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Dimension Research is a marketing research company. Our clients, companies that provide goods and services to consumers and businesses, rely on your opinions to improve those offerings. They ask us to contact you (and other people like you) to ask what you think about the merchandise they provide and the services they offer. The companies do not contact you directly because that may bias your responses to their questions. Does that mean I won’t know what product, or what company, a survey is about? That’s correct. We don’t want your impressions (good or bad) of a company to influence your opinions about the product or service we’re studying. Are you trying to sell me something? No. Dimension Research is not a telemarketing company. Some telemarketing companies will try to sell you something under the guise of research. We do not believe in conducting business in that manner. Fortunately, new privacy laws currently make it more difficult for telemarketers to pose as legitimate survey researchers. In fact, in many states it is against the law for telemarketers to call posing as marketing researchers when their goal is to sell: They must identify early in the call their intent to sell you something. Dimension Research interviewers will always introduce themselves, explain the reason for their call and courteously answer any questions you might have. If it is not convenient for you to complete the survey when we call, our interviewers will try to set up a more suitable time for you to participate in the survey. My telephone number is unlisted. How did you get my number? We obtain telephone numbers from several sources. In most studies, we want each household to have an equal opportunity to be interviewed; therefore, we (and other research organizations) work with source companies that have sophisticated procedures to develop lists of phone numbers for our use. The lists are randomly generated by computer, so unlisted numbers can be included. The companies we use adhere to the same strict views of participant privacy as we do. One of the companies we use is Survey Sampling. Please feel free to visit the firm’s web site (www.surveysampling.com) if you are interested in learning more about how a sample for survey research is created. I have my number on a do not call list. You shouldn’t be calling me. Because Congress—and legislatures in states that have their own do-not-call lists—realizes the value of marketing research, our profession is not included in the privacy restrictions. Dimension Research adheres to very strict guidelines administered by the Council of American Survey Research Organizations (CASRO) on the treatment of respondents and the importance of your right to privacy. More information on these guidelines can be found at the CASRO website (http://www.casro.org/whatis.cfm). Why don’t you tell me who the study is being conducted for? There are several good reasons:
Why do the products I receive to test come in plain/generic containers? Just as we do not want to bias your responses by informing you of the company sponsoring the research, we do not want to bias your opinions by showing you a brand name. For that reason, we typically package products sent for testing in plain white packaging with no brand names. Although you may receive product packaged this way, be assured that this product is safe. In fact, it has likely undergone more testing and packaging controls than the products you buy in stores! Will your clients ever see my individual responses? No. The information we report to our clients is aggregated and reported in summary. In some instances, we do ask for your name and address. This information is typically collected if we need to send you a product to test. We may also use this information if we need to contact you again for some reason. Any personal information you give us is strictly confidential and will never be released to anyone without your expressed permission. Dimension Research adheres to the CASRO Code of Standards for Survey Research, which requires survey research companies to protect and ensure the respondents right to privacy. For more information on CASRO and the protection of your personal information, visit the CASRO website (http://www.casro.org/whatis.cfm). I was eating dinner when you called. Can you call me at a more convenient time? Yes. If our call comes at an inconvenient time, the interviewer will gladly try and schedule a more convenient time. We may have reached you during dinner because we try and call in the evening when most people are home. This is an attempt to give every household in our sample an equal opportunity to participate in the survey. We normally try a telephone number up to three times in order to complete a survey. We will not typically try to call more than once a day. Our calls will come at different times in the evening in an attempt to reach someone. We will not call after 9:00 p.m. unless you specifically request it, and we try not to interview on Sundays. My telephone rings and when I answer no one is there. Are you making those calls? No. Dimension Research does not use this technology when calling. Telemarketing companies—the ones that want you to buy something—generally assume some people will not be home to answer the phone; therefore, they often use a computer to dial multiple phone numbers. You can detect those calls because there is a brief—but definite—silent period while the computer seeks a telemarketer who is available to talk to you. If no one is free, the computer will hang up. Because we appreciate your time, and your willingness to talk with us, Dimension Research does not use this technology. We dial your number only when one of our interviewers is ready to speak with you. Can you add me to your list of people who you contact for studies? Thanks for the offer, but Dimension Research does not currently maintain a database of individuals interested in participating in studies. Our clients are trying to obtain opinions from as representative a sample of their potential customers as possible. For that reason we typically draw a random sample for each study in order to give all who might be qualified an equal opportunity for participation in the survey. Your opinions as a survey participant are important to us – and to our clients. If you have any additional questions, please contact us. |
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