While Outset's integrated panel partners - Prolific and User Interviews - are a great for many research needs, there are some situations where they may not be the best fit. This typically happens when your study requires very niche participants or strict quotas that lead to very low incidence rates.
Here's how to recognize when to consider other recruitment options and what you can do.
How do I know whether Prolific and User Interviews are the right fit for my audience?
💡 TIP: We absolutely and often have successful B2B or niche consumer studies run with Outset's integrated panel partners, but it's good to consider these topics ahead of launch to know where you might have flexibility if recruitment is slower than expected.
Outset is primarily a DIY tool, and not all recruitment is the right fit for these panels - we're happy to help if/when your team ever has questions that come up, but unfortunately we can't guarantee that all audiences will be available through our integrated panel partners at the cost or on the timeline you may be looking for.
1. Ahead of launch, consider your expected incidence rate -
Prolific and User Interviews are best suited for studies with broader criteria. When your screener or quotas narrow the eligible audience too much, you may see incidence rates fall below 5%. This means very few people qualify, and recruitment slows significantly. Examples include:
Looking for users of a specific B2B or niche consumer product
Targeting very specific job titles, seniority levels, or industries
Strict geographic requirements (e.g., X professionals in specific cities)
Having strict or extensive quota requirements
In these cases, the panels may still generate a good inflow of participants, but it's possible not enough of them will qualify to fill your study efficiently.
2. Consider your study timeline -
Time-sensitive recruitment becomes more difficult with low incidence rates. Studies with incidence rates of >10-20% can often fill very quickly, often with 50-100+ participants in just 1-2 days.
However, when incidence rate starts to get less than 5-10%, or especially <2%, timelines may become more difficult to meet. In addition, note that Prolific charges a small screen-out fee for each disqualified participant, so studies with incidence rates <5% can start to get expensive.
Feel free to reach out to our team for any suggestions about feasibility or expected timelines - we're happy to provide advice based on previous success we've seen.
If recruitment is going too slowly, there are a few options -
If you're seeing slow progress, especially on a tight timeline, there are a few levers you can try:
Increase the incentive: A higher reward can motivate more signups and encourage faster participation.
Relax screener criteria: See if you can broaden your targeting slightly without compromising quality.
Loosen quotas: Consider whether all your quota groups are essential, or if a more flexible mix could still give you useful insights.
Use multiple sources: You can try running recruitment on both Prolific and User Interviews, or add another panel like Respondent. You're free to use whatever external recruitment option you'd like for your study.
Bring in a specialized agency: If your timeline is tight and you know your audience is hard to reach, you might want to consider an external specialized recruitment agency
If you're unsure which direction to go, feel free to get in touch with our team. We're happy to share guidance and examples from successful projects we've supported in the past.
What to expect from specialized recruitment agencies
Specialized participant recruitment agencies are a good option when you’re targeting niche B2B or consumer audiences or have complex needs.
Here’s what you can typically expect:
White-glove service: They’ll often work closely with you to refine criteria and make sure your quotas are met.
Higher price points: These agencies often charge $200–$250 or more per 30-minute interview, especially for B2B roles.
Thorough vetting and quality control: Agencies usually run detailed screeners and vet participants directly, which helps with quality.
This route works well when audience targeting, quality, and speed are more important than cost, especially for studies with very niche B2B topics or hard-to-reach audiences (e.g., certain medical professionals).
Our team is happy to put you in touch with several recruitment agencies we've worked with in the past for successful studies - feel free to reach out on this topic to learn more!