Typo Domain Polling for Representative Sampling
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing online polling methods face significant challenges in achieving a representative sample due to coverage bias, where not all potential respondents have an equal probability of being surveyed, leading to biased results and increased sample sizes and complexity in adjustments.
Innovation Solution
A method that utilizes a polling website with a domain name different from the intended site, where users inadvertently typing errors direct them to the polling site, eliminating coverage bias by providing equal probability of participation for all Internet users, and segregating respondents by country location for analysis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional online polling methods are used to recruit respondents, then the polling process is simple to implement, but coverage bias occurs and the sample becomes unrepresentative of the general population
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses typographical error domains as an intermediary mechanism to capture random internet users. When users accidentally type a domain name with a typo (e.g., googel.com instead of google.com), they are redirected to the polling site. This intermediary approach creates a random sampling mechanism that is both simple to implement and produces representative results, resolving the contradiction between sample representativeness and method complexity.
2Measurement precision
If the sample size is increased to reduce margin of error, then the statistical precision improves, but the time and resources required for data collection increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system allows users to self-select into the polling sample by accidentally navigating to the polling site through typographical errors. This self-service approach eliminates the need for active recruitment or complex sampling procedures, enabling rapid data collection with sufficient sample sizes achieved naturally through the high volume of accidental navigations, thus reducing both time and resource requirements while maintaining statistical precision.
3Measurement precision
If stratified sampling or cluster sampling is used to correct for biases, then the precision of results improves, but the subjectivity and complexity of selecting correction criteria increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of actively selecting and stratifying respondents based on demographic criteria (the traditional approach), the patent inverts the process by allowing random users to passively enter the sample through typographical errors. This inversion eliminates the need for subjective criteria selection and complex stratification procedures, making the method easier to implement while still achieving precise and representative results through natural randomization.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of obtaining a representative online polling sample is disclosed. The first step is to provide a polling web site with polling information for a user to select or otherwise interact with. However, that polling web site has a domain name that differs from the domain name of a web site the user intends to reach, the polling web site being reached when the user makes a typing or other address input error and inadvertently enters the polling web site domain name. Hence, for example, Google could harvest the many thousands of users who inadvertently type in gogle.com instead of google.com and direct them to an online polling page, instead of simply redirecting them to the google.com web site. This approach substantially eliminates coverage bias from the sample.