Market research glossary

An observation room is usually present within a market research facility. Used during in-person research methods, such as Focus groups or Usability testing sessions, the room is often set up with a One-way mirror and audiovisual equipment so that clients and researchers can observe participants’ behaviour and interactions with products and each other. The benefits of this discreet observation style include being able to observe the natural behaviour of participants without disturbing their real-time interactions or subliminally influencing participants taking part in research.

Also known (somewhat confusingly) as a Two-way mirror. In a Viewing facility, a window that separates the client viewing area from the respondents’ area. From the respondents’ side the window looks like a mirror, but from the client side it looks like a piece of tinted glass, allowing the client representatives to see the respondents.

Online research typically held over the course of several days. Participants will be expected to contribute to activities such as online chats and respond to stimulus material that is provided by a moderator. Usually, online bulletin boards offer flexibility by allowing participants to respond at a time that suits them, which helps to reduce the drop-out rate. Also used to describe the technology platforms that support this type of research.

Online market research is rapidly growing in use around the world. The benefits of conducting market research online are fast access to a wide range of participants, easy-to-use tools to assist survey creation, and research that can be done anytime, anywhere. Methodologies that can be conducted online include online focus groups, online in-depth interviews, online surveys, and online bulletin boards.

An online panel (also known as an Access panel or a Market research panel) is a pre-screened group of individuals who volunteer to take part in surveys, focus groups or other types of market research. An online panel is easy to reach out to via email or text, making recruitment of a specific target audience for any type of market research fast and simple.

A digital questionnaire used to collect data from respondents via the internet (i.e. the data is entered on a laptop or mobile device). The data collected is usually quantitative in nature, although it is possible in principle to collect qualitative opinions via an online survey. Most market research agencies use a purpose-built online survey platform to collect this type of data because these platforms offer a wide variety of question types, routing options, panel integrations, fraud prevention tools and data analysis and reporting options but it is also possible to conduct small surveys using online tools which are bundled with office productivity suites, such as Microsoft Forms and Google Forms.

Also known as an Unstructured question or just an open question. In quantitative research, questions that the respondents answer in their own words rather than selecting from pre-defined answers. In qualitative research, questions that encourage participants to be elaborative in their response (e.g. questions that begin What? Where? Why? How?). Open-ended questions can provide more qualitative information than closed questions but a survey with too many open-ended questions can tire respondents.