Mid-Year Event. In your preevent quantitative research instru-
ment, you ask your potential audience to rate which speaker they
wish to hear, on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being the lowest desirability;
10, the highest). Speaker A receives an average of 5.6 in your re-
sponses. Speaker B nails a 9.3.
This result needs little interpretation. The data are “hard.” Go
for speaker B, or be ready to explain the alternative! This system
works well for all aspects of event marketing and evaluation, in-
cluding the ratings of multiple educational programs, social events,
and overall experiential responses. Quantitative research instru-
ments are objective.
Questions may be developed in two different styles: In Figure
1-5, you will find a model of a typical quantitative preevent sur-
vey. This survey model is featured in Joe Goldblatt’s text, Best Prac-
tices in Modern Event Management,2nd ed. Two different styles of
research items are used: Question 4 in this model uses a Likert
scaleto provide the opportunity for the respondent to precisely
state his or her opinion. No room for maneuvering, or for interpre-
tive flexibility. Question 5 allows some room for maneuvering in
the answer, through the semantic differential scaletechnique.
As Dr. Goldblatt describes it in his text, the semantic differen-
tial scale style of question is used to “allow the respondent to re-
spond by selecting a continuum between two opposing adjec-
tives.” In other words, there is a little more “wiggle room” (or
perhaps “analytical interpretation” would be more appropriate ter-
minology) for both the respondent and the researcher. Regardless,
the results will provide a level of both demographic and psycho-
graphic data.
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH (SOFT DATA)
What’s the hidden meaning? What are the objectives of this event?
What are the ranges of interests in the markets we are trying to at-
tract? These are the kinds of questions that compel qualitative re-
search, the probing inspection of attitudes, opinions, interests, and
organizational directions. By its nature, this type of research is
more time consuming and expensive, as well as more open to var-
ied and sometimes conflicting interpretation by analysts. Qualita-
tive research instruments are subjective.
But qualitative research can be much more exciting! It’s the
“risk-taker research” if you are not afraid of what the answers may
be. In other words, the results of qualitative techniques can take
Research and Analysis 23