TABLE OF CONTENTS Omnibus research represents a middle ground between off-the-peg research services, where the data has already been collected and the researcher simply buys what is available, and primary research, where the researcher has to collect the information personally. Omnibus research describes regular research surveys that are being undertaken with a stated frequency and a decided method, using a set number of respondents and sampling points. The fieldwork omnibus is running and the client is invited to board the bus by adding a few personal questions to the questionnaire. The omnibus user has the advantages of original question design, privacy of information and representativeness of sample, without having to bear all the fieldwork costs alone. The user pays only for the number of questions included and this is a very cheap form of original survey research. Omnibus research is particularly suitable for fairly robust data, e.g. the usage and purchase of products. It is less reliable for attitudinal and opinion data. This is because an omnibus survey might last for 40 minutes or even more. During that time the respondent might be asked about six or more entirely different topics, which could range from voting intentions through bank account ownership and holiday-taking, to the purchase of hair-care products. This miscellaneous mix of bedfellows, who may come together in a single questionnaire, means that if more than superficial data is required the respondent is unlikely to be in a frame of mind to give sufficient concentration to any single...
