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53 APPENDIX B E-Mail Invitation to Participate in the Industry Survey The National Academies Advisors to the Nation on Science, Engineering and Medicine Transportation Research Board MEMORANDUM DATE: December 16, 2011 TO: Selected Transit Agencies FROM: Donna L. Vlasak, Senior Program Officer Synthesis Studies SUBJECT: Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP), Synthesis Topic SB-22, Use of Market Research Panels in Transit The American Public Transit Association (APTA), through its nonprofit research organization, the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), is cooperating in a research project to prepare a synthesis of current practice on the Use of Market Research Panel Surveys in Transit. This is part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) which was authorized in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA), to be managed by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in cooperation with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and TDC. The synthesis will explore when and where a panel approach is appropriate in the context of the full range of market research methods, and will provide practical information and guidance for transit agencies of all sizes in profiling innovative and successful practices, lessons learned, and gaps in information. The final report will be published by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and available for free at www.TCRPonline.org. Kathryn Coffel Consulting, LLC, is preparing this synthesis report under contract to TRB. In order for the synthesis to reflect the best current information, it is important that responses be obtained from selected transit agencies of various sizes and geographic locations. Please complete this survey even if you do not currently conduct market research or use panel surveys. It will help us have a clearer understanding of current market research activities. It should take no more than about 15 minutes to complete. If you are not the appropriate person at your agency to complete this survey, or if your market research and surveying are conducted by a different agency (e.g. the city or MPO), please forward this to the correct person. The online questionnaire is accessible via the following web-link: http://appv3.sgizmo.com/testsurvey/survey?id=735956&crc=f9c2a0b30bcd2781d80c3f2ef4129a1e Please complete and submit this survey questionnaire by January 13, 2012. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our principal investigator Kathryn Coffel at Kathryn@KathrynCoffelConsulting.com or 503-914-9217. Thank you for participating in this survey!
54 Industry Survey TCRP Synthesis SB-22 Use of Market Research Panels in Transit Welcome Dear Transit Professional, The American Public Transit Association (APTA), through its nonprofit research organization, the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), is cooperating in a research project to prepare a synthesis of current practice on the Use of Market Research Panel Surveys in Transit. This is part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) which was authorized in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA), to be managed by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in cooperation with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and TDC. The synthesis will explore when and where a panel approach is appropriate in the context of the full range of market research methods, and will provide practical information and guidance for transit agencies of all sizes in profiling innovative and successful practices, lessons learned, and gaps in information. The final report will be published by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and available for free at www.TCRPonline.org. This survey questionnaire is being distributed to transit agency marketing and market research professionals. Please complete this survey even if you do not currently conduct market research or use panel surveys. It will help us have a clearer understanding of current market research activities. It should take no more than about 15 minutes to complete. If you are not the appropriate person at your agency to complete this survey, or if your market research and surveying are conducted by a different agency (e.g. the city or MPO), please forward this to the correct person. Please complete and submit this survey questionnaire by January 13, 2012. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our principal investigator Kathryn Coffel at Kathryn@KathrynCoffelConsulting.com or 503-914-9217. Thank you very much for participating in this survey! QUESTIONNAIRE INSTRUCTIONS To view and print the entire questionnaire, Click on the following link and print using "control p": //surveygizmolibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/library/64484/TCRP_Synthesis_SB22_Panel_Surveys.pdf To save your partial answers, or to forward a partially completed questionnaire to another party, click on the "Save and Continue Later" link in the upper right hand corner of your screen. A link to the partially completed questionnaire will be emailed to you from SurveyGizmo. To return to the questionnaire later, open the email from SurveyGizmo and click on the link. To invite a colleague to complete part of the survey, simply click on the âSave and Continueâ link and enter your colleague's email address. Please note that the questionnaire can be saved and passed around multiple times, but respondents must use the link emailed from SurveyGizmo. To view and print your answers before submitting the survey, click forward to the page following question 21. Print using âcontrol pâ. To submit the survey, click on "Submit" on the last page. [Note: Items marked with an â*â are required fields]
55 Respondent Information Please enter the date (MM/DD/YYYY).* ____________________________________________ Please enter your contact information. First Name*: ____________________________________________ Last Name*: ____________________________________________ Title*: ____________________________________________ Agency/Organization*: ____________________________________________ Street Address: ____________________________________________ Suite: ____________________________________________ City*: ____________________________________________ State*: ____________________________________________ Zip Code*: ____________________________________________ Country: ____________________________________________ Email Address*: ____________________________________________ Phone Number*: ____________________________________________ Fax Number: ____________________________________________ Mobile Phone: ____________________________________________ URL: ____________________________________________ Transit System Information 1) Which modes does your agency either directly operate or operate using a contractor? (Check all that apply)* ï¨ Fixed-route bus ï¨ Fixed-route with route deviation ï¨ Demand response paratransit (non-ADA) ï¨ ADA paratransit ï¨ Bus rapid transit (BRT) ï¨ Light rail/streetcar ï¨ Heavy rail/subway ï¨ Commuter rail ï¨ Other: _____________________________________ 2) What is your system's annual ridership (unlinked trips)?* ____________________________________________
56 Customer Feedback 3) How would you rate the usefulness of each of these methods for gathering feedback from your customers and the general public? Please check "N/A" for Not Applicable if you do not use that platform. Very Useful Somewhat Useful Neutral Not Very Useful Not At All Useful Not Applicable Call center/live operator ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Agency website ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Agency blog ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Facebook ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Twitter ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ LinkedIn ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ YouTube ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Flickr ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Third party (e.g. SeeClickFix.com) ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ 4) What other platforms do you use to obtain feedback from your customers and the general public? ________________________________________________________________________________________ Market Research Experience 5) What are the market research techniques you use to collect information from your customers and the general public? (Check all that apply)* ï¨ Paper on-board surveys ï¨ Paper surveys through U.S. Mail ï¨ Telephone surveys ï¨ Panel surveys ï¨ Focus groups ï¨ In-person interviews on the street or on-board the vehicle ï¨ Online surveys ï¨ We do not conduct market research surveys ï¨ Other _______________________________ IF QUESTION 5 = âWe do not conduct market research surveys,â SKIP TO âOther transit agenciesâ
57 6) What are the barriers to conducting market research at your agency? (Check all that apply) ï¨ Lack of support from management for market research activities ï¨ Lack of funding to pay for research consultants ï¨ Lack of funding for staff to conduct or oversee market research activities ï¨ Lack of technical skill to conduct market research ï¨ We do not have any barriers to conducting needed market research ï¨ We do not have a need for market research ï¨ Other: ________________________________ 7) About how much did your agency spend on market research last fiscal year? In-house costs include staff salaries+fringe benefits, and materials & services that support in-house research (printing, survey software, etc.) In-house: _________________________ Consultant: _________________________ 8) About how much does your agency expect to spend on market research this fiscal year? In-house costs include staff salaries+fringe benefits, and materials & services that support in-house research (printing, survey software, etc.) In-house: _________________________ Consultant: _________________________ Market Research Techniques 9) Over the past three years, what has been the purpose of your market research? (Check all that apply)* ï¨ Rider trip characteristics (origin, destination, trip purpose, mode of access, etc.) ï¨ Rider demographics ï¨ Rider attitudes/customer satisfaction ï¨ General public attitudes and awareness of transit/transit issues ï¨ General public support for funding initiatives ï¨ Public input on transit planning, transit projects ï¨ Marketing and message development ï¨ Evaluating the effects of an agency action ï¨ Federal reporting requirements (Title VI, limited English proficiency, etc.) ï¨ Other: __________________________________ Use of Panel Surveys A panel survey is a community of people who have agreed to participate in research projects periodically. Panel members can be recruited and surveyed using traditional techniques (for example, random-digit- dial with a phone survey) or more recently, using on-line recruitment and surveying. Market research companies develop and maintain general panels and also have the ability to create custom panels. Alternately, a panel can be developed and maintained in-house.
58 10) Have you considered or conducted panel surveys for market research purposes?* ï¦ No, I have not considered or conducted panel surveys => SKIP TO âOther transit agenciesâ ï¦ Yes, I have considered but not conducted panel surveys ï¦ Yes, I have considered and conducted a panel survey Purpose and Benefits of Panel Surveys 11) What was the purpose of the survey for which you considered or conducted a panel survey? (Check all that apply) ï¨ Rider trip characteristics (origin, destination, trip purpose, mode of access, etc.) ï¨ Rider demographics ï¨ Rider attitudes/customer satisfaction ï¨ General public attitudes and awareness of transit/transit issues ï¨ General public support for funding initiatives ï¨ Public input on transit planning, transit projects ï¨ Marketing and message development ï¨ Evaluating the effects of an agency action ï¨ Federal reporting requirements (Title VI, limited English proficiency, etc.) ï¨ Other: _______________________________________________________ 12) What are the primary benefits that led you to consider a panel survey? (Check all that apply) ï¨ Faster than traditional survey methods ï¨ Cheaper than traditional survey methods ï¨ Able to conduct the research in-house on a momentâs notice ï¨ Can do research with specific market segments ï¨ Provides a public relations benefit with our riders ï¨ Ability to track changes in attitudes or behaviors from the same person, over time ï¨ Other: _________________________________________ 13) What are your primary concerns with panel surveys? ï¨ Panel may not be representative of my target population ï¨ Panel respondents âdropping outâ (panel attrition) ï¨ Lack of funding/staffing to maintain the panel ï¨ Panel members becoming sensitized to transit issues ï¨ Providing incentives to engage and keep panel members participating ï¨ Legal concerns ï¨ Public relations concerns ï¨ Ethical concerns raised regarding panels ï¨ Other: __________________________________ ï¨ I do not have any concerns with panel surveys IF QUESTION 10 = âYes, I have considered but not conducted panel surveys,â SKIP TO Question 14 IF QUESTIONS 10 = âYes I have considered and conducted a panel survey,â SKIP TO Question 15
59 => SKIP TO âOTHER TRANSIT AGENCIESâ Panel Survey Experience 15) How many panel surveys have you conducted, across all panel efforts?* _____________ 16) For your most recent panel survey, did you use a vendor's existing panel, or develop a custom panel?* ï¦ Used an existing panel from a vendor ï¦ Developed a custom panel to meet specific agency needs 17) Who completed each of the following tasks on your most recent panel survey?* In-house Consultant Both Not Applicable Recruited the panel ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Maintained the panel ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Developed the questionnaire ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Implemented the survey ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Conducted the analysis and reporting ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ ï¦ Satisfaction with Panel Surveys 18) How satisfied has your agency been with its panel survey efforts? ï¦ Very Satisfied ï¦ Satisfied ï¦ Neutral ï¦ Dissatisfied ï¦ Very Dissatisfied ï¦ Not Applicable 19) Please describe any âlessons learnedâ that would benefit other transit agencies that are considering using panel surveys for market research. ___________________________________________________________________________________ 20) Would you be willing to participate further as a case study? If selected by the TCRP panel for the case study, you would be interviewed by phone on the details of your panel survey experience. ï¦ Yes ï¦ No Did Not Implement a Panel Survey 14) Why did you decide not to implement a panel survey? ___________________________________________________________________________
60 âOther transit agenciesâ Thank you for taking our survey. Is there another transit system that you suggest we contact for this synthesis project on market research and panel surveys? ____________________________________________ Response Review [Opportunity to review and edit completed questionnaire before submitting] Thank You! Thank you for taking our survey. Your response is very important to us. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact Kathryn Coffel at: E-mail: Kathryn@KathrynCoffelConsulting.com Phone: 503-914-9217 Mailing Address: 1752 SE Poplar Ave., Portland, Oregon 97214
