Method · CAPI

Face-to-face surveys

The method that reaches where the internet does not.

One of the most widely used quantitative techniques in market research. It is fielded in homes, shopping centres, points of sale and high-footfall locations, with an interviewer present and the questionnaire on a tablet. It lets you show product or graphic material, and it reaches audiences no online sample represents well.

How it works

The sampling frame and the fieldwork routes per area are defined.

The interviewer administers the questionnaire on a tablet, with validations that block impossible answers.

Every interview is geo-referenced and time-stamped so it can be audited afterwards.

Supervision verifies a share of interviews in the field before signing off the batch.

When to use it

Cases where it fits

When the target audience has no reliable connection or does not answer online surveys.
When a product, a package or an advertising piece has to be shown.
When geographic representativeness is the point of the study.
When the result will be published and has to withstand scrutiny.

At a glance

Typical sample: From 200 to several thousand cases
Duration: 2 to 5 weeks depending on coverage
Coverage: Nationwide, with over 100 interviewers

What you get

Dataset with geo-reference per interview
Complete, publishable technical datasheet
Tabulations and cross-tabs for the breakdowns you request
Report with findings, implications and recommendations

Frequently asked questions

How do you prevent an interviewer from inventing answers?

With three controls that are always applied: geo-reference and time stamp on every interview, in-questionnaire validations that block impossible combinations, and telephone or in-person verification of part of the sample. Any batch that fails verification is replaced.

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