How can you use online surveys for advertising research?

1 Define your objectives

Before you create your online survey, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your advertising research. Do you want to understand your market, identify your customer segments, or evaluate your brand awareness? Do you want to test your ad concepts, messages, or formats, or measure your ad recall, preference, or impact? Depending on your objectives, you will need to choose the appropriate type of survey, the relevant questions, and the suitable metrics.

2 Choose your sample

Your online survey should reach a representative sample of your target audience, meaning that it reflects the characteristics and behaviors of the people who are most likely to see and respond to your ads. You can use various methods to recruit your sample, such as using online panels, social media, email lists, or your own website. However, you should also consider the size, diversity, and quality of your sample, and apply criteria such as quotas, screening, or incentives to ensure that you get enough and relevant responses.

3 Design your questions

Your online survey questions should be clear, concise, and relevant to your objectives. You should avoid using jargon, leading, or biased questions, and use a mix of closed-ended and open-ended questions to capture both quantitative and qualitative data. You should also use scales, ratings, or rankings to measure the intensity or frequency of your respondents' opinions or behaviors. Additionally, you should use visual aids, such as images, videos, or mock-ups, to show your ad concepts or stimuli to your respondents.

5 Analyze your data

Once you have collected your online survey responses, you need to analyze your data to extract meaningful insights for your advertising research. You should use descriptive statistics, such as frequencies, percentages, or averages, to summarize your data and identify patterns or trends. You should also use inferential statistics, such as correlations, comparisons, or regressions, to test your hypotheses and explore the relationships or differences between your variables. Moreover, you should use visualizations, such as charts, graphs, or tables, to present your data in an engaging and understandable way.

6 Apply your findings

The final step of using online surveys for advertising research is to apply your findings to improve your advertising strategy and performance. You should use your findings to refine your market segmentation, positioning, and targeting, and to optimize your ad creative, message, and format. You should also use your findings to evaluate your ad effectiveness and return on investment, and to identify areas for improvement or further research. Furthermore, you should communicate your findings to your stakeholders and clients, and use them to support your decisions and recommendations.