Annotated Bibliography Cost-Effectiveness of Follow-Up Strategies

Question: Discuss about theAnnotated Bibliography for Cost-Effectiveness of Follow-Up Strategies. Answer: Introduction Mail surveys is a method of information gathering by dispersing widely samples of the survey, that in comparison to other methods is relatively cheaper and is preferred to other methods of survey as (Fox Boardley, 1998) (i) there is elimination of bias from the interviewer, (ii) it allows checking of records by the respondents and (iii) the respondent has the flexibility of completing the survey on his own. It is for all types of the survey that mail surveys can be appropriate for, however, this is true for any kind of methods of survey. However, some commentators despite the advantages of a mail survey have dismissed mail survey out of hand, according to them there is a very low rate of response that is produced by this method. This statement, unfortunately, is widely accepted as a fact that mail surveys are unable to produce response rates that are respectable (Heerwegh Loosveldt, 2007). There are two unwanted consequences that have been caused due to the reluctance of some resea rchers in employing this method of survey due to this "restriction"; the others who use this method of survey on achieving 30% - 40% rate of response get delighted regarding the same mistaking this percentage to be a result which is excellent given the "restriction" that is there of this method (Kallis Giglierano, 1992). It is a myth the opinion that the mail surveys draw out per se a response rate that is low. There have been various studies that have been published which give evidence refuting the belief and in which methods have been described for achieving a rates routinely in mail survey response that vary between 60%-80% (see (MAYNARD, 1996), (Larson Chow, 2003), (Nass McIntire, 1969) and (Peterson, 1975) for reviews). These, however, are studies which have been published mostly in Britain and America and there might be chances that applicability of some of the methods is not possible in this country. This paper is based on the opinion of three article as follows: The first article by John J. Watson, Improving the Response Rate in Mail Research is based on "Business Week's Magazine's survey method and its preference for mail survey methods due it being cheaper and also there being an elimination of bias by the interviewer. There is the removal of geographical limitations as well as compared to when the survey has to be made in person. The article also describes in detail the method that had been used for conducting the research in which a selection of variables was given, and the best performing variable combination was used. The result described in this article due to the use of such method that the response rate was about 81%; The second article, Improving Response Rates in Disk-by-Mail Surveys, is with respect to the replacement of the traditional method of using pencil and paper mail surveys with a disk by mail questionnaire which is a more viable alternative. A respondent decision tree is presented by the author in which the survey process is identified from the perspective of the respondent, and a review is made of decisions effect which is made at various stages during the response rate process. There is also an insight in the article on the sources that have been published on the paper and pencil conventional survey, disk by disk mail survey case studies and experiments that are controlled, with techniques have been used in this article. The third article, A Response Rate Experiment Using Mail Questionnaires, is regarding the fact that despite there being various disadvantages that are there with respect to the mail survey response it is still an extremely valuable, due to mainly being able to collect information in large amounts for respondents that are dispersed at a cost that is relatively low. This article deals largely with the problems that are phased in the interview phase that is the second phase of the research after the questionnaire has been received by the respondent. Annotated Bibliography Watson, J. J.; (nd.) Improving the Response Rate on Mail Research, Journal of Advertising Research, pg. 48-50 This article describes the issue that is there when the response rate of a survey is low due to which it leads to lowering of confidence in the finding of the research or follow-up of studies are conducted which can be both times-consuming as well as costly for the bolstering of the research which was done originally. The article analyzes the issues that were faced by Business Weekly and its preference towards mail surveys. It also describes the method that Business Weekly used to ensure that a high response rate was achieved by it in the mail surveys. This article demonstrates the possibility of being able to increase with respect to mail surveys the rate of response without any time consuming or expensive follow-ups. Saltzman A.; (1993), Improving Response Rates in Disk-by-Mail Surveys, Marketing Research, Volume V, Issue 3, pg.-32-39 The ability of collecting data as compared to the traditional method has improved due to the development that has been there in the field of technology. There are various methods of information collection and the Disk by Mail surveys is one of them. The method of this technique is beginning with a questionnaire which using various software programs that are available in the market has been programmed into the disk. These are duplicated and sent to various respondents who will then sync these disks into their computers and respond the questions of the survey. This questionnaire which is completed is then returned vide mail to the researchers. The response that was received from this survey was more consistent then that received from the traditional methods. There are methods which the article describes which result in the response rate to become higher as well. Labrecque; P. David; (1978), "A Response Rate Experiment Using Mail Questionnaires", Journal of Marketing, pg. 82-83 This article indicates a study in which results indicate advantage that letters have with the signature of the owner as compared to the letters with the service providers' signature. This was done as research for improving the one of the three phases of the process of the survey by mail questionnaire which is when the questionnaire is actually received by the respondent being the second process. The article describes the method which is used in conducting a market survey in medium sized marina in New-England and the three methods used for mailing of the questionnaire were (a) personalization; (b) using stamps that are commemorative and (c) cover letter signatory. The article further goes on to enumerate the findings, Main effects and interaction and finally concluded with a discussion with respect of the advantage that each method had on the response rate of the survey. Reference List Fox, C. Boardley, K. (1998). Cost-Effectiveness of Follow-Up Strategies in Improving the Response Rate of Mail Surveys. Industrial Marketing Management, 27(2), 127-133. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0019-8501(97)00043-6 Heerwegh, D. Loosveldt, G. (2007). Personalizing E-mail Contacts: Its Influence on Web Survey Response Rate and Social Desirability Response Bias. International Journal Of Public Opinion Research, 19(2), 258-268. https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/edl028 Kallis, M. Giglierano, J. (1992). Improving mail response rates with express mail. Industrial Marketing Management, 21(1), 1-4. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0019-8501(92)90027-q Labrecque; P. David; (1978), "A Response Rate Experiment Using Mail Questionnaires", Journal of Marketing, pg. 82-83 Larson, P. Chow, G. (2003). Total cost/response rate trade-offs in mail survey research: impact of follow-up mailings and monetary incentives. Industrial Marketing Management, 32(7), 533-537. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0019-8501(02)00277-8 MAYNARD, M. (1996). EFFECTIVENESS OF 'BEGGING' AS A PERSUASIVE TACTIC FOR IMPROVING RESPONSE RATE ON A CLIENT/AGENCY MAIL SURVEY. Psychological Reports, 78(1), 204-206. https://dx.doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1996.78.1.204 Nass, G. McIntire, W. (1969). Improving Response Rates to Mail Questionnaires in Family Life Research. The Family Coordinator, 18(3), 240. https://dx.doi.org/10.2307/581985 Peterson, R. (1975). An experimental investigation of mail-survey responses. Journal Of Business Research, 3(3), 199-210. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0148-2963(75)90022-3 Saltzman A.; (1993), Improving Response Rates in Disk-by-Mail Surveys, Marketing Research, Volume V, Issue 3, pg.-32-39 Watson, J. J.; (nd.) Improving the Response Rate on Mail Research, Journal of Advertising Research, pg. 48-50