Key Differences Between SPSS and Displayr

Displayr, like SPSS, is a powerful analysis and reporting platform for market researchers. However, Displayr has lots of distinct advantages over SPSS.

Things that are done differently in Displayr, include:

• General look and feel
• More can be done in Displayr
• Key differences between SPSS and Displayr
• • Displayr is designed by market researchers for market researchers
  • Automatic selection of analysis technique
  • Merging by dragging and dropping
  • No syntax in Displayr
  • Tables are created by dragging and dropping
  • No more re-running analyses
  • Proper handling of multiple data sets
  • No Separate Output Window in Displayr
  • Market research visualization
  • The Customer Success team
  • Specialist tools for survey research, like MaxDiff, RIM weighting, etc.
  • Correct statistical tests with weights

General look and feel

Whereas SPSS divides its tasks into several windows (Data, Syntax, Viewer, and Script), Displayr's user interface is designed so that just about everything is done on a single screen. 

More can be done in Displayr

Displayr does both analysis and reporting, whereas SPSS is primarily analysis only. More specifically, Displayr allows you to:

• Create Stories at the Same Time as Doing Analysis
• Easily Share Beautiful Data Stories
• Automate report creation and updating (see Automatic Updating, Duplicate & Modify, and Extensibility)
• Perform simple Excel-like calculations (see Calculate Anything).

Key differences between SPSS and Displayr

Here are 12 key differences between SPSS and Displayr:

Displayr is designed by market researchers for market researchers

SPSS was designed for the social scientists working at universities and colleges. On the other hand,  Displayr is designed by market researchers, specifically to make market researchers faster and better. It was also designed as an improvement over SPSS.

Automatic selection of analysis technique

In SPSS, the user has the job of determining the most appropriate type of analysis given their data. For example:

• To compute an average: Analyze > Descriptive Statistics > Frequencies.

• To compute a frequency table: Analyze > Descriptive Statistics > Frequencies.

• To compute a multiple response frequency table: Analyze > Multiple Response > Frequencies.

In Displayr, you either drag your variable onto the page or select your variable of interest from either a drop-down or a create menu and Displayr automatically works out the appropriate analyses (based on the structure of the variable set/question type (more info).

A huge range of advanced analyses are also automated via menus (e.g., Shapley, TURF, regression, segmentation, mapping). Displayr also fully integrates with R either via automated menus or directly through code.

Merging by dragging and dropping

In SPSS, if you want to merge categories on a table, you typically either re-code the underlying data, creating new variables, or write some code in custom tables.

In Displayr, if you want to merge categories on a table, you do so by dragging and dropping. When you do this, Displayr makes the change to the underlying data, simultaneously updating all other analyses that use it (if you do not want this to happen, you can have multiple versions of the same variable set). The time, effort and potential for error saved here speaks for itself.

For example, if I merge categories a table containing just the Age variable, all other tables that include the Age variable will be updated as well. 

No syntax in Displayr

In fact, the smart way to work in Displayr is to avoid writing syntax altogether. The use of syntax can be fairly ingrained in SPSS users, so it sometimes takes a while to appreciate this fundamental change in workflow.

Syntax in SPSS tends to be used for two reasons: to redo analyses with revised data and to provide a record of everything that was done. Syntax in SPSS is a consequence of SPSS having been created 50 years ago and modern programs don’t need syntax to do these things.

Rather than using syntax, Displayr automatically remembers everything you do. It works out and saves all the steps needed to convert the original raw data file into your final analyses. This means that when you replace data, Displayr will automatically redo all your work.

When analyzing in Displayr the underlying data never changes. This means you can undo and redo any data modifications, revert to how data originally looked and you can always see how data has been modified.

Tables are created by dragging and dropping

In SPSS, most tables are created with the Frequencies and Crosstabs procedures. For example, to create a Crosstabs table, you have to select your row and column variable(s) in a dialog, select options you want such as Row and/or Column Percents, and then click OK to view the table.

No more re-running analyses

It is often necessary to re-run entire analyses in SPSS, for example, if you have a change in labelling, you do a recode, or if you need to add a filter or a weight.

Displayr on the other hand automatically applies these additions or changes, instantly updating your analysis. Everything in Displayr is streamlined, again making it a better alternative to SPSS.

In this example, customers were surveyed on their movie preferences, and the results are displayed in a Correspondence Analysis. See how easy it is change the results from Males only to Females only, to the entire sample all from a simple drop-down menu. In SPSS, this would involve manually changing the Gender value on a SELECT IF command and then rerunning the analysis from syntax.

Proper handling of multiple data sets

Analyzing multiple data sets in SPSS, really means analyzing several data sets in parallel.

In Displayr you can combine analyses from the different data sets and analyze the relationship between variables from different files.

No Separate Output Window in Displayr

In SPSS, when you run analyses, the output will be displayed in a separate window named the Viewer. The Viewer has two panes: the Outline Pane to navigate through the output, and the Content Pane which displays the analysis results. 

In this example, a linear regression is run. Variable selection is performed in the Object Inspector on the right and the results are displayed on the same screen.

Market research visualization

When did you last use SPSS to create charts that you shared with a client? How many clients say they create their charts in Excel rather an in SPSS?

Displayr integrates with Microsoft Office, allowing users to export editable charts and to use templates for consistent reporting and Displayr for online dashboards. Displayr also has special purpose market research visualization tools.

The Customer Success team

IBM charges extra for SPSS support and licenses do not include upgrades.

Displayr licenses include support by a skilled Customer Success team, how-to-webinars, training videos, ebooks, and comprehensive documentation (more info). All upgrades are also included so you can be sure you are always using the most up-to-date tools and techniques.