Buyer's Guide to Viewing Facilities
Finding a suitable venue for your research is not easy. Just how do you find the facility in the best location for you, with the technology you need and the services you need, without compromising on quality?
Quality assurance and the VFA logo
Look for the VFA logo. Viewing Facilities which are members of the VFA have to meet a number of strict quality of service criteria before they can attain membership and display the VFA logo. They also have to be an MRS Company Partner or have at least one senior employee who is a member of the Market Research Society and abide by the MRS Code of Conduct.
Location of the viewing facility
Location is a key factor in most research. Not only does it have to be convenient for the respondents, it also has to be convenient for the clients. If your clients are flying in from overseas, it may need to be within easy reach of an airport. The viewing facilities directory on this site makes it easy for you to find the facilities nearest to the location you want to use, and also lists those nearest to major airports.
Capacity of the viewing facility
Make sure the studios are large enough to accommodate the planned size of your group and, if you have a lot of clients to accommodate in the viewing room, make sure that will be big enough for your needs as well. For long sessions, a garden or patio which can be used during breaks is an attractive feature, and if you are researching parents of young children, a child-care area service can be a bonus. For food product research you may need a test kitchen to prepare samples. Our detailed information pages in the viewing facilities directory clearly show the various features and facilities available at each VFA member studio.
Technology used in viewing facilities
All VFA members have excellent presentation and recording equipment installed. Just as importantly, we require that all the equipment is kept in a state of good repair with regular maintenance and safety checks. All staff at the facility will be fully trained in how to operate the equipment and on-hand to assist you should you have any problems during the research session. As well as traditional video recording, an increasing number of viewing facilities now offer digital recording to CD or DVD, as well as video streaming or webcasting, allowing your clients to view the session remotely over the Internet from the comfort of their own offices.
Other services at the viewing facility
There are additional services which may be important to you, such as recruitment of respondents, hostessing, providing trained moderators for the session, providing transcriptions of the session and so on. Again you will find the services offered clearly listed in each member's directory listing, but if you have specialist requirements and need advice, please do contact us. We have a good knowledge of our members and are always happy to suggest those which might best meet your needs.Flexibility and customer focus
You will find that all VFA members are very customer-focused and will always go the extra mile to make sure your research session is a success, whether that be catering for special dietary requirements, getting the room layouts just the way you want them, or organising taxis for you and your clients after a late evening session.