How to Collect Data Offline
Introduction
EyeQuestion is a SaaS application, so it cannot collect respondent data directly while offline; the application itself always requires a connection. However, you can still run a study with panellists who have no internet access, then bring that data into EyeQuestion once a connection is available. This article walks through that workflow.
The result is a "paper-first, digital-second" process: panellists complete a printed version of the questionnaire, someone transcribes their answers into a spreadsheet, and that spreadsheet is imported back into the project. EyeQuestion remains your single source of truth for the final data, even though part of the collection happened offline.
When to use this
Use this workflow when:
- Panellists are in a location or setting without reliable internet access.
- You still want the final dataset to live in EyeQuestion alongside data from other, connected sessions.
Step by step
1. Build the questionnaire in EyeQuestion as normal
Design and configure the project the way you would for any study. No special setup is needed at this stage.
2. Print the panellist view
Once the questionnaire is built, print the panellist-facing view of the questionnaire. This becomes the paper form your offline panellists will actually fill in.
3. Distribute it offline
Share the printed questionnaire with your panellists in the field. They complete it on paper, without needing any connection to EyeQuestion.
4. Transcribe responses into Excel
Once the completed paper forms come back, enter the responses into a spreadsheet.
- Go to Sessions > Finished Sessions in the deployed project.
- Click Import Sessions.
- Download the example file from the modal.
- Enter one row per panellist.
5. Import the data back into EyeQuestion
Upload the completed spreadsheet through the same Import Sessions flow. EyeQuestion inserts each row as a new session into the project's results table.
