Saving Time
Focus groups allow participants to combine experiences and perspectives to explore ideas in depth. Commonly used during creative and conceptual development, they help you understand your customers’ needs, perceptions, and beliefs.
In-depth interviews (IDIs), where a moderator interviews a single respondent, can be conducted face-to-face, online, or over the phone. They are ideal for B2B research and for exploring delicate subjects with consumers and hard-to-reach groups.
Ethnographic research is a qualitative research method in which the researchers observe participants using a product or service, or carrying out other activities, in their own environment, typically at work or at home.
An online bulletin board (OBB) is an online forum for qualitative market research that enables participants to log into to carry out research tasks or reply to questions asked by a moderator at their own pace, typically over a period of a few days.
A market research online community (MROC) is similar to an online bulletin board (OBB). However, unlike an OBB, on online community may be used to serve multiple purposes, and the community may remain active for weeks, months or even years.
User experience (UX) testing is a qualitative research methodology which involves directly observing and interviewing a participant using a product or service. It is widely used for testing new versions of apps and websites before they are launched.
Customer experience (CX) testing evaluates how customers interact with a product, service, or digital platform. It helps identify usability issues and overall satisfaction to improve the customer journey and ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience.
A video survey is a type of unmoderated qualitative research in which survey takers respond to a series of instructions or questions by making short videos using their smartphone, either in ‘selfie’ mode or to record an activity.
Vox pop research involves making recordings of people, usually members of the public, responding to questions. These clips are often used in research to illustrate public opinion on widely known topics, brands, or products.
Online surveys are a cost-effective research method with great flexibility in design. Automated data handling allows the results to be available quickly and many online surveys can be completed on smartphones, helping to improve the response rate.
CATI (computer-assisted telephone interviewing) leverages technology to reach those who aren’t online. CATI interviews follow an electronic script with built in routing and type in the respondent’s answers to each question as the interview proceeds.
CAPI (computer-assisted personal interviewing) is a form of face-to-face interviewing where the interviewer reads the survey questions from a tablet device and inputs the respondent’s answers directly to the device.
The client wanted to hear from a large number of respondents who were either news industry professionals or key opinion leaders in 22 countries. Over a five-month period, we successfully screened, recruited and scheduled nearly 500 B2B profiles for a mix of face-to-face and online research.
Our client was assisting a major online video streaming service which wanted to refine and test the way it communicated an important service change to subscribers. We recruited 12 recent subscribers and 12 tenured subscribers in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, South Korea and the UK.
The end client wanted to speak with residents who had been directly affected by wildfires in recent years and first responders who had been involved in tackling the fires. We arranged focus groups in Australia, Indonesia and Mexico. We recruited around 30 residents and 20 first responders across these three countries.
A food delivery company with operations in many countries asked us to support user research to evaluate the consumer experience of ordering food deliveries via their app in Australia, Canada, Germany and Japan and compare it with key competitors in each market.
A global technology company wanted to obtain views of informed members of the public and people with a professional interest in a public policy topic relating to their sector. In each country we organised two focus groups in a viewing facility with opinion elites and four interviews with informed administrators.
We helped an NGO to complete a global climate sustainability study by arranging 42 online interviews across 16 markets with environment and sustainability experts from a variety of backgrounds. This successful project demonstrates our expertise in managing complex recruitment challenges across diverse markets.
