Question

Topic: Research/Metrics

# Responses Needed 4 Statistically Valid Survey?

Posted by Anonymous on 4/22/2010 at 3:25 PM ET 25 Points
We surveyed 3,207 members (our entire membership population)- how many responses do I need to have a statistically valid respresentation of the members/population? (About 350?)
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 4/22/2010 at 3:32 PM Accepted
    Statistically valid at what confidence level? Do you plan to look at sub-segments of your respondent base, or just the whole group?
  • Posted by tim.beadle on 4/22/2010 at 4:57 PM Accepted
    Well the problem you have is that this is a self-selecting survey so there is a strong liklihood that there is bias in the sample. In terms of statistical validity and confidence levels - here's a link that shows you how to calculate it.
    https://www.marketingmo.com/how-to-articles/marketing-metrics/how-to-determ...
  • Posted by steven.alker on 4/24/2010 at 8:10 PM Accepted
    As Michael said, to what confidence level? Confidence is a statistical term used in the maths for this, not how you woke up this morning!

    My estimate is 1-- whoops! I ran out of points!!

    Steve Alker
    Xspirt
  • Posted on 4/26/2010 at 8:16 AM Moderator
    The reason we're having trouble giving you a clear and direct answer is that you haven't defined the problem in sufficient detail.

    Consider these two options, and you'll see what I mean:

    1. If you've asked your respondents to indicate preference among 10 different items and you want to have high confidence (95%) in which is the most preferred, you'll need a lot of respondents because there could be a "close race" among 3 or 4 different options (or more).

    2. If you are wanting to learn if at least 80% of respondents agree with a point of view (i.e., just a yes/no question), at the 90% confidence level, you won't need a large sample because (a) you're looking for a very big difference (i.e., 80/20), (b) you're satisfied with 90% confidence and (c) they only have one choice to make (i.e., yes or no).

    Those are extreme cases, of course, but it points up the reason we can't just give you a number in response to your question.

    You might want to contact a market research professional for more detailed assistance. This should not take a lot of time, so even if you paid for an hour or two of their time it wouldn't be very expensive ... and you'd have the right answer for your specific situation. (If you need a referral let me know.)
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