How to recruit participants for a study

The right participants can make or break your research. With the right match, you can uncover feedback that drives your project forward. But if you miss the mark, you risk collecting data that doesn’t reflect real user needs.

So, how do you make sure you’re targeting the right people? 

By reading this guide, of course! 

We walk you through the recruitment methods available, the selection process, and what you need to guarantee your study has meaningful, reliable results. 

Understanding your study requirements

Before recruiting participants, clearly defining what your study aims to achieve is crucial. Here’s what you should consider:

• Define your research goals: What do you hope to learn? Whether you’re testing a product or conducting a survey, clarifying your objectives will guide your recruitment process.

• Identify your target audience: Who are you trying to reach? Think about the demographics (like age, occupation, or behaviors) most relevant to your study.

• Determine the sample size: How many study participants will provide meaningful data? Larger studies may need a bigger sample, but smaller, more focused studies can often yield insights with fewer participants (the oft-quoted Jakob Nielsen report recommends 5 users, as often as you can afford, to be optimal). 

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6 methods for recruiting research participants

Recruiting participants requires different approaches depending on your goals, budget, and timeline. Here’s a breakdown of each method, including their respective pros and cons.

Research panels

Platforms like Lyssna, Prolific, and Respondent give you access to a wide range of pre-vetted participants that you can filter by demographics and interests.

• Pros: Convenient and time-saving, especially for studies needing specific criteria.

• Cons: Costs can be higher, especially if you're running multiple studies.

• Example: A market research firm using Lyssna’s panel to recruit 200 participants who match their buyer personas.

  

Email lists

Using your existing customer or contact database is one of the easiest ways to self-recruit people already familiar with your brand or product.

• Pros: It’s cost-effective, and your contacts may be more motivated to participate.

• Cons: The diversity of your participants may be limited by the size and quality of your email list. If your goal is to gather feedback from a wide range of users, an email list of existing customers also won’t capture people who aren’t already engaged with your brand.

• Example: An ecommerce site sending a survey to customers to gather feedback on their shopping experience.

Social media ads

Advertising on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn allows you to target participants based on specific demographics, interests, and behaviors.

• Pros: Highly customizable audience targeting, which means you can reach very specific groups.

• Cons: Ad costs can increase quickly, especially if response rates are low.

• Example: A healthcare study using Facebook ads to find participants within a specific age group who are interested in fitness and wellness.

Website pop-ups and banners

By adding a pop-up or banner on your website, you can attract visitors who are already interested in what you do.

• Pros: You’re reaching a relevant audience at the moment they’re engaged with your brand.

• Cons: It’s limited to your website traffic, so you may miss potential participants outside your existing audience.

• Example: An ecommerce brand displaying a banner to website visitors inviting them to participate in a product usability study.

Communities

Participating in or partnering with online forums, Slack groups, Reddit threads, or industry-specific communities can give you access to highly engaged individuals who are interested in your field.

• Pros: You’re likely to find highly engaged and relevant participants.

• Cons: Building trust and presence in these communities takes time and effort.

• Example: A tech company posting in a Reddit thread dedicated to user experience to recruit testers for a new software interface.

Referral programs

You can also encourage current participants to refer friends or colleagues in exchange for incentives. This method can be a great way to organically grow your participant pool, especially if you're targeting niche groups.

• Pros: It’s cost-effective and can lead to high-quality, motivated participants.

• Cons: Referrals may sometimes lack diversity, and your participant pool could remain narrow.

• Example: Offering participants a discount or bonus for each successful referral who joins and completes your study.

Screening and selection process 

The better your screening process is, the more relevant and reliable your results will be. It’s not just about getting people through the door – it’s about finding those who genuinely fit your study’s needs. 

The importance of crafting screener questions

As we outline in the above video, asking screener questions can be a good way to make sure the participants you’re recruiting match your study’s needs. Whether you’re filtering based on demographics, behaviors, or specific experiences, screeners let you zero in on the right people for your study.

If you’re using research panels, many of these screeners are already built into the platform, making this stage easier and faster.

4 screener question examples

1. Academic research
   Sample question: "Have you completed a degree in [specific field]?"
   Purpose: This question helps confirm participants have the relevant background.

2. Healthcare research
   Sample question: "Have you experienced [specific medical condition] in the last year?"
   Purpose: Helps filter participants with relevant health conditions for surveys.

3. Market research:
   Sample question: "Have you purchased [product type] in the last 6 months?"
   Purpose: Ensures participants are active consumers in your market.

4. Scientific research
   Sample question: "How often do you engage in [specific behavior or activity]?"
   Purpose: This helps find participants whose habits align with your research focus.

   

5 tips for ensuring screener accuracy

1. Keep it short: Keep screeners short and focused on essential questions. Long screeners may discourage participants.

2. Stay relevant: Focus on questions directly related to your study’s goals. Unnecessary questions can confuse participants and reduce the effectiveness of your screening process.

3. Use clear language: Avoid technical terms or jargon that could confuse participants. Clear, straightforward language improves response accuracy.

4. Make sure you have informed consent: Before starting the screener, provide participants with clear information on the process, how their data will be used, and that participation is voluntary. Be transparent about the time commitment and reassure the confidentiality of any sensitive information collected.

5. Be diverse and representative: Be mindful of how your screener might unintentionally exclude certain groups, and adjust to make your study inclusive and less biased.

   

What motivates participants

Participants are driven by a variety of factors depending on the type of research. 

Monetary incentives often appeal, especially in market or healthcare research, where you’re asking for a significant time commitment. 

For others, non-monetary incentives like contributing to social good or gaining knowledge can be a strong motivator, particularly in academic and non-profit research.

Determining appropriate compensation is key, and this can be determined by a range of factors: the study length, time and topics, the expertise or effort required, as well as the competitive landscape.

Overcoming common participant recruitment challenges

Recruiting participants can come with its fair share of challenges, from managing logistics to reaching specific demographics. Here’s how to tackle the most common issues:

• Managing logistics: Use tools to streamline recruitment and scheduling. Platforms like Lyssna help reduce no-shows when conducting moderated research and handle rescheduling efficiently.

• Boosting response rates: Keep your communication simple. Clear messages, strong incentives, and timely reminders can improve participation.

• Reaching niche groups: Engage online communities, use targeted ads, or offer referral incentives to connect with hard-to-reach populations.

• Managing costs: Stick to budget-friendly methods like research panels without compromising on participant quality.

• Avoiding selection bias: Include a diverse range of participants to prevent skewed results.

  

Measuring success

After recruiting your participants, it’s important to evaluate how well your strategy worked by tracking key metrics:

• Participant quality: Did the participants meet your criteria and provide valuable feedback?

• Attendance rates: If you’re conducting moderated research, use scheduling tools that track attendance rates. Low attendance may call for follow-up reminders or incentive adjustments.

• Time to recruit: Record how long it takes to fill your participant pool, and compare it with previous studies to identify bottlenecks.

By tracking these metrics, you can fine-tune your recruitment for next time.

How Lyssna can help

Lyssna makes market research easier by supporting each stage of the process, from recruitment to feedback collection. Check out the above video to see how you can recruit with the Lyssna panel or your own network.

With access to over 690,000 participants, you can easily find the right people based on detailed demographics and psychographics. Whether you’re running surveys, usability tests, or user interviews, our platform delivers quick results – often within 30 minutes. It’s simple to use and easy on your budget, with a generous free plan to get you started. 

Plus, for extra peace of mind, we’ve got you covered – if you’re not satisfied with any of your participants, we’ll replace them at no extra cost.

Final thoughts

When you get the right participants for your study, everything else clicks into place. Your data becomes more insightful; your results, more reliable.  

In this article, we’ve explored how thoughtful recruitment strategies – from research panels to community outreach – can help you build a reliable participant pool. The key is to start with clear research goals and a carefully designed screening process that ensure your participants truly match your study’s needs.

Remember, effective recruitment isn’t just about numbers – it’s about quality and fit. Whether you’re using monetary incentives or appealing to participants’ desire to contribute meaningfully, understanding what motivates your target audience is crucial. By combining well-crafted screener questions, suitable incentives, and diverse recruitment channels, you can overcome common challenges and recruit participants that deliver valuable feedback.

Focus on building that foundation, and the rest will follow. We hope this guide has set you on your way!

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Pete Martin is a content writer for a host of B2B SaaS companies, as well as being a contributing writer for Scalerrs, a SaaS SEO agency. Away from the keyboard, he’s an avid reader (history, psychology, biography, and fiction), and a long-suffering Newcastle United fan.