Most in the market research industry are aware of Gartner’s report from earlier this year that predicts that mobile phones will surpass PCs as the most commonly used web access device in 2013. Even if this prediction proves inaccurate, no one disputes that mobile browsing is growing year after year at an unprecedented rate, and that this shift must be addressed to reach and engage survey respondents who prefer using their phones over their computers.

Many survey solution providers have reacted to the ever-expanding mobile landscape by offering a wireless version of their survey software. Customers can elect to run a survey via online mode or wireless mode.  This approach provides options, but not flexibility. We at Kinesis have long argued that the real answer is not an either/or but a both solution. The reality is that most people access the web using a PC when they are at home or at work, and using a mobile device when they are anywhere else. Where will they be when they have the time or inclination to complete a survey?

Who knows. Market researchers cannot control which type of device a respondent will use when taking a survey, and therefore the only viable, effective answer is a multimode survey solution that can be executed seamlessly via both device types. A true multimode solution is vital so that respondents do not encounter problems such as access error messages, formatting issues, slow page load times, etc. simply because they utilized the “wrong” device type to access the survey. A true multimode solution also has to support the myriad of types and brands of wireless devices that are on the market: types such as smartphones, feature phones, tablet PCs, and PDAs, and then brands such as Apple, Google, Blackberry, Palm – providing this support a substantial, but critical task.

Mobile web access is growing, but online access isn’t going away anytime soon. Multimode surveys are more than just desirable, they are essential to the future of market research.