Are Online Surveys as Accurate as Offline Surveys
The advent of the Internet has seen an emergence of online surveys. An increasing number of surveys are now being carried out online. This is because there are many advantages offered by an online survey vis-à-vis an offline survey. However, it is worth remembering that both online as well as offline surveys have their own pros and cons. The big question remains whether online surveys are as accurate as offline surveys? Research has shown that online surveys are more accurate than offline surveys. The main reasons for this accuracy are:
Respondent's convenience: Many times it so happens that the interviewee receives a call just as he is in a meeting with his boss. Or consider this, a person has had a bad bay at his office and an interviewer comes asking about the places he likes to visit for a vacation. Under such circumstances, there exists every possibility of getting answers that the interviewee might not have given if he would have been in a good mood. With an online survey, a person will give answers as per his convenience, which increases the rate of getting correct and more frank answers.
Elimination of Human errors: Online surveys eradicate the possibility of occurrence of human errors. Since the questionnaire directly reaches the end-user, the chances of getting more correct answers increases. As humans fill in the data in an offline survey, the result is error prone. It might be a factual error or there might be an error on the part of the interviewer. This leads to a distortion in the result, which decreases its accuracy.
No external factors: In case of offline surveys, external factors can become obstacle in understanding the message. The interviewer might not understand an accent rich language or there may be noise of the traffic etc. Even in a telephonic interview, it might so happen that the line is not clear or there are many disturbances. Such factors are taken care of in an online survey.
Improves efficiency: Since the data is compiled electronically, it is more accurate and there is no question of error. Humans, while compiling the data, can commit a number of mistakes. This shortcoming is corrected by an electronically compiled data.
No multiple responses: In an offline survey, it is often observed that the same person fills in the form under different names. It is also observed that sometimes the interviewer himself fills the forms using fake names. This seriously undermines the accuracy of the result compiled from such kind of data. An online survey reduces this deficiency since the IP address can be checked to eliminate instances of multiple responses.
More time to think for the answers: Online surveys give the respondents time to think. There is no interviewer breathing down their neck. Since the respondent has more time to think, the probability of him responding correctly increases. For e.g. If a person is asked about his favorite TV soap, be sure of at least three names popping up in his head at the same time. If the survey is being conducted offline, he will give the name of the serial which first comes to his mind. But if the survey is being conducted online, the interviewee will have more time to ponder on the question and give an appropriate answer.
More frank answers: An online survey increases the possibility of getting more frank answers. This is more so when the questions are personal in nature. A person may not feel comfortable to answer questions related to his salary or health to a total stranger. But he will not mind answering it on the net, as his identity remains concealed.
More time to understand the questions: An online survey provides a better scope for understanding the questions. A respondent can go through the question over and over again. He cannot do so in a telephonic interview. Even when a person is personally interviewed, he cannot ask the interviewer to repeat the question more than thrice as he might not feel comfortable in doing so.
Better inputs, better results: Online surveys lead to a variety of people answering the question. Nowadays, most of the people do have e-mails and an access to the Internet. Hence it is possible to know the opinion of variety of people. In an online medium it is also possible to include various cross-section of the society. This leads to better inputs being received during the data gathering stage, which also has a positive impact on the final outcome. For e.g. if an international magazine that has its subscriber base spread from USA to India, wants to carry out a survey, the online medium can prove the best option. Since geographical boundaries do not exist in the virtual world, it is possible to gather the opinion of all the readers who are located in various countries. The data collected from across the world will also help the magazine in coming up with a better-informed opinion.
More aids to answer: In an online survey it is possible to include various aids that might help the respondent in answering the question. This is not possible in a telephonic interview. Even in personal interviews, there is a limit to which a person can explain as he is always bound by a time schedule.
Online surveys are thus a better option as compared to offline surveys.
