Pitting the Mall Against the Internet In Advertising-Research Completion

ABSTRACT

Internet surveys—particularly those utilizing panels of consumers—have supplanted the mall intercept as the method of choice for many advertising researchers. Internet surveys are estimated to be growing at a rate of almost 14 percent per year, with as much as 35 percent of all advertising research conducted using Internet panels. One question remains: How do the data utilizing Internet panels compare with mall-intercept data? This empirical study seeks to answer this question by replicating four mall-intercept studies using an Internet panel. Print, broadcast, and Internet ads were tested using the same products/brands, test and control ads, screening criteria, and survey questions. The results showed some differences, particularly with responses to open-end questions. The results also demonstrated that much of that difference appeared to be due to the influence of the researcher in the mall-intercept environment, a factor not present with Internet-panel surveys.