A presentation given at Qual360 in Milan, Italy with my friend Siamack Salari on a global mobile ethnography study, best practices and tips

1. Around the World in 14 Days!
Super-charging ethnography
using mobile technology
Mark Michelson Siamack Salari

2. The Challenge
• Gain first hand experience using mobile ethnography tool.
– On an ongoing basis, capture experiences during travel around the
world
– Explore social and cultural influences on how people shop and travel,
what they buy and how they consume

3. Our Approach
• Unstructured observations = “Wild Apples”
• Naturally occurring vs. in the moment
• Mobile Ethnography using EthOS iPhone App
– Video, Photo, Audio, Notes, Bar Code Reader

4. Seeds from the Field
• Capture the mundane as well as the interesting
– You never know what might be interesting later on
– Question what is captured as well as what is not captured
– Remembering to use the device is challenging

5. Seeds From the Field
• Context is critical – a picture may only be
worth a few words – and interpretation can be
quite creative.
Title entries appropriately,
tag each entry with notes,
categorize into themes

6. Seeds From the Field
• People using mobile devices are largely ignored
– Because mobile phones are everywhere, people don’t pay attention
when you take a video – unless you make it obvious

7. Seeds From the Field
• Hold mobile device steady when taking video
– Avoid motion sickness - Don’t ruin a great moment

8. Seeds From the Field
• Signals aren’t always available for connecting to the
web
– Storing captured data on device is necessary – especially in
remote areas or on a plane

9. Breaking our own rules
Participant Observation
• Capture naturally occurring
events
• No disruption caused by asking
questions at the point of
capture
• No knowledge of study
objectives so minimal
performances
• Performances eliminated by
researchers
• Minimal risk of respondent
fatigue
Mobile Auto Ethnography
• Respondent self edits – need
to question ‘naturally
occurring’
• Instant rationalisation
needed/given with most
entries
• Hi risk of performances
especially when trying to
maintain entry numbers
• Respondents will get tired of
showing you things (my diet)

10. 10
Processes of analysis
Ordering, reducing
Looking for clusters and patterns
Priming for insights about what
structures we might build
Joanna Chrzanowska

11. Interpretation aims to construct a
narrative to make sense of the whole
11
Joanna Chrzanowska

12. 12
Linking analysis and interpretation
Finding and organising what
you have to build with
Planning and creating a useful
& cohesive structure
What blocks you have affect the solidity of the structures you can create
As you start on a structure you look for the blocks you need
Joanna Chrzanowska

13. Key Ethnography filters
• Difference between what is said and done
• What people nearly do or don’t do
• Rituals and routines
• Naturally occurring events and happenings
• Naturally occurring language and vocabulary
• Codes, rules and systems which govern all
sorts of behaviours

14. The Real World

15. General Assembly
20 April 2012, Amsterdam
For more info and to join please visit:
www.mmra-global.org
Join us and help shape the future of
mobile marketing research together!