5 Reasons To Combine Qualitative And Quantitative Research

Gone are the days when you need to think of choosing research while keeping their implementation costs in mind. With today's handy tech, combining market research methods has become easier and more cost-effective than ever before. And it's important to combine them as there are many benefits to it. 

With these two research methods, you can learn a lot more about the topic of research. While quantitative research helps you to bring in the data and insights, qualitative research helps you validate them better. Simply put, if quantitative research helps you find out how many people don't like a product, then qualitative research helps you find out why they don't like it.  

So these two methods do complement each other. That's why, in this blog, we will be exploring why you should combine them.

1. Both are Now Easily Accessible 

One of the major reasons why you should combine qualitative and quantitative research is the facilities. Back then, both research types were hard to carry out as the only mode we had was offline. Quantitative research, however, was still a lot easier than qualitative research. So this accessibility constraint was the reason why combining qualitative and quantitative research was not possible back then, and even if you choose to combine them, the cost of the research comes out to be very high.  

For instance, if you want to carry out quantitative market research, you can be on the road to survey people and ask their opinions. However, to do the qualitative, you need to have a setup for whatever method you choose, like focus group, interview, etc.  

Today, however, it's so easy and accessible because things have gone online. You can easily combine these two research methods without fearing ultra-high costs or arranging things offline. A focus group discussion or an interview can be set up online and even quantitative market research can be done with survey forms. 

2. Helps to Prove Hypothesis 

With the help of qualitative and quantitative research, you can get the whole picture of something that has not come to life yet, like product ideas. Here's how these work to validate an idea, which you can assume as a hypothesis as it's not in this world yet or proven to be successful. Let's say you have a product idea that solves a problem.  

To know if it will work or not, you created a small group for qualitative research. Here, you can gauge the thoughts, feelings, and motivations of the people you choose. It will give you a picture that has hints about how effective your product is or what issues or concerns are there with the product. 

So, now you will take these points to a wider audience through quantitative research methods like surveys. With this broader reach, you'll be able to validate these points, whether they are true or false. Whatever you find from this quantitative research, take it again in a qualitative discussion, and the cycle will continue until you are not done or satisfied. It's a great way to validate your business ideas not only about products but even before they come into existence. This cycle of qualitative and quantitative research is known as a multi-stage approach, which is widely used for a detailed analysis of any hypothesis. 

3. Let You Understand the "Why" 

Now, let's reverse the funnel and put quantitative research on top. When you do this, you get the answer to why behind the what. Let's take a simple example to understand it.  

According to a report, 83% of customers in eCommerce businesses abandon their carts after adding a product. So, this quantitative research tells us that a lot of customers aren't continuing to buy the product but leaving it just a step before. Now, you may think that this statistical data tells you about a problem, which it, of course, does. But if you are also running an eCommerce business, then you can add qualitative research to it to find the why behind it. It can be the price of the product, quality, or any other issue. In simple terms, you can get a complete picture of something happening in your industry. Moreover, you will also be able to get insights and derive a plan to execute the problem.  

4. Automation has Vanished the Complexities

Automation has revolutionized the way researchers combine qualitative and quantitative methods. In the past, merging these two approaches was time-consuming and complex. As you know, qualitative research involves analyzing non-numerical data like interviews and observations.  On the other hand, quantitative research deals with numerical data and statistics. 

Automation tools simplify this process. The software can now quickly analyze large amounts of text data from qualitative market research. These tools can identify themes, patterns, and sentiments. It helps researchers understand the underlying meanings and trends. For quantitative research, automation handles data collection, processing, and statistical analysis efficiently. 

By using automated tools, you can seamlessly integrate insights from both qualitative and quantitative data. For example, they can collect survey data and automatically correlate it with interview responses. This combined approach provides a more comprehensive view of the research topic. 

Automation also improves accuracy and reduces human error. Moreover, it can also help you get rid of any biases that humans mostly add to the research. It speeds up the research process, allowing us to focus more on interpreting results rather than managing data. Overall, automation makes it easier to leverage the strengths of both qualitative and quantitative research, leading to richer and more robust findings.

5. Helps You Know Your Audience Better  

Do you know what factors help you to retain the customers in your business? There are two main ones, namely customer experience and satisfaction. The more you keep the customer experience great, the more satisfied your customers become, leading to a loyal customer base. However, knowing your customers plays an important role.  

Combining qualitative and quantitative research can also be beneficial for this purpose. It allows you to know what your customer's needs, preferences, and motivations are. Moreover, it also helps you understand why. The comprehensive Insights that you'll get from combined research will let you connect with your audience better giving them a personalized experience when they do business with you.  

Wrapping Up

That brings us to the conclusion that using qualitative and quantitative research together is not only good but also convenient today. The constraints that existed in the past have now vanished, and the cost of combining qualitative and quantitative research has significantly dropped. Also, the benefits that this combination gives you as a business are undeniably great.