Mobile optimization strategies: effects on web survey participation

Presenter: Marc Asensio (RECSM - Universitat Pompeu Fabra)

In recent years, smartphone penetration has continuously increased around the world and a growing part of the population relies exclusively on smartphones to access the internet. Coverage rates for web surveys are better than ever, but to maximize response rates, efforts must be made to adapt survey designs to accommodate 'smartphone dependent' participants.  Furthermore, to capitalize on new data collection opportunities offered by mobile devices, there is an interest in actively encouraging and normalizing responding to surveys on mobiles in the general population. A range of mobile optimization strategies are available for this purpose, but not much is known about their relative effectiveness and impact on survey costs and errors. We address this question in the present study, through a comparison of three strategies to optimize mobile device experience in web surveys, which were implemented in a probability-based, three-wave election study conducted in Switzerland in 2019: (1) the standard approach of providing a URL to a browser-based survey and optimizing the display of the questionnaire on smartphones (N= 8000); (2) adapting the invitation to promote mobile response and providing a QR code to access the survey (N= 1088); and (3) providing a QR code to download and participate via a smartphone application (N=1087). We compare the three mobile optimization strategies to draw conclusions about their relative impact on a) response rates and sample composition – overall and on mobile devices; b) estimates for target survey variables; and c) the progression of fieldwork, to draw conclusions about which strategy provides the best balance in terms of cost efficiency and representation of the target population.
 

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