Mobile interviewing: the platforms favoured by software providers

Tim MacerTim is a world-renowned specialist in the application of technology in the field of market and opinion research and is probably the most widely-published writer in the field. His roots are in data analysis, programming, training and technical writing. These days, as principal at meaning he works with researchers, users of research data and technology providers around the globe, as an independent advisor. He is quite passionate about improving the research process and empowering people through better use of technology.

Early findings from some new research among mobile interviewing software providers, carried out by meaning, and presented in a short course at AAPOR yesterday show that developers are favouring the newer mobile platforms when creating mobile survey tools.

The short course was co-presented by Mario Callegaro, research strategist at Google Inc., and Tim Macer, MD of meaning ltd at the American Association for Public Opinion Research in Phoenix Arizona.

A key finding is that all developers surveyed supported Apple’s iOS for iPhone and iPad, BlackBerry, Google’s Android, and Windows mobile for web-browser enabled interviewing, but that only iOS was supported by all the firms in the survey for mobile Apps. Support for Symbian was highly selective, and the older format XHTML for smart phones was  also restricted to a few.

The research is ongoing, and more results will be available in due course.

See the mobile platforms supported by eight key vendors of mobile interviewing software.