JARGON BUSTERS ON THE MOVE
In our last issue, we wrote about the language of market research and how it can often seem like a foreign language. Our jargon busters were qualitative research, focus group and simultaneous translation.
We’re continuing our explanation, in everyday terms, of market research jargon with the word incentive.
In everyday life, “incentive” means that you get something of value in return for performing some kind of duty or service. In market research terms, incentive is defined as the enticement offered to respondents in return for their participation in research.
Incentives are a fact of life. Generally, people don’t get involved in activities unless they see some advantage in it for them. The same applies to research. Small incentives, such as pens or gift certificates, are effective for intercept interviews. Cash incentives are usually offered to focus group respondents to ensure their attendance and to thank them for their participation.
Incentives vary widely according to the targeted audience, geographic location, time the participants must commit, travel, and other factors. For example, on average, we pay $100 to $150 to physicians compared to $50 to $70 for typical consumers.
Market research terminology can be daunting, but once explained, it makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Just for fun, here’s some jargon that’s used only in an online environment:
“Easter egg” is a hidden element or feature that is not otherwise made obvious, but when clicked on, it offers something special. This could be in the form of an extra game level, a secret area, an animation or a surprise image of some kind. Programmers often "bury" Easter eggs in their programs and challenge their users to find it.
“Eyeballs” or “a pair of eyeballs” is a term used by online marketing strategists to describe the number of people who have seen their online advertising. ‡
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