In 2023, with a decade of marketing experience under my belt, I stumbled upon the market research world, as I’ve heard most people do. Having spent the past six years in the manufacturing industry marketing computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software and writing about programming multi-axis machines, I was about to enter a different programming world – sample. I began asking questions like “What is sample?” and specifically, “What is programmatic sample?” We all know that the journey to learning anything new is never a straight line, so I needed to do my research (no pun intended).
I dove right into the world of sample and what made PureSpectrum stand out—immersing myself in everything from technical product articles to blogs to industry newsletters and more. When learning a foreign language, understanding the semantics is always key. Understanding industry terminology and the role PureSpectrum’s tech plays in the market research ecosystem was crucial to learning the ins and outs of programmatic sample. But before we talk about the tech, let’s talk about what and how programmatic sample works.
What is Programmatic Sample?
Programmatic sample refers to the automated process of sourcing and managing survey respondents using advanced technology platforms. It empowers market researchers to streamline the sampling process by setting specific demographics, quotas, and targeting criteria. Programmatic sample gives researchers quick access to a diverse pool of respondents across various markets. This automation benefits users by increasing efficiency, reducing project turnaround time, providing real-time data management, and making it easier for researchers to gather insights effectively.
How Does Automated Sample Work?
The archaic days of phone calls and spreadsheets to procure sample are long gone. Automation is paramount in today’s research landscape, and how fast researchers at both agencies and brands can get their data back is key. This is where automated sampling comes into play. Using the PureSpectrum Marketplace platform, users can set up their survey demographics, quotas, and other advanced targeting needs. There are a host of suppliers to choose from, allowing users to automatically see how feasible a project will be to complete, including data-driven pricing to help you get your data back faster.
When a project is ready to launch, users can easily implement PureSpectrum’s secure redirect link into their survey platform, as our Marketplace is survey-agnostic and compatible with nearly all survey platforms. Once the project launches, the platform will automatically monitor project progress, collect engaged respondents from over 105+ countries, and update quotas in real time. Any changes made to the survey during fielding are instantly communicated to the selected panels/suppliers using our integrated API technology. Project results are immediately stored in the platform, allowing users to easily access their data once the project is done fielding.
The PureSpectrum Difference – Our Tech
At its core, PureSpectrum is dedicated to making researchers’ lives easier, and that’s just what our tech does. The PureSpectrum Marketplace helps buyers automatically field the respondents needed to fill their survey projects, automating the sample procurement process. This multi-faceted process involves many players, including panelists, suppliers, and survey platforms. Let’s explore what sets PureSpectrum’s Marketplace technology apart from the rest!
- Built-in AI Technology—Within our Marketplace platform, we have a tool called IR Generator. This tool uses AI to automatically calculate how feasible it would be to field a specific project. IR Generator will spit out an IR in seconds rather than minutes, saving valuable project setup time.
- Automated CPIs— The cost per Interview (CPI) is how much it will cost per person to complete a survey. In PureSpectrum’s Marketplace platform, PurePrice™ automatically calculates custom CPI pricing based on a survey project’s IR, LOI, and field time. This takes the guesswork out of pricing and gives you a data-driven price.
- Accessing Quotas in Real-Time— Quotas are the number of respondents needed per demographic to fill your survey. Some quotas can be simple to fill. For example, if a buyer is fielding a project and needs 100 male and 200 female respondents who own a home. However, it can get complex and granular. What if those same respondents need to be of Hispanic origin and own a cat? Managing custom quotas and fielding them in a timely manner can get tricky. That’s where a programmatic sample platform such as the PureSpectrum Marketplace comes in, helping manage those complex quotas. Our Marketplace allows you to put in your target demographics, and the platform will automatically manage fielded versus goal, the number of completes needed, and its progress. This gives users the confidence to manage their quota KPIs in a single dashboard with ease. In addition, you can use the demographic census data available on the platform to automatically populate gender, age, income, education etc.
- Ensuring Transparent Multi-Source Supply— Suppliers are the ones who drive panelists/respondents to complete a survey, and on the PureSpectrum Marketplace platform, we believe transparency when vetting suppliers is paramount to collecting quality data. Not only is transparency one of our four cornerstones, but when vetting suppliers, our users can easily see where their panelists are coming from. That’s because suppliers are already integrated into our platform, which makes 24/7 sampling simple, and that’s what having an automated sample platform is all about! In addition to having a long list of vetted suppliers, blending or using multiple suppliers across a project gets you the best data. Trust us, we have done the research-on-research on blending panels! In 2023 we collaborated on a study with Frede Research and found that blending/combining panel sources provides a competitive advantage versus individual sources and reduces increases in data differences across time and across sources. If you’re interested in learning more about the Frede Research study, please feel free to reach out directly or message your contact at PureSpectrum.
- Integrating Custom APIs— Our API integrations allow the buyer or supplier to plug directly into the PureSpectrum Marketplace platform so that data flows seamlessly between both systems. Our Marketplace integrates with any survey management platform increasing efficiency to streamline your survey management process and to improve data quality. Once a survey is launched, the API calls a group of suppliers in our Marketplace, and the response data is automatically collected in both systems, streamlining the data collection process.
What Our Clients Say
As the saying goes, results don’t lie! Now that we understand how PureSpectrum’s Marketplace can help make your life easier, let’s hear about the experience one of our actual clients has had using the platform.
“Using PureSpectrum’s automated sampling, Watermelon was able to advance their business with both the quality data and services their clients were expecting. It allowed them the operational leverage to make dynamic changes in the field, manage quotas independently, and move forward with projects regardless of schedules.
Specifically, time flexibility has become essential to the Watermelon team. Allowing them to launch projects, receive automated sample via the PureSpectrum Marketplace, and edit quotas has given them the autonomy to better serve their clients’ unique needs.
“It’s an integrated platform that gives us control. We can sample at our own convenience, even if that’s midnight on a Friday, and helps us with weekend coverage. It helps us look good to our clients,” Squires said.” – Mark Squires, CEO, Watermelon Research
Now let’s get Sampling!