Public Affairs
OUR SOLUTIONS
KnowledgePanel has been at the forefront of conducting online research for more than two decades. Backed by scientific design, statistical rigor and sector expertise, it provides consistently high-quality measurement.
KnowledgePanel is the oldest and largest probability-based online panel in the U.S.—with about 60,000 members. Our research capability spans all industries from public health to political polling to commercial services and products. We have the most experienced analysts and online panel research team in the industry. And, with over 2 thousand profile variables, we can target specific subpopulations while leveraging the cost benefit of online survey administration without sacrificing accuracy.
Built on a foundation of address-based sampling (ABS), KnowledgePanel provides a statistically valid representation of the U.S. population as well as many under-researched and often harder-to-reach populations, such as:
- Black and African Americans
- Latinos, including Spanish speakers
- Asian Americans
- Veterans
- Americans with disabilities
- Young adults (ages 13+)
- Parents of teens and young children
- LGBTQ people and people with nonbinary gender identities
- Rural communities
- Non-internet and cellphone-only households
- Gun owners and gun households
Rigorous design, superior coverage, panel size and sound methodology make KnowledgePanel® the most suitable choice for a broad range of commercial, academic, and governmental applications.
The key design advantages of KnowledgePanel
- We address self-selection bias by choosing respondents. Our efficient sample design uses a single sampling frame: the Delivery Sequence File (DSF) of the United States Postal Service, covering almost 100% of the U.S. population. A random sample of households from across the United States are sent a mail invitation to join the panel – you need to be invited to join the panel, people cannot simply volunteer.
- We address participant fatigue by ensuring minimal survey burden.Panelists take on average two to three KnowledgePanel surveys a month, minimizing respondent fatigue and attrition. Our research has highlighted a stark difference in the burden on KnowledgePanel members compared to opt-in participants:
Panel Hygiene
Number of surveys in a typical month from all sources:
We would like to think about surveys you take online over the internet. About how many ONLINE surveys would you estimate that you complete in a typical month?*
*Includes all online surveys, not just KnowledgePanel surveys
About 80+ percent of KP members only belong to KnowledgePanel and have not joined other online panels. For opt-in panels, only 33% belong to only 1 panel.
- We address mode bias. Mode effects have been found with multi-mode surveys, such as combining online and telephone methods of administration. Mode effects, or the possibility that respondents will answer the survey differently based on the mode of administration, can undermine survey inference. KnowledgePanel avoids this by using a single mode of administration – all surveys are conducted online. This is possible because KnowledgePanel provides non-internet households with a tablet and mobile data plan. The example below highlights the impact of mode on the responses of similar demographic groups:
- We address coverage of U.S. Hispanics.You no longer need to rely on expensive and problematic methods when conducting Hispanic research. KnowledgePanel Latino has reinvented research to meet the needs of the online survey age without sacrificing population representation and the sound sampling principles you expect. Recruitment is conducted in both English and Spanish and Spanish-speaking panelists can take surveys in Spanish. KnowledgePanel therefore encompasses Spanish- and English-dominant and bilingual households alike, as well as U.S. Latinos who do not have access to the internet at least occasionally.
- We address non-response bias.We lead the online research industry in survey cooperation rates with a high rate of those invited to take a survey who go ahead and complete it. We have also extensively investigated non-response at panel recruitment and found that members recruited to join the panel are not in any systematic ways different from the general population and KnowledgePanel is free from noncoverage of any specific subgroup.
- We can blend samples with our Calibration Methodology. For situations where a study requires a very large sample or targeting of small subpopulations, we have developed KnowledgePanel Calibration that blends our sample with non-probability sample while reducing known biases associated with such samples. When calibrated, the combined sample sources—KnowledgePanel and opt-in online samples—result in higher accuracy over the use of an opt-in sample alone.
- We can support longitudinal studies. KnowledgePanel is well-suited for conducting surveys with the same participants over time. While about 33% of the panel turns over annually, among those who complete the first survey in a longitudinal study, about 88% on average will still be on the panel a year later.
We know our panelists. We maintain an extensive, multi-year database of more than 2,000 profile variables based on survey respondents. Updated annually, the database is used to identify unique subgroups that are otherwise unattainable online. With the breadth of Ipsos KnowledgePanel profiles, we are able to:
- target the specific survey respondents you need, so that you don’t need to waste valuable time in your custom survey
- integrate analytic value from profile packages— this might include, but is not limited to, information about political affairs, lifestyle, media, shopping habits, financial views, technological sophistication and more
- create custom panels based on collected characteristics, behaviors and attitudes of Ipsos KnowledgePanel members, eliminating the cost of newly recruiting a panel
Ipsos expertise applied
We believe that the true value to you of working with our company lies in the knowledge of our people and having their know-how and creativity, motivation and commitment applied to your needs. KnowledgePanel alone cannot tell a story, provide actionable recommendations or create the best survey or sample design to find them either, but Ipsos’ experts can. Our team members combine and apply their industry experience and specialist knowledge to every project—so you can be assured you’ll not only receive the best survey/sample design but also the best insight on which to act.
Understanding the public sector
Ipsos KnowledgePanel is the trusted source of relevant public opinion information that enables its clients to make smarter decisions. Our experts combine their passion with Ipsos’ long-standing data science experience. This allows us to deliver vital global insights matched with local intelligence from more than 100 countries. By using innovative technologies and data sciences, we turn big data into smart data, enabling its clients to address critical concerns in public policy, health policy and services, epidemiology, environmental protection, political science, sociology, social psychology, and many other fields.
Documentation For Human Subject Review Committees
10 Differentiators of the Ipsos KnowledgePanel
KnowledgePanel presents at AAPOR
Download Robust Research Solutions
About Ipsos KnowledgePanel (Panel Book)