How to Manage a Consumer Research Panel

Step #3: Growth

This post is the third in a series revealing the secrets of how RMS has had success with panel management. The first post discussed the importance of welcome calls, and the second post described quality control measures. This blog post will provide information on research panel growth strategies. At Research & Marketing Strategies, Inc. (RMS) we have become skilled at panel management by creating and continuing to manage our own research panel called RMS ViewPoint.

When it comes to the size of a research panel, the key is to have enough respondents to make the data meaningful. Growth is a crucial component to effective panel management. More survey respondents often results in higher quality data (assuming they’re engaged participants-more on that here). Occasionally, members will unsubscribe after an invite to participate in a research opportunity, which happens for a variety of reasons. At RMS we call this drop off. In order to offset drop off, we constantly recruit new members to support steady panel growth. Every project has different needs, so we never know if we’ll need to reach out to a specific audience for a client. By having a diverse population of panel members, we can be confident in our ability to reach the client’s desired target market.

There are a variety of tools we use to reach potential panel members. A few notable ones are: social media, traditional media, attending events, creating recruitment contests for panel members, and general networking. We have found the most success by attending local events. This has allowed RMS to connect with and support other local businesses while also recruiting panel members from a population that mirrors the Unites States population as a whole. During the event we provide sign up slips, which are identical to the RMS ViewPoint sign up survey, and find creative ways to encourage attendees to sign up. One way we do this is to take a poll of attendees using a ballot as the sign up slip. Check out the picture below of RMS representatives at a local event!

The RMS ViewPoint Panel is a cost-effective solution for your next market research project. If you would like to learn more about using the RMS ViewPoint Research Panel, please contact Sandy Baker, Sr. Director of Business Development & Corporate Strategy at SandyB@RMSresults.com or by calling 1-866-567-5422.

Want to join in on the fun? The RMS ViewPoint Research Panel consists of thousands of consumers, just like you, who get the opportunity to be rewarded for sharing their thoughts and opinions! Are you a member of the RMS ViewPoint Research Panel yet? You can click here to sign up.

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