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Maximum Difference Scaling (MaxDiff)

MaxDiff is an approach for obtaining preference/importance scores for multiple items (brand preferences, brand images, product features, advertising claims, etc.). Although MaxDiff shares much in common with conjoint analysis, it is easier to use and applicable to a wider variety of research situations. MaxDiff is also known as "best-worst scaling."

The MaxDiff/Web system alone provides you what you need to design, field, and perform basic analysis for MaxDiff studies.

Read more about the MaxDiff methodology or download the MaxDiff Technical Paper.

MaxDiff/Web System:

• Two system sizes to choose from: up to 30 items / up to 500 items
• Two methods of analysis: counting analysis; score estimation based on hierarchical Bayes (HB)
• Web-based, CAPI interviewing (computers not connected to the Internet), or paper-based
• Includes comprehensive manual, with tutorial and examples

We offer two additional software tools to assist with MaxDiff studies:

• MaxDiff Analyzer (a web-based service for performing additional analysis, including simulations and TURF)
  • Web-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) analysis program
  • Automatically rescales MaxDiff scores computed under CBC/HB or MaxDiff/Web system
  • Includes choice simulator and TURF program for designing optimal porfolios for reach
  • More about MaxDiff Analyzer Program

• MaxDiff Experiment Designer for designing paper-based studies, in terms of giving you the combinations of items to ask in each MaxDiff question. If you buy the MaxDiff Designer instead of the full MaxDiff/Web System, you will need additional software to compute your MaxDiff item scores (such as CBC/HB or Latent Class).
  • Not needed if you buy the full MaxDiff/Web system
  • Does not include capability of estimating item scores
  • Up to 500 items
  • Can read data from text-only files and prepare files for analysis using CBC/HB or Latent Class software (both sold separately)
  • More about MaxDiff Experiment Designer Module

System Requirements

SSI Web requires Windows XP or later.

The MaxDiff Experiment Designer requires Windows 2000 or later.

Server Requirements

For web-based data collection, the software works on any Windows or Unix(Linux) based server platform that supports Perl scripts (including inexpensive shared hosting solutions).

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