Being very heavily involved in consumer insights, online surveys, and consumer opinions, I take interest in seeing how other companies are performing their data collection to improve their websites. We’ve recently launched the OpinionLab service. Mens’Health is partnering with Keynote to facilitate their online evaluation of the menshealth.com website.

What I found disappointing with the opening e-mail is the following message: “Study will work best if you…use IE Web browser (Firefox has unpredictable results).” See the image below for reference:

Naturally, I have several opinions about this e-mail:

1. Consumers don’t associate IE with Internet Explorer. This is web developer or web marketing speak. The average consumer will have no idea what #1 means in the above e-mail.
2. “Firefox has unpredictable results” is not what I would lead with in any e-mail. If the application in which you want consumers to evaluate your site does not even work in their browser, then partner with another vendor who can provide a tool that is compatible with your audience’s preferred web browsers.
3. The assumption that visitors ALL use Windows and can readily access Internet Explorer (oh I’m sorry, “IE”) is another bad assumption. I am a Mac user and always hated these types of assumptions because it directly affects my ability to participate in a site/survey. I want my opinion heard, but if you don’t provide me with an alternate means to submit my feedback, then you’re not doing your customers any favors.

I clicked on the “click here to start” link and instead of being presented with “unpredictable results,” they flat-out deny access to the survey if Firefox is detected:

So basically, Internet Explorer 5.01 or higher and Windows 98 through Windows XP are compatible. IE 5 and Win98? No Firefox or Safari support? “Windows Vista support is on the way?”

Use Web Analytics to Justify Limiting the Compatibility of Your Web Applications
Use your web analytics packages to determine what the share of your visitors is in terms of the operating systems and web browsers they use. Make sure your online survey application works with your demographic. Firefox and Safari users account for 23% of visitors to SuperMotors.net. On Levolor.com they account for 16%. Those are very large percentages to be simply disregarding because you’ve partnered with the wrong vendor.

Moral of the Story
Browser and operating system specific websites are a product of the 1990’s. It’s 2007. Time to build web applications or partner with vendors who understand today’s web user by accommodating multiple browser types and not alienating them for choices they make. Additionally, with the way the user is instructed to use IE instead of Firefox makes it sound like it’s the user’s fault for choosing an unpredictable browsing platform. You should never speak to your customers like this — don’t imply fault or incompatibility in decisions your customer has made. You must adapt to them, they should not have to adapt to you!