As more companies make concerted efforts to include a diversity of voices in market research studies, it’s our job as a leading nationwide recruiting agency to find qualified participants who are reflective of the mosaic of cultures and identities needed to fill a study. We’ve learned a few things over the years and we’ll share with you some tips for successfully recruiting a diversity of participants for your next study.
Tip #1:
Translation doesn’t equal cultural competency. Time and again we’re asked by market researchers to simply translate a screening guide to find participants who speak languages other than English. Unfortunately, it isn’t so simple. You run the risk of offending people from different cultural backgrounds if all you do is translate an English-written screening guide and try to force-fit it to other languages. There are cultural considerations and phrasing that need to be considered when writing screeners for people who belong to different cultural and ethnic groups. Take the time to work with someone in the community you’re trying to recruit from to help with the screening guide. You’ll have much higher success by making this effort!
Tip #2:
Beware of phrasing traps. It would be easy to think that using BIPOC when trying to recruit people who identity as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color (hence the BIPOC acronym), but many who are in these communities don’t like this acronym. Same goes for LatinX. Before putting out a call for submissions to a study, reach out to leaders from the communities you’re trying to engage with and ask what the appropriate phrases or words might be to connect with people from their community.
Tip #3:
Hire diverse moderators to lead focus groups and in-depth interviews. It’s so important that market research and medical and healthcare studies are reflective of the diversity of society. There are a number of examples of actual harm being done to communities when they aren’t included in studies. We applaud all efforts by companies to be more inclusive, and this also applies to market research firms. The skillset of moderators is key to getting deeper insights from study participants. Moderators are constantly trying to make participants feel at ease so they are comfortable sharing their opinions, values, and insights. When working with diverse participants, be mindful of who you have leading the groups. You’ll get a lot more from your participants if they feel safe and understood by the moderator and fellow participants.
Filling market research studies with a diversity of participants can sometimes be challenging. It’s best to partner with an experienced market research recruiting firm who can connect with people from a diversity of backgrounds.
Looking to add more diversity to your next market research study? Contact us Today!
