Boots-On-The-Ground Data Collection Techniques

We will cover:

1. When is on-the-ground surveying necessary and advisable? What data can be obtained via scraping (watch out for “Terms of Service” agreements)? Can phone banks be used instead of on-the-ground surveys? Other methods of collection are also available and may be more effective. Gas prices, for example, can be obtained via relationships with credit card companies (who have anonymous transaction data).
2. Assuming on-the-ground surveying is advisable, how often should you gather the data? How do you find, hire, and train surveyors? What is a fair pay structure (hourly or per-site) for surveyors? Should the surveyors collect data on foot or via bicycle? We will discuss the pros and cons of tools such as Craigslist.com, Gigwalk.com, and ZipRecruiter.com.
3. If cost and manpower is a limiting factor for your organization, how do you quickly scale up an overseas operation to manage the collection and data-entry process? We will discuss the pros and cons of tools such as oDesk.com, Mechanical Turk, DropSend.com, and Google Spreadsheets.
4. Can crowd-sourcing and phone banks be used in conjunction with on-the-ground surveying to improve accuracy? If crowd-sourcing is used, what verification mechanisms can be utilized to maintain data integrity?