Merging Attitudinal and Behavioral Research Methods.

Harris Interactive announced the launch of Research Lifestreaming, a new research platform that presents a 360-degree view of individuals by connecting information they post online, survey responses and behavioral data. Harris’s clients are in turn able to interact with Research Lifestreaming participants, observe their actions, ask them questions, and listen to their conversations, thereby developing a deeper understanding of why they do what they do.

Although the concept of lifestreaming is not new–people have always recorded happenings in their daily lives– the journals and diaries of yesteryear have been replaced by new instruments. Today, for instance, there are more than 400 million active Facebook users and 105 million registered Tweeters, many of whom are sharing important aspects of their lives daily through these sites. In fact, two of every three Americans who are online use some form of social media.

“Examining and analyzing the comments that people post online creates an unprecedented opportunity to understand their passions – the ideas that drive them at a fundamental level,” says Mike Saxon, Harris Interactive’s Senior Vice President of Product Development, “We can now leverage this understanding to answer critical questions in the intersection of rational and emotional thought, such as product choice, brand engagement, and political beliefs.”

Research Lifestreaming differs from all other types of research in that it is single source, meaning Harris knows attitudinal, behavioral, demographic and psychographic information about each of its respondents. Unlike data fused from multiple panels, Research Lifestreaming connects all data to the same individual, so no assumptions have to be made, thereby giving a more holistic view of a person, compared to traditional surveys or social media monitoring. Specific benefits include the ability to:

– Listen to unfiltered conversations on membership social media networks (with the respondents’ full consent) and link panelists’ demographic profiles to their social networking posts, thus segmenting panelists into online personalities based on socio-graphic attributes;

– Observe behavioral patterns of individuals using Harris Interactive’s Clickstream and Mobile GPS technology, sending surveys to respondents’ mobile phones and asking relevant questions based on their geolocation;

– Interact with participants using two-way interaction via group discussions on the web and asking them one-on-one, in-depth questions about their experiences; and

– Survey panelists with traditional surveys to gain marketplace and macro-level data that provides on-the-spot opinions.

“The Research Lifestreaming platform enables us to answer critical questions at the right time. For instance, we’re able to enhance point-of-sale marketing programs by surveying people at the moment of truth – right after they’ve made a decision to purchase – and before post-buy rationalization sets in,” concludes Saxon.

For more information at http://www.harrisinteractive.com