Many companies in the US, UK, Europe, the Gulf and Asia hire an Indian agency to run fieldwork, because local teams know the languages and the ground reality. Working across time zones and borders adds a few extra risks. This checklist covers them in plain terms. If you are still choosing between methods, read our 8-step guide to market research in India first.

1. Language coverage

Ask which languages the agency’s own interviewers speak, not which ones it can subcontract. A survey in the wrong language gives wrong answers.

2. Who actually does the fieldwork

Find out whether interviews are done by the agency’s own team or passed to others. Subcontracting is not wrong, but you should know the chain and the supervision at each step.

3. Quality control

Ask for back-checks (a second call to a share of respondents), supervisor accompaniment, GPS or audio verification where suitable, and a rule for rejecting poor interviews.

4. Sampling plan in writing

The proposal should state the sample size, how respondents are selected and what margin of error to expect. See how many people you need to survey.

5. Data protection

India has a national data-protection law, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, published by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. Ask how respondent data is stored, who can see it and when it is deleted. Add a confidentiality clause or NDA.

6. Questionnaire translation

Good agencies translate and then back-translate the questionnaire so the meaning stays the same. Ask to see the translated version before fieldwork starts. Our sample questionnaire guide shows what a clean question looks like.

7. Timeline and time zones

Agree a weekly update slot that fits both time zones, and what a delay costs. Public holidays and festivals in India can pause fieldwork, so plan around them.

8. Deliverables

Decide whether you need only raw data tables, or a full report with analysis and recommendations. Read how to write a market research report to see what a useful one contains. Reports should be in English with data tables in Excel on request.

9. Price and payment terms

Compare quotes on the same sample and method, not just the total. Ask for payment in milestones: an advance, a payment at the fieldwork milestone and a final payment on delivery. For the factors that move the price, see what decides market research cost in India.

10. References and track record

Ask for client references you can contact, and for a sample of past work with the client name removed. Check how long the agency has operated and who leads the projects. See ARS clients and case studies.

Related: How to choose a market research company in India · Services for global clients · ARS business books