Recruitment

Introduction

Recruitement

What is it?

Recruitment in user experience (UX) involves finding, contacting, and scheduling suitable participants for user research studies, such as interviews, usability tests, surveys, or diary studies. The selected participants should align with your target user profiles and the goals of your research method.
Examples:
To test a fitness app, you may need active individuals aged 25 to 40.
To redesign a medical dashboard, you may need hospital staff or clinicians who are familiar with electronic health records.
In UX, recruitment can be conducted through various channels, including agencies, online platforms, internal databases, or social media. Each option has its own advantages, disadvantages, and associated costs.

Why it Matters

Recruitment is crucial because it directly impacts the quality and credibility of your research. By selecting well-recruited participants, you can achieve the following:
Avoid biased results: Targeting the wrong users can lead to irrelevant or misleading feedback.
Gain diverse perspectives: Thoughtfully chosen participants reflect a broader range of needs and behaviors.
Design better experiences: Direct input from actual or potential users helps create more usable and relevant products.

Step by Step Guide

1. Define Profile 2. Decide on Sample Size 3. Plan Incentives 4. Source Participants 5. Contact & Shedule

Step 01

Define Profile

Begin by defining the key traits of your ideal participants.

Refer to your research plan and personas. Consider demographics, behaviour, expertise, or special needs.
Decide whether you’re targeting existing users, potential users, or people unfamiliar with your product.
Clarify if specialised knowledge is required (e.g., finance professionals, gamers, caregivers).

STEP 02

Decide on Sample Size

Determine how many participants you need based on your method:

Interviews : 3–10
Usability Tests : 5 per persona
Focus Groups : 5–10 per group
Surveys : 100+
Card Sorting : 15+
Tree Testing : 30–50
A/B Tests: 5–8 per variant
Diary Studies: 10–15

Factor in no-show rates (plan 10–15% more).
Don’t over-rely on numbers. For in-depth research, five good participants may give more insight than twenty random ones. Aim for quality over quantity in qualitative research.

Step 03

Plan Incentives

Offer suitable rewards to encourage participation and minimize cancellations.
Examples of Incentives:

Cash: €30–€150 depending on session length and audience
Gift cards (e.g., Amazon, Fnac)
Product discounts or freebies
Donation to charity (for B2B audiences)
Access to exclusive features or early prototypes

Tailor incentives to your audience. A €40 voucher may excite students but feel trivial to senior professionals.

Step 04

Source Participants

Select one or more sourcing channels based on your goals and budget.
Recruitment Methods:

Recruitment Agencies

Best for niche or professional profiles (e.g., doctors, engineers).

Automated Platforms

Fast and convenient options include UserTesting, Maze, Respondent, or PlaybookUX. Be cautious of “professional testers” who may skew results.

Internal Database

Use existing users or CRM contacts.
This is low-cost and familiar with your product, but may introduce bias—balance with new users as well.
Online Communities

Consider using platforms such as:

- Facebook (for lifestyle interests)
- LinkedIn (for professional roles)
- Reddit/Forums (for niche communities)
- TikTok (for younger demographics)

On-site Pop-ups

Tools like Hotjar allow in-app recruitment via brief pop-up surveys.

Pro Tip

Screeners

It is a good practice to ask questions for finding the right participants. These are known as screeners. Use AI tools to help draft screeners for participant recruitment. For example, prompt a generative AI tool like ChatGPT with: “Create a screener survey for UX research participants aged 20-35 who regularly use budgeting apps.”

Step 05

Contact & Shedule

Ensure your first contact is clear, friendly, and informative.
Here is an approach:

Call when possible, or send a warm email.
Be transparent: who you are, why you’re reaching out, what the session involves, and the reward.
Avoid over-explaining the test to prevent bias.
Confirm recording permissions (voice/video).
Send a follow-up email with practical details.
Remind participants the day before by SMS/email.