The Most Effective Data Collection Methods in 2021

Organizations must collect data to research demand, customer preferences, rivals, and other factors before developing a new product. If this data is not obtained ahead of time, the new product's failure rate is as high as 80% or even higher. Many firms continue to collect data from their customers after the product has been introduced in order to obtain feedback and explore ways to improve their entire customer experience.

What is the definition of data collection?

The process of gathering, measuring, and evaluating various forms of data using a set of standard, verified methodologies is known as data collection. The basic goal of data collecting is to collect data that is rich in information and dependable and then evaluate it to make key business choices. Once the data has been acquired, it is subjected to a thorough data cleansing and processing process in order to make it actually relevant to enterprises.

Mainly data collection method is classified as Primary data and Secondary Data.

Primary data is gathered from personal experience (raw data). The researcher collects this information for a specific reason. Quantitative and qualitative methods are used to obtain primary data. Feelings, emotions, and the researcher's subjective view are all part of the qualitative technique. A questionnaire with closed-ended questions is used in the quantitative method, as are methods such as correlation, regression, mean, and mode. Focus groups, group discussions, and interviews are just a few examples.

Secondary data collection refers to a person's acquisition of information from a variety of sources. The data can come from books, journals, and/or online portals.

Let's discuss the Primary Data collection methods in detail,

1. In-depth interviews

Interviews are a straightforward way of gathering information. It's basically a conversation in which the interviewer asks questions and the interviewee responds. It allows for a lot of flexibility because questions can be modified and adjusted at any time to fit the scenario.

2. Points of view

Researchers use this strategy to monitor and document what is going on around them. It can be used to assess different people's behavior in both controlled (everyone knows they're being watched) and uncontrolled (no one knows they're

being watched) scenarios. This strategy is particularly effective because it is simple and does not rely on the participation of others.

3. QUESTIONNAIRE-BASED COLLECTION

Typically, questionnaires are distributed via mail to elicit answers to a variety of pertinent topics. In questionnaires, there is a section where you can fill in the requested information. The informants are given a set amount of time to return the questionnaires to the investigator. This method is low-cost, quick and suitable for large-scale queries. When there is no incentive, however, only a small number of receivers respond to questionnaires.

4. ENUMERATOR-BASED COLLECTION

The data was collected by trained enumerators in this technique. They assist the informants inaccurately in filling out schedules or questionnaires. You can collect the most trustworthy information using this method if the enumerator is well-trained, experienced, and discreet. For a large-scale governmental or organizational investigation, an enumerator-driven strategy works well. This method cannot be used by private individuals or institutions since its cost is prohibitive.

5. DATA COLLECTION FROM LOCAL SOURCES

The agents or local correspondents collect and submit the required information, based on their best judgment on how to obtain it, but there is no structured data collection. This method is inexpensive and quick, but it just provides estimations. It could be due to the partiality of local agents.

Here are a few of the most prevalent strategies for gathering secondary data

1. The World Wide Web

In recent years, one of the most common secondary data collection strategies has been the usage of the Internet. On the Internet, there is a big pool of both free and paid research resources that may be quickly accessed. While this type of data collection is quick and easy, you should only obtain information from reliable sources.

2. The National Archives

There is a wealth of information available from government archives that you may use. The data in official archives is authentic and verifiable, which is the most significant advantage. The problem is that data isn't always readily available due to a variety of reasons. Criminal records, for example, fall under the category of classified information and are difficult to get.

3. Blogs

Blogs are one of the most popular online data sources, and they may be less reliable than web pages. Almost everyone has a blog these days, and many people use them to drive traffic to their websites or make money through paid advertisements.

As a result, they can't be trusted all of the time. For example, even if the evaluations are fraudulent, a blogger may post favorable reviews of a product because the company paid him or her to do so.

4. Public libraries

The majority of academic scholars provide several copies of their work to libraries. Based on various research circumstances, you can gather essential and authentic information. Libraries also house company directories, annual reports, and other comparable papers that aid in the research of businesses.

You must be an expert in various data collection strategies if you want to pursue a successful career in data analytics. Now that you've learned the most popular data gathering methods, it's time to dig deeper and understand each one in greater depth. Join Learnbay.co’s  Data science course in chennai  for detailed learning.