Documentation
Public validation liveConcepts every integration needs.
Public REST and MCP tools can validate the canonical brief today without creating a commercial commitment. This page also explains the managed quote, order and delivery rules that apply after organisational setup.
1. The canonical brief
Any real-data gap enters ResearchPricer through one schema. The brief can originate in an assistant, an enterprise agent, a procurement suite, a web form or a direct API call. The normaliser produces a versioned canonical brief with a brief_hash; material ambiguity is returned as missing_fields, never resolved by guessing.
| Field | Meaning |
|---|---|
| purpose | Why the evidence is needed. Used to recommend method and flag restricted use. |
| markets[] | ISO country codes; per-market languages and sample. |
| audience | Type (consumer, b2b, physician, patient, expert…), screening criteria, exclusions, quotas. |
| incidence | Assumption and its source (buyer, supplier, historical). Never inferred silently. |
| method | cawi · cati · capi · idi · focus_group · online_community · ethnography · ux · mystery_shopping · clt · product_test · recruitment_only |
| n · loi_minutes · duration_minutes | Sample size or interview count and length. |
| stimulus · questionnaire · guide | Supplied by buyer or to be developed (adds scope). |
| moderation · platform · translation · transcription | Service options that change price and timing. |
| incentive_policy · consent · recording | Compliance inputs; fair-market-value for HCPs. |
| deliverables[] | csv · xlsx · sav · json · codebook · tables · transcripts · recordings · summary · provenance |
| dates | Earliest start, deadline, blackout periods. |
| data_constraints | PII handling, retention, transfer restrictions, permitted AI use. |
| currency · tax_entity · payment_terms | Commercial inputs for the quote. |
2. Pricing lanes: Green, Amber, Red
Every method × audience × market combination has a machine-priceability class. The class decides how fast a price can be returned and how much validation it needs. A null price means “unknown — obtain evidence”, not “unavailable”.
Instant or within minutes
Calibrated combinations: common online consumer work in evidence-rich markets, stable supply, clear scope.
Firm quote within 2 business hours (target)
Needs a targeted validation: qualitative recruitment, B2B professionals, less common markets, AI-moderated research, translation.
Custom feasibility, same day to 24h+
Rare audiences, physicians and patients, CATI/CAPI, in-person and facility work, sensitive topics, unclear incidence.
3. Estimate, firm quote, order
Estimate — free or low-cost, non-binding. Returns a range, timing corridor, confidence and missing inputs. Never reserves supply.
Firm quote — an immutable, signed offer with validity (typically 48 hours), capacity assumptions, inclusions, exclusions, tax and the approval level it needs. Any change produces a new version.
Order — binds an accepted quote to a company, terms (SOW / DPA), an approval record, payment milestones, supplier commitments and an audit history. The agent is never the legal buyer; the verified organisation is.
4. Lifecycle states
Objects move through explicit states. Agents branch on the state, not on free text.
- 01needs_clarification
- 02indicative_only
- 03live_feasibility_pending
- 04human_review_required
- 05binding_quote_ready
- 06approval_pending
- 07payment_action_required
- 08funds_cleared
- 09fieldwork_active
- 10quality_hold
- 11delivered
- 12closed
5. Deliverables
Delivery is machine-usable by default: csv, xlsx, sav, json, codebook, tables, transcripts, recordings, structured summaries, quota and paradata, a QC summary, provenance, consent/retention metadata and stable download references with checksums. Direct identifiers are segregated from anything an LLM will read.
6. Compliance
Projects follow the ICC/ESOMAR International Code and applicable national, sector and privacy rules. Use of AI is disclosed to participants where relevant. Physician and patient research adds credential verification, fair-market-value incentives, adverse-event routing and mandatory human compliance review. Research with children, vulnerable groups, covert observation, biometrics or sensitive political topics defaults to the Red lane and requires explicit legal and ethical approval. See Security and Privacy.
7. Glossary
- IR / incidence rate — share of the screened population that qualifies for the study; the strongest driver of cost and timing.
- LOI — length of interview, in minutes.
- CAWI / CATI / CAPI — online, telephone and in-person computer-assisted interviewing.
- IDI — in-depth interview; one moderator, one participant.
- CLT — central location test, e.g. product or taste testing in a facility.
- HCP — healthcare professional (physician, nurse, pharmacist).
- Mandate — a signed company authorisation that lets an agent commit within limits: seller, methods, countries, maximum amount, expiry, refundability, prohibited audiences.
- Provenance — machine-readable record of how each data point was collected, by which supplier, under which consent.
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