Australian Confessional Winning Converts

Leading Australian online MR company Whetstone are claiming extraordinary success for an open-ended online discussion technique named 'The Research Confessional'. The system runs open-ended email discussions using a bespoke software package and makes use of a panel of 21,000 people.

The discussions, the format of which has some similarities with the 'Moderated Email Groups' or MEGs(tm) devised by Virtual Surveys Ltd in the UK (see www.virtualsurveys.com/papers/paper_5.asp ), are said to bring in-depth, 'truthful and accurate' responses from consumers. The Research Confessional allows participants to open up through a hands-off approach giving anonymity from the other respondents, and obtains up to five times the depth of individual response seen in traditional focus groups, according to the company. Lack of peer pressure and time constraints mean that participants can respond at their leisure and do so with greater honesty.

Developed as a bespoke proprietary software package, the Research Confessional is based around a threaded discussion involving qualified individuals that have agreed to participate and log in with a user name and password. The session may take place over a period of time that can range from a few days to many months. Respondents are able to complete their replies at a time and place convenient for them. At the other end of the process, client observers can post private messages to the moderator and to other observers that are unseen by the respondents and each has an electronic transcript as an immediate record of the session.

For sampling purposes, the 'Confessional' uses Whetstone's online research panel of more than 21,000 people to break down many of the barriers to rapid turnaround, cross-regional research. Even more important, according to Whetstone, is the ease with which clients can accurately tap in to tightly defined and difficult to reach target groups and directly view their response.

Pharmaceuticals giant Glaxo SmithKline are among those singing the praises of the system. According to Despy Butler, Insights Manager and Planning Manager, GSK has found the Research Confessional to be an extremely useful tool. 'We were attracted to the Research Confessional through the issue we had with a particular project - in other words our marketing problem and objectives came first - and Whetstone offered us the solution we needed'. In this case the problem was to evaluate and compare two potential advertising executions thrown up by earlier, more traditional qual research, and the Confessional helped GSK to show a clear direction for their communications whilst saving time and costs.

'We were able to tap into the site and see the comments and reactions of the consumers as the research progressed' says Butler '- to experience the language and depth of emotion towards our advertising and allow our consumers to direct our communications'.

According to Whetstone consultant Stephen Spencer, who developed the Research Confessional, 'If we want to talk to Chartered Accountants, for example, we can do so through the Research Confessional without interfering with their business, home or travel schedules, as they do not have to travel to a focus group, they simply log in at their leisure. The client company commissioning the study... can watch the whole process and ... avoid potential bias in their final decision making process. They also have the ability to change questions and follow up responses'.

Whetstone is the online research division of The Leading Edge.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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