Sponsor Impact report are going to run out soon, and you need to do something. Ultimately, if the experience is poor, many more respondents will push back and leave the process. They will say, look, you told me you needed me to do this online research, but when I get into it, it will take more time than I expected, or is more complicated, and you didnt prepare me, Rogers says. They may be being asked to answer questions, take photos and shoot videos as part of a five-day community, and we are paying them just 50 for maybe 12 hours work. Simply offering higher rates of incentivisation alone may not be the answer, however. Weve actually found you can pay respondents less if you do a better job of communicating and telling them the reason why research is so important. Rogers cites a study Schlesinger conducted with respondents a couple of years ago, to explore their motivations to participate and what they find appealing about the research process. It found that some audiences were willing to accept lower remuneration sometimes 20% lower or more if they were simply told more about the research needs and how their input would impact products and services they use in their daily lives. I think, in a lot of ways, we bump up incentives to cover up the fact that we dont do as good a job communicating this impact to respondents, he adds. Rogers recalls one occasion when the amount of effort needed on behalf of the participants was undersold, and changes had to be made to improve the experience for all parties. It was for a piece of research around smoking cessation and smoking habits, for which people were asked to keep a diary, participate in a group discussion the following week, and prepare for possible follow-up video interviews the week after. Looking back, we didnt do a good enough job laying out to the respondents what all the steps involved. As people got further into the research, they became less engaged. In the end, we were begging people to show up for the video interviews. When we look back, we can see how we did a poor job setting up these people to be successful participants. In response, the company changed its participant experience strategy for the second phase of the research, leading to a big improvement in engagement. All the changes were around communication: the company told respondents exactly what was important, with clear instructions. These were repeated throughout the survey so respondents understood the value of the data they were providing. Rather than chasing people down, we were getting people contacting us, asking if they had been selected for the video interviews, because they needed to plan Research must be inclusive Aspen Finn, based in Nashville, how people naturally relate to type of representation they seek in Tennessee, carries out sensitive the world. participant audiences. research with niche consumer Eisenberg feels that some With niche audiences, the groups, and says devising a diverse researchers are reluctant to attention to detail around how and and inclusive process will improve challenge clients on the where we ask them to engage is participant experience. demographics and populations they heightened. People can tell when they seek for their surveys. are just checking a box for us and The market research industry has a responsibility to consider diversity, Improving the participant I find their level of engagement and equity, inclusion and belonging when experience starts here, she says. enthusiasm directly correlates to how facilitating respondent experiences, This means delivering inclusive welcome they feel. says executive vice-president Julia language and matching Eisenberg. This has taken on new representative moderators and High-touch preparations are a great meaning during the pandemic, and practitioners to studies. These will all tool when time allows, especially for requires deeper commitment and contribute to participants engaging qualitative work, says Eisenberg. Our responsibility to change because of comfortably and authentically. strategists like to call or connect with the social and political climate. Eisenberg says there is already So, what works well for Aspen Finn? participants before the study starts, to evidence of some clients wanting to introduce themselves, thank the Group, combines elements of work with research vendors that use participant for their time, and to cognitive psychology perception, inclusive language and have diverse express gratitude for the attention experience and identity to discover teams that more closely mirror the theyll give us during the study. The company, part of Schlesinger 20 Impact ISSUE 36 2022_pp18-27_Report.indd 20 08/12/2021 09:54