Respondent Recruiting: Are You Paying Too Much?
To avoid over paying for respondent recruiting, it pays to understand source and method.
Source is where your respondents come from. There are three primary sources used by recruiters:
- Craigslist and social networking sites
- Suppliers' proprietary databases
- Lists supplied by the client or hand assembled or purchased by the supplier
- Active recruiting, such as telephone calls and intercepts
- Passive recruiting, such as email blasts and posting ads
Craigslist and social networking sites
Searching for respondents by posting ads on these sites is passive recruiting. Which means recruiters are not dialing 20 to 35 numbers per hour looking for qualified respondents. If Craigslist and social networking sites can generate the required leads, recruiting costs should be less than what you would expect to pay for active methods of respondent recruiting.
Propietary databases
Sending email blasts to proprietary databases can be a quick and inexpensive way of recruiting respondents. But email blasts don't always produce the needed number of respondents. Often, email blasts must be supplemented with telephone calls. Save on recruiting costs by asking suppliers to provide two separate costs: One for passive respondent recruiting using email blasts, and another for active respondent recruiting using the telephone.
Lists
Respondents from lists are generally less familiar with qualitative market research than respondents from other sources. And since this type of recruiting is almost always active, plan to pay higher recruiting fees, incentives, or both. But there's good news: If your project requires "virgin" respondents, lists are your best bet for sourcing them.
The bottom line
The less manpower required to get your respondents recruited, the less you'll pay. To save costs it makes sense to first determine what level of respondent you can realistically live with, and how many obstacles to recruiting success are absolutely necessary. From there, proper respondent sources can be determined, and the correct level of manpower can be assigned.
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About Aaron-Abrams Field Support Services
Aaron-Abrams Field Support Services are respondent recruiting and fieldwork management specialists for qualitative market researchers. Aaron-Abrams Field Support Services delivers quality respondents with less stress, less hassle and fewer headaches. Learn more at www.aaronabrams.com
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