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The world of B2B research faces unique challenges compared to consumer research. While both aim to find the right respondents, B2B relies more heavily on capturing hard-to-reach business knowledge using tailored tools and smaller sample sizes. However, the rise of programmatic sampling, fraud, and bias has led to mounting tensions in the industry.
Emporia Research recently partnered with GfK an NIQ Company, to test the hypothesis that "less is more" when it comes to B2B sample. Both companies collaborated to conduct a research-on-research study examining IT decision-maker attitudes, comparing a validated expert network sample with a larger standard B2B panel. Emporia Research CEO Michael Hess and Rolfe Swinton, Head of AI & Innovation at GfK presented their findings at the Insights Association Annual Conference.
The differences were striking. Emporia's respondent validation process, using LinkedIn and other verified datasets, identified more true professionals and fewer fraudulent respondents in the expert network sample upfront. Additional quality checks found the panel respondents vastly overstated their usage of niche IT tools - a red flag that they lacked true knowledge.
After weighting the data, the effective sample sizes from the two sources converged, but the expert network sample data adhered much more closely to reality. Notably, the panel sample claimed impossibly high usage of IBM's small cloud platform. The implications for business decisions are profound.
The study demonstrates the importance of prioritizing quality over quantity in B2B sample. Speaking to the right people and minimizing bias through rigorous validation and systematic checks is crucial for accurate insights. While a large sample size is tempting, cleaner data from a smaller verified sample is far more valuable.
When planning B2B research, it's important to consider:
- The criticality of reaching truly knowledgeable targets
- The size of the realistically available pool of qualified respondents
- The importance of representative subgroups and projections
- The available budget and timeline
Partnering with B2B sample experts who employ cutting-edge respondent validation and bias reduction techniques is key. By approaching each project with full transparency and collaboration, researchers can navigate the challenges in the B2B insights space to achieve reliable results. Making "less is more" a reality leads to better insights and smarter decisions.
