Test studio

A test studio is a specially set up interview room that is used for market research . Test studios are mostly located in the inner city areas of large cities, as the respondents are relatively easy to recruit here. The equipment varies greatly between the different test studios. In the simplest case, the interview rooms are only equipped with a table and two chairs (for the test subject and the interviewer ). However, depending on the purpose of the survey, the test rooms often have additional equipment. These include, among other things, one-way reflections , PCs for computer-aided surveys, Internet connections, devices for audio and video recordings, test kitchens and video projection .

The test persons are usually recruited on the street directly in front of the test studio or within walking distance. In market research jargon one speaks of "dredging". The people who address the test persons on the street are called "excavators". Difficult target groups, which means above all rarely encountered target groups (e.g. users of an exclusive branded product), are usually recruited by telephone.

In addition to face-to-face surveys, group discussions are often carried out in test studios . Rooms with one-way mirroring are used especially for this. While the moderator is discussing a specific topic with 8–10 test persons, the commissioner of the study can experience the discussion live and up close without appearing to the test persons themselves. However, they are informed of the observation at the beginning of the discussion.

The test studio density varies greatly between different countries. In Great Britain and Spain, for example, there are virtually no permanent test studios with street recruitment; If necessary, rented rooms are used instead, for example in cafés or hotels. This difference often ignites misunderstandings between the market researchers involved in multi-country projects, as the rented rooms are often much more expensive than a permanent test studio and also mean more organizational effort.