Field surveys have long been an invaluable tool for understanding the needs of target audiences. However, with the advancement of technology, mobile apps have revolutionized this process, offering a more efficient, accurate and flexible way to collect data.
We have had several clients come to us who, in their search to automate data collection in the field, have shared with us their greatest desires and their greatest fears regarding the information collected.
This is a very important process for obtaining valuable information that justifies decisions and actions in various areas, from scientific research to the development of business policies and strategies. However, this process can be fraught with errors that affect the quality and reliability of the data collected.
For a Survey App to be successful, multiple factors must be considered, including technological, design, and the content of the surveys themselves.
Table of Contents
What is a Field Survey?
A field survey is a research technique used to obtain information directly from people in their everyday environment. It is carried out by administering questionnaires to a group of individuals, usually in public places or in specific areas selected by the researcher.
Things to Consider for a Survey App
1.- User Interface (UI) Design
It is worth noting that this initial process is one of the most important, since it is the graphic part of the mobile application. In this process, the design is aligned with the corporate identity. The type of public it is aimed at is considered. In this case, it is important to mention that the design is customized depending on each public. For example, if the app is aimed at older adults, large colored buttons should be considered to facilitate better reading and a very simple and concrete interface.
This is how it is personalized depending on the target audience, which will determine whether it can generate recommendations and, above all, a good experience when it is released for production in the Google Play and Apple Stores.
2.- Features of the Mobile Survey App
The functionalities must be as open as the possibilities of the type of questions to be incorporated, much depends on the client’s requirements but in general terms and considering a good investment for the development of a mobile application, we must consider: Open Questions, Closed Questions, Multiple Choice True, False, Validate Image, Open Fields. This will allow us to achieve the objective of making the question and answers perfectly understood, sometimes we can add tips functionalities, this allows us to leave small texts in each question that help to understand the question in a different way.
Among the functionalities we can incorporate capturing the GPS position, adding evidence or photos, recording a short video and attaching additional notes.
For a field app, it is important to ensure connectivity. There are cases where you have to visit remote places where there is no internet access. In this scenario, offline mode comes into play. This allows us to send the information to the server for processing once we have internet.
Get in touch
I’m interested in an App!
3.- Technology for Development
Technology in the development of mobile applications and electronic data collection devices can improve the efficiency, accuracy and speed of data collection in the field, minimizing errors and facilitating information management. This is why frameworks that have scalability and the necessary support to be able to repair any bug that may arise in the process must be considered.
4.-The Transparency of the information collected.
It is important to maintain transparency throughout the data collection process, including disclosure of potential conflicts of interest, respect for participant confidentiality and privacy, and obtaining informed consent, as the collection may be an anonymous survey without revealing respondent information or it may be a survey where respondent information is available.
Data privacy increases the credibility of the survey and builds trust with both participants and end users of the data. When respondents clearly understand the purpose of the survey, how their responses will be used, and who is behind it, they are more willing to participate and provide accurate and honest information.
By being transparent about data collection methods, sample selection criteria, and any other relevant aspects of the survey process, the possibility of bias and manipulation in the results is reduced.
5.- Cost and Development Time.
The cost of developing a survey app can vary depending on the complexity of the app and the functionalities required. Development time can also vary depending on the complexity of the app and the company that is responsible for it.
6.- Integrating AI into data collection.
Incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into a survey app can completely revolutionize the market by offering advanced capabilities that improve user experience, increase data accuracy, and provide deeper insights.
Use natural language processing (NLP) algorithms to analyze respondents’ open-ended responses and automatically determine the sentiment associated with each answer. This will allow you to better understand participants’ emotions and opinions more accurately and in real-time.
Implement AI-based recommendation systems that suggest personalized questions and topics for each respondent based on their previous answers, browsing behaviors, and other demographic and behavioral data. This creates a more relevant and engaging survey experience for each user. You also capture general data about the respondent and the AI will generate an ideal profile with ideal questions for your respondent.
Another option is to deploy machine learning (ML) algorithms to analyze large volumes of survey data and detect hidden patterns, trends, and correlations that may go unnoticed by traditional analytics. This will allow you to gain deeper insights and make more informed data-driven decisions.
To Conclude This Article
Avoiding common mistakes and following effective practices in field data collection is essential to ensure the quality, reliability, and validity of the information obtained, which in turn contributes to informed decision-making and the advancement of knowledge in various fields. Transparency in data collection through an application that uses AI is not only important to ensure credibility and trust in the data collected, but also to empower users, prevent bias, promote accountability, and protect the privacy of participants’ data. With this we close, I hope you find this article interesting, see you in the next one. Greetings.
