Week 3 EOC: internet privacy VS. market research

The internet has its many ways of violating ones personal information, a lot of people may know and see it as they fill out online applications and Survey on a daily bases. There is this one Survey that every one passes around its your friendly "get to know me survey" that is always passed around on myspace, facebook, and freindster. Many think its innocent although not to a hacker how sends them out to seek out personal information to log into your bank accounts and so on. This cant really be avoided only you can avoid it by not answering these simple Q&As. 1) Be more choosy about  what sites you are on.


Marketing companies need to have information about the demographic they are trying to cater to. Before the age of the internet, our mailboxes and telephones were constantly bombarded with letters, and phone calls, from companies trying to find out what our favorite ice cream flavor or deodorant preference was. It was very annoying to be interrupted during a meal to answer the phone, only to find out it was a telemarketer who aggressively asked questions and refused to let you go.
These type of behaviors prompted the FCC and other governmental agencies to give the power back to the people with things such as the "no call" lists and the power to sue companies for harrasement, if an individual felt warranted in doing so.
What happens to the marketing companies? The persist and continue to thrive due to a new source of information-the internet. No more phone calls or wasted paper. They could simply flood your inbox as soon as they got ahold of your email adress. In those years before spam boxes, we often checked our mail, every little piece, only to be irritated by another survey. I would have to say I would rather be irritated by a survey than some of the things that are happening these days.


"The types of statistical information we may gather on behalf of our clients include the number of visitors to their Web sites, which pages or portions of pages such as web videos, are visited, duration of page/video views, advertising click-through metrics, the location of visitors prior to accessing their Web site, and details on browsers (including Internet Protocol 'IP' addresses or browser configurations). "

http://www.nielsen-online.com/privacy.jsp?section=leg_scs

"The simple fact is that when done correctly, the information generated by a survey can help boost market share, lower corporate risk, pave the way for a clear perception of markets and assist in the creation of effective marketing and advertising programs. Until recently, most surveys were paper-based or conducted by telemarketers. Although somewhat effective under most circumstances, marketers and HR professionals have discovered a much more powerful survey method—online research."

http://www.infosurv.com/surveys_guide.htm
http://online.wsj.com/public/page/news-tech-technology.html