In this article
One of the single most important components of having a successful Forsta Plus Digital Diaries project is recruiting the right participants. In this guide, we'll explore the different elements you should consider when developing a screener to find the perfect participants. (As an added bonus there's an attached word document at the bottom of this page that you can upload.)
If you would like Forsta to assist you with keeping your participants engaged, please reach out to your Forsta Plus Digital Diaries Account Director for details.
1: Who do you want in your project?
Before drafting your screener, think about who you really want in your study. The most frequently targeted categories are:
- Customers: people who are already using your product
- Category users: people who use competitors’ products
- Prospects: consumers who are target purchasers in this category but don't currently use the product
- Experts/Superusers: people who know a lot about your product and/or the competition.
2: What characterizes your ideal participant?
When developing the screener there are two areas of information you need to include:
1. Clear and concise expectations around participation in your project
- Dates of the market research study
- Anticipated amount of time involved
- Technology requirements
- Incentive amount and type (i.e. check or gift card)
- Consumer Disclosure agreement information
- Recruiter contact information
2. The qualities and behaviors you want to see in your participants
- Demographics
- Past market research participation
- Brand experience/loyalty/usage
- Product category experience/loyalty/usage
- Buying influence in the category
- Purchase decision-making
- Familiarity With Technology
- Written articulation question
3: Tech Requirements
It may seem a little obvious, but when it comes to recruiting for digital qual, it's extremely important you recruit people who not only have the necessary technology, but know how to use it. In terms of technological requirements make sure your participants have access to:
For Computer Based Activities
- High speed internet connection
- Desktop computer and/or laptop
- One of the following browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave or Safari. We strongly recommend using Chrome for the best experience.
Mobile Devices For Responsive Interface
- iOS (11+) - iPhone, iPad
- Android (4+) - smartphones & tablets
For Mobile Application`
- iOS (13+) - iPhone, iPad
Android (6+) - smartphone, tablet
Beyond the technology requirements you should check with participant's current digital behaviors to make sure they are comfortable:
- Taking and uploading digital photos and/or videos
- Browsing the internet
- Using social networking sites like Facebook
- Downloading apps to their phone
You can find the technology questions we recommend in the file attached to this guide.
4: Considering a segmentation algorithm?
While we know algorithms are common practice, we suggest you use them sparingly. Algorithms are one of the key things that drive up cost and eliminate people you want to talk to for your research so we recommend you use them only when absolutely necessary.