Lynda Partner’s Marketing Morceaux

Marketers have been using paper survey forms to gather consumer information at your events for years. We print them, people fill them out and then we send them to a processing centre to enter into a database. Now we’re hearing about using electronic media such as personal computers, tablets, kiosks or personal digital assistants instead of paper.

The real question is “Should we switch or is this case a case of fixing what ain’t broken?”

I believe there are (at least) seven good reasons for using electronic data capture instead of paper. Some are more important than others, depending on the type of event, the audience and the type of data you are collecting.

1) Better Security
This is important! Data captured at events can include names, addresses, e-mails, bank account information and social security numbers. Consider the legal and public relations risks of misplacing or losing this information as the paper containing the data follows its processing route. Read my blog on this subject. A trustworthy partner can provide this service for you, storing the encrypted information on a locked down data capture device. This means that even if someone could access the data, it would not be decipherable. The data remains secure while it wings its way over a wireless network and to your end client’s customer relationship management (CRM) system.

2) Improved Accuracy
The accuracy of what information on paper depends on two things: the willingness of a consumer to provide the correct data, and the ability of the data entry person to read and understand answers provided. Electronic data capture uses software intelligence to improve accuracy by auto-populating city, state and country based on zip or postal code to prevent entering information that conflicts with answers to a previous question, and so on. Features such as spellchecking ensure open answers make sense, and that only one response is selected if that is what is desired. Software can also apply logic to ensure answers conform to a format that improves accuracy, for example, e-mail address format, date and age (where a minimum age is required).

3) More Complete
Some forms are confusing to consumers and, consequently, are abandoned.  An incomplete survey is often as useless as no survey. Intelligent electronic surveys can show the user only the questions that make sense and can insist on complete answers to some or all questions before allowing the user to continue.

4) Fewer Risks
Paper surveys are mobile by nature. They travel from the hands of those completing them, to event staff who collect and store them, put them in envelopes and ship them out. Sometimes they go home with the event staff at night. This kind of data collection is a challenge to track and enumerate. Missing surveys might represent a security breach if they contain personally identifiable information. You may have promised security in exchange for information. If a survey is not completely legible, you may not be able to uphold this kind of a promise. At the very best, this damages your brand. In the event of a contest or sweepstake, it may even result in a legal liability.  Properly completed electronic surveys ensure every record is captured on a secure device, tagged and delivered to a database with a full audit trail throughout.

5) Fast Processing
Before you can act on survey data, you must be able to access it. This usually means keying in or scanning a paper form. It can take weeks to deliver paper forms to a processing centre and enter information into a database. In contrast, an electronic system makes every survey record available to you within seconds of information being entered on a device. You can follow up with the survey taker before they have even left your display. Acting quickly improves your chance of success.

6) Editing Capability
It is almost inevitable that after you have designed a survey, printed it and shipped it, that “somebody” decides a last-minute change is essential. This not only takes time, but costs money – rush fees, for example. Worse, sometimes it becomes apparent only when people start using the form that some of the questions are unclear or confusing. Making changes at this point might be impossible. With the right electronic survey partner, changes to surveys are expected and welcomed. People rarely react exactly as we expect. Making changes to an electronic survey on location is often as easy as a few key strokes.

7) Storage Capacity
One of the worst possible scenarios for an event marketer is running out of paper forms and losing potential leads. It can be trying to spend time running from location to location ensuring there are enough paper form supplies. Electronic data capture maintains an almost infinite “paper” supply. Each device can store thousands of surveys securely and then co-ordinate their delivery to a data entry facility. With the right partner, your electronic surveys are seamlessly delivered to your client or to your servers using wireless networks and freeing up your event staff.

When all is said and done, except in a very few cases, I truly believe electronic data capture is the way to go but I also acknowledge it has its downsides. I’ll blog about those shortly.