Research and analysis

Digital Contact Channel Research

Research to understand customer preferences and attitudes towards contact channels when using digital services.

Documents

Digital Contact Channel Research

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email different.format@hmrc.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Details

HMRC commissioned research to:

  • understand how digital services can be designed to meet customer needs and expectations and
  • to inform decisions about which digital contact channels should be introduced more widely and developed further, based on the circumstances in which, and the extent to which, they are likely to be used

The key overall objectives for this project were to:

  • explore and identify what support tools customers want /need /prefer /expect when using digital services
  • identify participant expectations, preferences and priorities (and the importance/strength of them) in relation to using digital contact channels
  • explore and understand under which circumstances customers would be willing/would not be willing to use digital contact channels, as an alternative to the telephone

The research was carried out by Kantar Public (formerly known as TNS BMRB) and was carried out between January and November 2016. The qualitative stage of the Digital Contact Channel research was conducted alongside the Personal Tax Account research - a separate research project - and consisted of 16 x 3.5 hour focus groups conducted across the U.K. alongside 16 x 90 minute interviews with Assisted Digital customers.

The Digital Contact Channels survey was completed by 2,646 respondents. The survey was conducted using the Lightspeed Research Online panel. The response data was weighted to reflect HMRC’s customer base that use the internet by age, gender and region.

Updates to this page

Published 23 July 2018

Sign up for emails or print this page