This ESOMAR/GRBN Guideline on Mobile Research is intended to support researchers, especially those in small and medium-sized research organisations, in addressing legal, ethical and practical considerations when conducting research using mobile devices. It explains how to apply the fundamental principles of market, opinion and social research in the context of the current legal frameworks and regulatory environments around the world. It supplants previous separate guidelines released by ESOMAR and GRBN in 2012 and 2014 respectively. It is a statement of global principles rather than a catalogue of existing regulations.
The ICC/ESOMAR International Code on Market, Opinion and Social Research and Data Analytics, which was developed jointly with the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce), sets out global standards for self-regulation for researchers and data analysts and is undersigned by all ESOMAR members.
This set of three Guidelines deals with issues which need to be considered when commissioning a marketing research project. Such projects may be carried out by a variety of organisations ranging from individual researchers or consultants to large multi-national companies offering a wide range of services. Throughout these Guidelines, the term agency is used to cover all such possibilities. The main objective of these Guidelines on commissioning research is to assist both client and researcher by reminding them of the various issues involved in specifying and agreeing a research project. In this way they seek to reduce the risks of error, omission or misunderstanding and to help to improve the general quality of research projects. They cover a wide range of items and are designed as a guide or aide-memoire to help the parties involved without imposing specific obligations upon them. The need for this publication is probably most acute among inexperienced users of research, but even the most experienced clients and suppliers can benefit from a checklist approach. This is especially the case with international projects, where mistakes and misunderstandings can easily occur in setting up a project at long range.