Nobody in their right mind would claim credit for inventing the annoying robodailing political surveys that are so dominant these days. However they work and they get surprisingly accurate election data.
Back in the earlies, about 1968, I did an experiment. I was in the market research business and regularly did political surveys.
I made an audio tape. I then dialed a random phone number. I pushed the tape button and the voice explained that this was a computer survey and that answers were to be dialed. “Did you vote in the last general election? For "No" dial 1 for "Yes" dial 0”. I then paused the tape and listened for an answer. After they dailed, I pressed the tape button and asked the next question.
I reported my findings at the Spring 1968 convention of the Pacific Assoc. of Public Opinion Researchers. Of the 20 random numbers I dailed (all in the S. F. Bay Area) 18 listened to the full tape and answered all the questions.
The approach wouldn’t be used for practical survey work for decades until digital phones and computer voice simulation were perfected. I'm not the father of robodailing.
Back in the earlies, about 1968, I did an experiment. I was in the market research business and regularly did political surveys.
I made an audio tape. I then dialed a random phone number. I pushed the tape button and the voice explained that this was a computer survey and that answers were to be dialed. “Did you vote in the last general election? For "No" dial 1 for "Yes" dial 0”. I then paused the tape and listened for an answer. After they dailed, I pressed the tape button and asked the next question.
I reported my findings at the Spring 1968 convention of the Pacific Assoc. of Public Opinion Researchers. Of the 20 random numbers I dailed (all in the S. F. Bay Area) 18 listened to the full tape and answered all the questions.
The approach wouldn’t be used for practical survey work for decades until digital phones and computer voice simulation were perfected. I'm not the father of robodailing.
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