Quantitative data is measurable data, usually in the form of facts and figures. Its importance as a business tool cannot be underestimated, so let’s look at it in more detail.
Quantitative data can provide businesses with essential information on things such as how many of a given product have sold, where customers have chosen to buy the item, and what people have bought at the same time. We can also gather quantitative data on slightly more complex matters, such as people’s motivation for a certain purchase, hobby, or choice.
Who can collect quantitative data?
Quantitative data can either be collected directly by a business (primary data) or obtained using a data collection company such as shepper.com . In either case, closed questions are often used as a way of gathering the data, which may take the form of surveys or questionnaires. Answers often take the form of multiple choice or similar, which has two advantages: answers form part of a scalable, usable set of data, and it is easy for customers to complete.
Whether obtaining the data yourself or using a data collection company, it is not always necessary to ask the entire customer base. Quantitative data can be scaled; for example, if 100 people completed a survey and 73 of them said they were happy with a service, it is safe to assume that 73% of customers in general feel the same way.
Quantitative data can even be used to gauge opinion on an easy-to-interpret level, according to CareerFoundry. This can be achieved by rephrasing an open question, such as ‘What do you like about this product?’ as a closed question, such as ‘How happy with this product are you on a scale of one to ten?’. This enables businesses to develop a set of quantitative data that can inform their decisions going forward.
As quantitative data is numerical for the most part, it is straightforward to convert it into simple-to-read graphs or charts. This means it can be interpreted easily by businesses and service providers, and presented clearly as part of a pitch or marketing campaign.