The LSIA "Ballot"
The LSIA ballot is in the form of an online survey hosted at The Science Advisory Board website. BioInformatics, LLC has designed a 34-question electronic survey to be fielded to registered members of The Science Advisory Board and subscribers to The Scientist magazine.Scientists invited to participate are provided a unique URL to prevent multiple votes and to insure that key demographic information on the respondent is captured.
Because The Science Advisory Board and The Scientist have different techniques for managing their lists, respondents arriving at the questionnaire are presented with the following question:
This question acts as a secondary screen to ensure that employees of life science suppliers do not cast votes.Which BEST describes your current job position? (choose only one)
Advertising Manager --EXIT SURVEY--
Brand Manager --EXIT SURVEY--
Consultant --EXIT SURVEY--
Executive (CEO, CSO, etc.)
Graduate Student/Research Assistant
Lab Director/Supervisor/Coordinator
Laboratory Technician
MarCom Manager --EXIT SURVEY--
Post Doctoral Fellow
Principal Investigator
Product Manager --EXIT SURVEY--
Professor/Teacher
Staff Scientist
Those scientists permitted to proceed are then asked to indicate the frequency of their use in each of the following product categories:
Which of the following product categories do you use frequently (i.e., more than once a month) in your research? (check all that apply)
Cell biology instruments-Flow cytometer-based
Cell biology instruments-Microscope-based
Cell biology kits and reagents
Cell culture media and reagents
Computer hardware
Gene expression analysis products
High throughput screening and analysis systems
Image analysis systems
Instrumentation for genomic analysis
Instrumentation for protein analysis
Laboratory plasticware
Nucleic acid purification products
Protein separation products
RNAi products
I do not use any of the above products frequently in my research --EXIT SURVEY--
Descriptions and examples of the products included in each category appear in a sidebar when the respondent's cursor/mouse is dragged over a category.
Only those scientists who describe their use of any given product as "frequently" (i.e., more than once a month) are permitted to proceed to the next stage of the questionnaire. Scientists who indicate "frequent" use of multiple product categories will be permitted to vote for the "best-in-class" supplier in a maximum of four product categories. If the respondent indicates "frequent" use of more than four product categories, he/she will be randomly assigned the four product categories with the fewest number of responses at the time that he/she entered the survey.
Best-in-Class Product Nominations
Once assigned to one or more product categories the respondent will be presented with the following question for up to four categories of products:
This question is presented as a pull down menu. For example:Please select the BRAND/SUPPLIER for each product category that you believe offers the BEST OVERALL solution for your research. (choose only one for each product category)
| Cell biology instruments-Flow cytometer-based | --PULL-DOWN MENU-- | --FREE TEXT-- |
| Cell biology instruments-Microscope-based | --PULL-DOWN MENU-- | --FREE TEXT-- |
| Cell biology kits and reagents | --PULL-DOWN MENU-- | --FREE TEXT-- |
| Cell culture media and reagents | --PULL-DOWN MENU-- | --FREE TEXT-- |
The pull-down menu lists the leading suppliers of products in each category. The order in which the suppliers are listed is randomized for each respondent to reduce the chance of bias.
All respondents are also offered the opportunity to "write in" the name of their best-in-class supplier if it does not appear in the pull down menu.'
The Customer Value Score
When considering the supplier you selected above for each product category, how SATISFIED are you with the performance of the products you use in your research?The Customer Value Score is a method for measuring how well a supplier delivers those elements of corporate and product performance that customers' value highly. For purposes of the LISA '08 awards, the Customer Value Score is derived from the following four questions:
How well do the products from the supplier mentioned above meet the needs of your research for each product category?
How LIKELY are you to purchase the same product again from the supplier mentioned above for each product category?
How LIKELY are you to recommend product from the supplier mentioned above to a colleague for each product category?
Respondents will see these questions for each supplier they selected in up to four product categories. Each question will be presented as an 11-point scale (e.g., 10=Very Satisfied and 0=Not At All Satisfied). The sum of the four numerical scores will constitute the supplier's overall Customer Value Score for each category.
Each supplier's overall score is therefore calculated as follows:
| Total Number of Nominations | + | Total Customer Value Score | = | Overall Score |
The five suppliers receiving the highest overall scores in each category will be named Finalists.
Customer Communications & Support Categories
After completing the ballot for the product categories he/she was assigned, all respondents proceed to the Customer Communications & Support section of the questionnaire. This section is designed to recognize those suppliers who deliver superior value in their marketing communications, customer service and technical support.
All respondents will be asked to name the supplier they consider best-in-class in each of the following categories:
As with the product categories each Communications & Support category question will be presented with a pull-down menu listing 59 leading suppliers. All respondents will have an opportunity to "write in" the name of a supplier if it does not appear in the pull-down menu.Print Catalog
Customer Service
Technical Support
Sales Representatives
Print Advertisements
Web site
A Customer Value Score is also calculated for each Customer Communications & Support Category and is comprised of two components. The first is the frequency with which the respondent utilizes the nominated supplier's communication medium and/or support. The more often the respondent indicates that they utilize the supplier's category (catalog, sales rep, Web site, etc.), the higher the score for that supplier.
The second component involves the reason why the respondent selected the supplier as best-in-class. The more respondents who select a reason deemed "important" (based on importance rankings from previous research conducted by BioInformatics, LLC), the higher the score for that supplier. The combined score of these two components comprise the Customer Value Score for the Customer Communications & Support Category.
As with the Product Categories, the overall score is calculated based on the following formula:
| Total Number of Nominations | + | Total Customer Value Score | = | Overall Score |
The five suppliers receiving the highest overall scores in each category will be named Finalists.