Conducting your own market research

• Once you have tied the need to research back to wider, strategic aims and objectives:

  • Formulate your research question(s), and have an idea of the final output;
  • Identify your target audience (Students? Applicants? Parents, teachers, other influencers? etc)

  Market research is broadly either:

  • Quantitative –generating data through questionnaires, pulse surveys etc,;
  • Qualitative – typically in discussion with individuals or small groups of 2-10 people, to dig into ideas and concepts where, for example, the research question is less defined and/or is covering a more sensitive area

  For example, a qualitative or group discussion might be able to pull together a list of ideas or responses to a question like ‘what things might persuade or deter you from going to university?’ The outputs from this could then be tested in a survey sent out to a wider audience.

Some simple rules for survey questions

It’s easy to set up a poll or survey; but it’s also easy to design a bad survey. Remember these points when pulling together a questionnaire:

• Think about the aims and objectives of your project. Will the questions you’ve drafted provide information which address them?
• Remember your respondent:
  • make questions as clear and unambiguous as possible and ensure your survey is as accessible as it can be (JISC offer some good advice);
  • what’s in it for the respondent? Why would they give you their time and input? Is the survey relevant to them? Should you incentivise, through a prize draw etc.?
• If you’re using scales for your respondents to use in your answers, consider when it’s best to use midpoints (e.g. for an informed neutral position), or don’t know/no opinion responses (for example, if you’re asking about a service or experience which some, but not all of your audience may have experienced
• Think carefully about using open or free-text questions. If your survey has a number of these, should you be carrying out a group exercise? Will people fill in multiple open questions in a survey? (usually, they won’t…) On the other hand, might respondents resent not having the chance at the end of the survey, to address concerns you may not have addressed in your questions?
• Think about the analysis – open questions are more difficult to interpret and quantify…;
• Remember to include a privacy notice and terms and conditions if you are holding a prize draw. Links to templates are included here; if you use these, you are advised to check wordings with the Legal Office.

Survey platforms

A reminder; if you intend surveying students, please contact the Student Survey Group; if you intend surveying applicants or enquirers, contact ROAM. This will help reduce survey fatigue and give a better, holistic view of how’s being researched, what they’re being asked, and whether or not the work you’d like to carry out has already been done.

If you have a new research question you feel can be addressed by a questionnaire or survey, you could use:

• Microsoft Forms is included in Microsoft 365;
• JISC online survey platform (access can be arranged through the University’s Learning Technology/Digital Learning Systems team);
• Other areas in the University may use different platforms; it’s worth checking with colleagues in different parts of the University (e.g. Student Experience, the Student Survey Group) for their experience and to find out what platforms they might recommend

 

Last updated 2/9/24