itracks launches all-new online research platform – itracks Realtime.
Pioneers in online research offer an innovative new experience featuring the industry’s first true virtual backroom.
SASKATOON, SK, Canada – March 2, 2021 – itracks officially launched on Tuesday the long-awaited itracks Realtime, a unique and innovative software that completely changes the landscape of the online qualitative research industry. itracks Realtime was created in response to industry demand, offering professionals a turnkey solution for video focus groups, text focus groups, and video in-depth interviews, featuring the first and only true virtual backroom.
“We created Realtime in response to what we heard from the market research industry. Researchers were tired of using tools that really weren’t made for what they were trying to do, and paying a premium to do so. Solutions with the necessary security weren’t user-friendly, and anything more user-friendly was insecure and didn’t have the features they needed. There were a lot of challenges with downloading plugins and poor user experiences, and because of that, everyone was having to use workarounds that made it a lot harder to do research. And we completely understood, because we were experiencing that ourselves,” explains itracks CEO, Dan Weber.
The launch comes at a time when, more than ever before, traditional qualitative researchers are having to permanently rethink the way they do research. COVID-19 has severely diminished the ability to hold traditional, in-person focus groups, but that doesn’t mean the need for the advantages these traditional research facilities provide has gone away.
“The backroom, that hidden room behind the one-way glass where stakeholders and clients can watch the research as it happens, is an essential part of the research process. It’s how executives can develop empathy by hearing their customers’ stories first hand; it’s how researchers adapt to unexpected results with new questions and observations as the research happens without disrupting or distracting the participants. Now, more than ever, researchers need software that’s able to provide that realistic backroom experience, and it’s something the industry has really struggled to do until now,” continues Weber.
In addition to the high level of data security that the industry demands and that itracks is known for, itracks Realtime offers several features that are entirely new to the world of online qualitative research:
Virtual Backroom – itracks Realtime’s virtual backroom is the first to offer a fully integrated backroom where observers can chat with one another and with the moderator through both text and video without having to worry about interrupting the research. They can see and discuss participant responses, poll results, whiteboard data, mark-up activities and everything else going on in the group. Meanwhile, the researcher is able to control how and when they are able to hear the backroom, allowing them to maintain focus on the participants when they need to, without putting a stop to the observers’ conversations.
All-in-one Solution – Researchers no longer have to choose their software based on the real-time research method they are using. itracks Realtime offers the ability to hold text-based focus groups, video-based focus groups, and video in-depth interviews, all in one intuitive software.
High quality, single-stream audio and video outputs – Unlike other solutions which limit video outputs to a group recording, itracks Realtime also provides single-stream audio and high-resolution video recordings of each individual participant throughout the entire duration of the group (not just while they are speaking). This allows researchers to isolate certain participants to view reactions, or eliminate participants with distracting audio during the reporting phase – no longer do they need to worry about construction noise or barking dogs impacting all of their recordings. It also allows them to use the outputs afterward for marketing material or other uses that demand a higher quality than the tiny grainy square of each participant that they’ve been limited to in the past.
Subscription-based Pricing – Holding research groups is more affordable than ever, with subscriptions starting at $399 USD/month for unlimited groups and interviews as opposed to the typical $700+/group that the industry is used to.
“We’re really excited to finally release Realtime, as we know it’s going to change the whole online qual industry. That doesn’t mean we’re finished with it yet though. We’ll keep improving it, adding more languages so it can be used globally, and adding features the industry needs. It’s one of the huge perks of being independent – the scope of what we can do is really unlimited.”
itracks will be celebrating the launch with a virtual event on March 24th from 2PM – 4PM EDT. The event will be highly interactive, providing opportunities to engage in discussions with leaders within the online qualitative research industry, moderators that have used itracks Realtime, online research participant recruiters and itracks team members. Register at: https://content.itracks.com/realtimelaunchparty
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For more information:
Visit https://www.itracks.com for more information on itracks and their new Realtime solution.
To register to attend the virtual launch party, visit https://content.itracks.com/realtimelaunchparty.
Media Contact:
Krystal Rudyk
Marketing Manager
Krystal.rudyk@itracks.com
+1 306 665 5026, 8267
itracks has been a world-leading expert in online qualitative technologies and services since 1999.