Are data tables going away? I know I have been in the industry a long time, but when I’m writing a report, I still want access to data tables. I cross tab everything by my key analytic breaks, and then I usually have a bunch of additional “what-if” crosstabs. I have mostly abandoned printed tables and work with an electronic copy. And occasionally I’m happy with the cross-tab capabilities of the online reporting tools (but not usually). But I still need tables.Someone on the project team typically prepares a report shell based on the research objectives. But I need to know where the rest of the people are who didn’t give a top 2 box rating. Or is a mean driven by a polarizing skew? Is some sub-group driving the results? Is there a coded open-end response that was too small to chart, but extremely meaningful for the study? Crosstabs give me these answers.
I ask if they are going away because frankly, most clients don’t want them. And when we have sent them to some clients, especially younger ones, they will email back and ask us what they are, and if they need to look at them. Clients count on us to dig into the data and pull out the meaningful findings and insights. And they should. That’s what they pay us for. But don’t they get curious? Am I just a number junkie?
2 comments:
If you are not looking at tabs, then you are just practicing "elevator research" - the numbers are up, he numbers are down. Reading and understanding data tables allows good researchers to find the hidden stories in the numbers.
Perhaps there are less actual researchers in companies today and thus, we're dealing more with brand/product managers who are not researchers.
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