Response rates in telephone surveys: managing contactability

Telephone interviewing is the major data collection method for the market research industry. Although social trends such as mobile phones and call screening make it harder to contact people, better technology and contact regimes can assist companies to ameliorate the situation. A study of fieldwork managers responsible for over 75% of all phone interviews in Australia revealed limited use of contact enhancing strategies such as longer survey periods and more callbacks. Commercial imperatives for timely surveys and a lack of end-user concern for response rate issues, along with costs concerns, were believed to be responsible.