A Few of My Favorite Research Resources

February 16, 2011 | by Jill Kurtz | Posted in Web Strategy

Most organizations do not have research departments or the budget to fund extensive research. That doesn’t mean that anyone needs to make decisions about online strategy without the benefit of insightful data.

Having worked for a school district (read: no budget) during the early years of the Internet, I have spent many years looking for good resources of free data. I developed a list of favorite research resources that is as useful today as I work to give clients insight into their target audiences.

Pew Internet & American Life Project

The Pew Internet & American Life Project is 1 of 7 projects that make up the Pew Research Center, a non-partisan, non-profit "fact tank" that provides information on the issues, attitudes, and trends shaping America and the world. The project produces reports exploring the impact of the internet on families, communities, work and home, daily life, education, health care, and civic and political life. Recent reports include:

• Generations and their gadgets (If you are looking to reach younger consumers it is all about mobile)
• Health topics (Learn how people look for health information online)
• 22% of online Americans used social networking or Twitter for politics in 2010 campaign

useit.com: Jakob Nielsen's Website

Nielsen regularly conducts and reports on research on web design matters and has published several books on the subject of web design and usability. One of the things I find most compelling about his work is that when he revisits his early research he most often confirms the findings. It seems that the more the web changes, the more things stay the same.

Recent postings at his site:

• Non-Profit Organization Websites: Increasing Donations and Volunteering (Did you know you are likely making it too hard for people to donate to you online?)
• Test-Taking & Learning (Learn how quizzes can help visitors retain your information)
• Parallel & Iterative Design (Data on how to get the best web design solutions)

Center for Media Research

The Center for Media research is part of MediaPost Communications, an integrated publishing and content company whose mission is to provide a complete array of resources for media, marketing, and advertising professionals. This organization does not conduct research, but reports findings from a wide array of organizations that do. Recent research briefs covered:

• A global research initiative by IDG Research Services to gain insight into tech marketers' marketing/media spending plans and priorities for 2011
• A report published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, aimed to quantify teen exposure to smoking on television
• The STRATA quarterly survey of media buyers

Making Research Work for You

Perhaps the research done by other organizations won’t answer every specific question you have about your audiences, but I bet you will find valuable data. Once you have looked to these resources to answer some of your questions, you can then think about how to get to the rest of the data you might need.

Usually, some type of locally generated user survey layered on top of a national report will give you affordable and actionable insight.

I’m interested to learn about your experience with these or other research organizations and leveraging these kinds of research efforts in your own website projects. What worked? What didn’t? Do tell!