Jo Dipnall

The Australian Market and Social Research Society (AMSRS) and Association of Market and Social Research Organisations (AMSRO) have commissioned Jo Dipnall from CogNETive to conduct a best practice methodological review of online research.

The results will be reported to industry at the AMSRS national conference in October and in the meantime will form the basis of a new standard called Quality Standards for Online Access Panels (QSOAP) being developed by the Online Taskforce, a joint AMSRS/AMSRO committee.

‘The market and social research industry has been going through a "technological revolution" over the past two decades, resulting in outcomes not unlike those of the industrial revolution of the nineteenth century,' says Jo.

‘The hyper-advance of research technology has meant that the research industries have partially lost some of their grip on what is actually being performed in the marketplace. Suddenly, new players, who are not research oriented, have taken space that had previously been thought sacred. Internet Access Panels (IAP) have found their way into the research arena, and not always from traditional research organisations. The emergence of "tremor panels", where companies set up specialist panels to "help the brand develop its product in cooperation", are blurring the boundaries between marketing and market research. Most companies in the Fortune 2000 now use online panels for their research requirements. The Australian market and social research industry bodies are now faced with monitoring a myriad of players.'

Jo's research focuses on whether IAPs deliver what they promise, including high response rates, cost-effective data collection and representative samples. It will also assess how research issues such as non-response bias and the professional respondent are being handled. She will assess domestic and international sources such as academic journals and industry publications as well as conduct interviews with industry, academia and relevant bodies.

‘The time has come for the market and social research industry to step back and review what is being performed in its industry,' says Jo. ‘It is now time for the industry to review current practices and move forward with some clear "best practice" methodological guidelines. It is time to clarify what is and what is not valid market and social internet research practices.'

In parallel with all of the above, AMSRS executive director Elissa Molloy sits on the international ISO standards committee that is developing a global set of process standards for access panels (both on and off line panels) and she will be attending a meeting, armed with the findings of the research, in Berlin this September.

The Online Taskforce aims to establish the QSOAP best practice auditing guidelines for online panel research in Australia well before the new ISO standard takes effect in 2009.

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