FAQs

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What makes Mobile Researcher so unique?

Field research can be a labour-intensive, slow, error-prone and expensive process. Mobile Researcher leverages web and mobile technologies to allow surveys to be designed online and deployed to standard mobile phones and other devices.

Visit our features section for details on some of the remarkable possibilities.

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What is a channel?

A channel is simply a technology used to conduct a survey. Mobile Researcher supports several channels including mobile application, WAP and SMS channels.

Each channel has its own features and limitations. The mobile application channel is the most feature-rich mobile channel available but has slightly greater handset requirements than the WAP channel for example.

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Do you offer training and support?

Yes. All active clients have access to free email support. Training sessions for fieldworkers, survey designers and administrators can also be arranged. Visit the Mobile Researcher Community for tutorials, guides, videos and much more.

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How does Mobile Researcher differ from PDA data collection systems?

Mobile Researcher works with standard mobile phones as well as PDAs. Mobile phones (as opposed to PDAs) are widely available, robust, user-friendly and more affordable than traditional PDAs. Traditional PDA data collection software relies on high-tech devices whereby Mobile Researcher has been designed to leverage the massive penetration of existing mobile phones.

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Which handsets are supported?

Many hundreds of devices are supported, including low cost handsets. The specific list of handsets available depends on which channel you would like to use. Visit our device support section for further details.

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Is it practical to use mobile phones for data collection?

Although most mobile phones have small screens, quantitative and limited qualitative data collection is not only possible, but very successful. In many real world examples, clients have used and are still using low cost mobile phones to collect thousands of responses to long surveys (containing hundreds of questions each). Visit the case studies section to learn more.

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Can I export responses to standard formats?

Yes, you can export responses in industry standard formats such as Microsoft Excel and CSV. You can also access your data programmatically in XML or json using the Mobile Researcher API.

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Can I design my own surveys?

Yes, you do not need to submit your surveys to us to be "loaded" onto the phone. Once you've signed up, you can design as many surveys as you like online and deploy them to an appropriate channel.

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How much does Mobile Researcher cost?

Because Mobile Researcher is a hosted solution, you don't pay to download or license any software. Billing is on a per survey basis and based on the number of data elements collected in a response. You purchase credit with us and as you conduct surveys, funds are deducted from your account (similar to how pre-paid airtime works). This means you only pay for what you use.

Pricing is dependent expected volumes so please contact us with information on your usage requirements. Any unused funds are carried over for future studies.

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How many questions can a survey have?

Using the mobile application channel, the number of questions a single survey can contain is limited only by the specifications of the phone. Even low end phones support surveys of over a hundred questions. Higher specification phones can support much longer surveys.

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Can surveys be conducted in remote areas where there is no cellular reception?

Yes, using the mobile application channel, cellular reception is only required to download surveys initially and then to upload completed responses. Using this channel, surveys are conducted offline and stored on the handset until reception is available. The WAP and SMS channels require reception during the course of the survey however.

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Do you have an API?

Yes. The Mobile Researcher API is based on the ADO.NET Data Services Framework. This allows you to access your data programmatically in a simple yet extremely flexible manner.

Visit the Mobile Researcher Community for API usage, code samples and much more.