Purpose
The findings cited in this report are based on a survey sponsored by Hanley Wood on behalf of their publication, Builder.
The purpose of this research project was to provide the editors and advertisers with a profile of the brands used by builders. Specific areas of inquiry included:
the number and average sale price of residential units respondents’ firms were involved with building in 2007
respondents’ familiarity with, use of, and opinions about brands in 82 product categories
Method
The survey sample of 10,800 was selected in systematic fashion by Hanley Wood and Readex from domestic recipients of Builder classified as “builder, builder-developer, or general contractor,” including those who receive Builder as a benefit of NAHB membership, but excluding those classified as “do not promote.” The sample represented 114,619 recipients at the time of selection.
Twelve versions of a 4-page questionnaire (5.5” x 8.5” pages) were designed jointly by Builder and Readex. Each version included questions common to all. The only differences among the questionnaire versions were the product categories.
Data was collected via mail survey from November 7 to December 27, 2007. The survey was closed for tabulation with 3,428 usable responses—a 32% response rate.
The margin of error for percentages based on all usable responses is ±1.6% at the 95% confidence level. The margin of error for percentages based on the total answering for each product category asked about in this study is roughly 6%. The margin of error for percentages based on smaller sample sizes—census regions, for example—will be larger.
(Please refer to the Appendix for more details of the method.)
