Advantages: Fairly well paid, flexible employment Disadvantages: No guarantee of work, can be difficult, having to pay expenses, are you sure to get paid?
I think most of us take part in some form of market research, even if it's only the occasional Ciao survey. I've taken part in many of those, and similar research, myself. If you want to participate in such surveys, I suggest looking round at sites like Brand Institute and Global Test Market (reviews of most of these sites/schemes are of course on Ciao). I'm going to focus on the other side, carrying out the research.
Again, I know many Ciao users ... ...thought this might interest people. The idea of making a reasonable income for flexible, irregular work without being tied to a specific contract or employer is pretty appealing, particularly for students and housewives, or those temporarily unemployed from 'proper' jobs. I personally was offered the opportunity via a mailing list at university, so I can't give much advice on where to start, but I can tell you about my experience so you can see what ...
a-true-ben 09.09.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: Nothing if you do it right - plus pay and flexibility Disadvantages: Everything if you do it wrong - plus is boring
Just wanted to write about the actual work too, this is the only op I will be updating as I think the past is the past, and where most of my ops belong!!
I have worked in market research for well over a year now, and so I think I am qualified to follow on from ‘Flod’s’ opinion (which is worth a read after this one!) about this particular subject. I am going to try not to be to rude in this opinion, but if I am, sorry, it is just ... ...know where to start because the whole process I go through each time I go into work is so repetitive, and so there are so many annoying aspects which occur regularly. The first thing that I must get straight first away is that research does not mean selling. "What ya sellin’?" is asked…not every shift, but I would say every other week to myself, and definitely daily to people in the company I work for. (Facts International Ltd. Sorry ...
danradders 20.01.2001 (10.05.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: Chose hours to work as employee. Gives Company insight into how goods are perceived Disadvantages: Plenty of scams on part of researchers.
...very helpful opinion by another member on Market Research which prompted me to write my own sorry tale.
Some years back, being short of money and having to care for a young baby, I underwent training to become a market researcher. Once trained I was able to chose my own hours and select the jobs I wanted to do.
The first thing you are taught is that people fall into different categories. Did you know for example that if you are a doctor, surgeon ... ...unemployed you fall to the dreadful depths of being an E. Not only that but, depending on your qualifications, you are classed as A1 if you are a HIGHLY qualified professional or in the case of a tradesman with a qualification a C2.So if someone stops you in the town centre, armed with clipboard and pen she/he has obviously eyed you up carefully beforehand to see if they think you fall into the correct category! Pity help the consultant who has just ...
ANNJSEC 29.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: be direct, and we will listen Disadvantages: sometimes we are misleading - ask if you aren't sure
How many times have you been rung up on the phone and found out that it is someone wanting to do some research on the other end? A lot, right? Well I hope this article will help you to cope with us market researchers.
OK. So the reason why I am writing this, is because I am a Market Researcher myself (on the phone), and I wanted to give you some advice about how to handle us. Whether this is to get rid of us quickly, to speed along the survey, or ... ...also use this to voice my opinions and explain why you shouldn’t be angry at us, and show how it is very hard to stop us ringing you (but not impossible).
Firstly: When answering the phone to someone doing market research, I would ask you to be polite. We are people just like you, and we have feelings! I don’t think you would like a client on the end of the phone to abuse you and use various expletives, would you?
Secondly: We don’t ...
flod 08.01.2001 (11.05.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
If ever there were a more worthless occupation of people’s time I certainly can’t think of it at this moment in time. Market Research is generally conducted in one of two ways – either via the telephone or via people in the street who will stop and ask you questions. Either way companies pay agencies (reputable or otherwise) thousands of pounds to go out and canvass information from the general public on what they like, dislike, ... ...and so forth.
The problem with market research is in the methodology. Market research is essentially a means of obtaining feedback - anyone who knows anything about psychology realises that feedback has to be a voluntary exchange of views between two interested parties – chances are, when you phone up Mrs Smith in Aberdeen whilst she’s in the middle of her dinner then she won’t be that interested in telling you whether she is interested ...
LostWitness 13.07.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: get paid for little effort, get free stuff, its easy. Disadvantages: some of it takes too long, can be boring
I laugh at the people that hurriedly pass market researchers by saying: "Not today thankyou."; "Sorry, I`m in a rush."; etc. Please think twice before doing this!! These people are being paid to simply ask questions and not to perform painful dental surgery. With this in mind I`ll now talk of my own experience of how market research is not only painless but more to the point it is more often than not REWARDING....
I`ve received quite a few 'benefits' ... ...time I recall was when i was about 15 and a polite women asked if I`d take a consumer survey home and in return they`d send me £5. Well of course I was up for that and had every intention of completing the survey. At first I was answering the questions as honeslty as I could as to make their data valuable. After twenty pages or so I began to lose heart and so stopped being too worried if I didn`t quite give my true opinion. I started to tick boxes ...
davey 19.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: easy money Disadvantages: they don't let you do many
A few weeks ago I discovered that there is another side to Market Research, from the endless surveys in the street or on the phone. That, I was enlightened to hear, is Quantative Research and asks lots of people the same list of questions to find statistical answers, e.g. x% of housewives vote labour/drive Astra’s, etc.
From a friend I found out about Qualitative Research, where they ask a small amount of people a lot of indepth questions, ... ...time. I think it’s sometimes called a Focus Group – but this was nothing to do with politics!
I had to go along to the research office in Central London after work for 2 hours, so it does write off an evening. The subject to discuss was modems, and I wondered how exciting this was going to be for 2 whole hours but I was taken by surprise, it actually went quite fast. The research was led by a young man who was very enthusiastic and good ...
Sharkz 23.04.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Member Advice on Market Research
Advantages: easy money Disadvantages: you can get wet
A couple of years ago I used to work for a market research company. What I had to do was to take out a bundle of surveys in to the town centre and get people to agree to answer the questions on them.
Sometimes there were twelve to do and I got paid £30 plus expenses for that. It isn't quite so easy as it sounds. The weather can be cold and wet and you do get very miserable after you've been ignored by your first dozen potential victims. Sometimes ... ...had two days to complete and for that I was paid £50 plus out of pocket expenses and a generous meal allowance. The one was a bit harder because you had to assess people according to what you thought their socio-economic group was. For example, it could take ages to find the last couple of A's within the 50 to 60 age group. I even had a little book which told me which group to put people into.
The very hardest thing was to then get a name, address ...
janharper 14.05.2001
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