De meeste onderzoeken zijn eenrichtingsverkeer. De organisatie biedt een (kleine) incentive in ruil voor heWhile many factors influence how active and involved a customer panel is, so often it starts with recruitment. Whilst “Brand fans” are great to hear from and easier to recruit, you also want to onboard customers who are a little more critical. Successful recruitment consists of two elements: firstly, you need to know where to find your target group, both physically and digitally. Secondly, you have to convince them to become a panel member, so it is important to reach them with the right message.
Using features like the WhatsApp Invite, you can effectively reach your target group through familiar and convenient communication channels, increasing the likelihood of recruitment success.
The main reason for becoming a member of a customer panel revolves around “wanting to contribute and to help your organization”. Include what you will use the panel for and make the “what’s in it for them” concrete. For example, for customers of a housing association, it was key for members to know they could join in the discussion on topics that are personally relevant to them, such as making the home more sustainable or burglary protection. We also find that people are motivated by the exclusivity (“not just accessible to everyone”) and this emphasis yields great benefits. Be mindful though that the right message is dependent on the target group that you want to address.
Integrating the Branding Upgrade feature ensures that your recruitment message is consistent with your brand, enhancing recognition and trust among potential panel members.
After formulating the right message, customers need to see it. By communicating the message through multiple channels, you reach a larger, more diverse group of customers. Mapping the touch points (contact moments) with your customers can reveal which ones can be used for recruitment. An example is a supermarket that uses these various options to recruit members for its customer panel:
- In-store advertising pillars: displaying an invitation to become a member of the customer panel with a QR code for immediate registration.
- Supermarket’s wifi: an invitation appears on customers’ phones to register.
- Cash register flyers: Flyers are added to shopping bags, including an invitation for the customer panel.
- Receipts: an invitation is placed on the back of the receipt.
- Supermarket magazines: invitations are displayed in the supermarket magazines.
It is important to realize that recruiting panel members is not a one-off promotion but something that must be continuous. Every customer panel has a natural dropout rate. By continuously recruiting, you can largely absorb this, and the size will remain in order. Keeping an eye on the composition of your panel is also important. Younger target groups are often more difficult to recruit and keep involved. To compensate for this, you need to recruit more specifically, for example, with the help of social media campaigns.
The Multilingual feature can also play a crucial role in recruitment by enabling you to reach a broader audience across different languages and regions, ensuring inclusivity and diversity in your panel.
Below we have detailed the typical recruitment methods and our thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of each one:
Direct e-mail
The most used form of recruitment. Reliable and effective, generally yielding a conversion of 5 to 10%.
Corporate website
A call-to-action on your website boosts your image (it shows that you are open to the opinion of customers). The effectiveness depends on the placement, prominence, and traffic to the invitation.
Corporate social media channels
Effective depending on the number of followers, but as these are mainly fans, use this channel sparingly.
Newsletter
Tricky to get right but effective when successful. For example, conversions increase by 42% when placing only one call-to-action in your newsletter instead of four.
Customer service
Customer service representatives can ask customers to join the panel during interactions. This can be effective but may vary depending on the customer’s mood and the nature of the interaction.
There is no single answer to recruitment, but the simple answer is to work with a partner agency who can work with you to define your recruitment strategy.
