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Interviews

Recruitment and fieldwork for qualitative research

We find and screen the right people for qualitative work, starting with our own PocketsFull panel. When you need depth from more people than a room can hold, video and audio questions with AI follow-ups run inside a survey.

Talk to salesSee how we recruit
  • Screened on our own PocketsFull panel
  • See or hear candidates before you confirm them
  • Work to the MRS, ESOMAR and AQR codes
“The points stopped adding up, so I tried the other app.”Rewards got worse“Pickup was a mess. My order was never ready.”Order not ready at pickup“All my friends were already on the other one.”Friends use the other app“The new app lets me pay before I get there.”Pay before you arrive“Twice in one week they got my order wrong.”Wrong orders“I used to get a free drink every ten. Now it’s every twenty.”Rewards got worse“I’d stand there for five minutes watching the screen.”Order not ready at pickup

Why it matters

Depth only helps if it comes from the right people

In a small study, a few wrong recruits can bend the findings. Think of people who barely use the category, people who say whatever gets them in, or people who join every study going. Good qualitative work starts with a careful screener, real profiles, and someone checking who gets through.

10+years in sampling and fieldwork
3offices: London, Orlando and Gurgaon
3AI follow-ups at most per video or audio question
5audience groups compared side by side

Example

Example: why coffee drinkers switched apps

A US coffee chain wants to talk to people who moved from its ordering app to a rival's in the past three months. A screener on the PocketsFull panel finds US adults who have used both apps, and ends with one short video question: “Tell us about the last time you ordered coffee on your phone.” The team watches those answers and picks people for one-to-one interviews. At the same time, the video question goes to a larger group with AI follow-ups, so the reasons heard in the interviews can be checked against more people.

The story below follows this study, from the brief to the interviews.

Watch it run

How we recruit

From the brief to the room

Following one studyPeople who switched coffee-ordering apps

Step 01 / 07

Brief us

Tell us who you need, how many, the format and your dates. We help you write a screener that doesn't give away the answers people need to get in.

  • Profile, numbers, format, dates

Step 02 / 07

Screen

The screener runs as a survey in CatalyseAI and goes to PocketsFull members who fit the profile.

  • PocketsFull panel
  • Screener in CatalyseAI

Step 03 / 07

See them before you confirm

Open answers are checked for relevance. Add a short video or audio question and you can see or hear each candidate before you say yes.

  • Relevance checks
  • Short video answer

Step 04 / 07

Field the work

We set up the sessions in the format you chose. If you need more people than live sessions allow, the same questions can run as AI video or audio interviews.

  • One-to-ones
  • AI video interviews

Step 05 / 07

Every answer, transcribed and themed

Each video and audio answer comes back with a transcript, themes with a sentiment bar and a word cloud, ready in the report.

  • Transcripts
  • Themes and sentiment

Step 06 / 07

Numbers and reasons from the same people

A survey and spoken questions sit in one study, so the reasons sit next to the figures they explain.

  • Charts and crosstabs
  • Quotes

Step 07 / 07

Ask the study, then plan the room

Ask the AI analyst in plain words. It reads the transcripts with the rest of your data, and lists any number or quote it can’t trace back to it.

  • Ask the study
  • Checked answers

Live sessions or AI interviews?

Use each where it is strongest

AI video or audio interviews

When you need to hear from many people and the questions can be set in advance.

  • Many people at once, inside a survey
  • Up to three AI follow-ups on what each person said
  • Transcripts, themes with a sentiment bar and a word cloud
  • Reasons next to the survey numbers

Live sessions

When the topic needs a person to steer, read the room, or follow a long thread.

  • A moderator who can change course
  • Long, open conversations
  • Recruits picked from the same screener and video answers

Run both from one screener: pick people for the room, and hear from many more on video.

Standards and people

Recruited with care, and paid fairly

We are an ESOMAR corporate member and an MRS Company Partner, and we work to the MRS, ESOMAR and AQR codes.

See our accreditations

  • Paid for every survey. PocketsFull members are paid for every survey they complete.

  • A small reward for trying. Members who are screened out currently get a small reward for trying.

  • Session incentives per study. Incentives for longer sessions are agreed for each study.

Everything you take away

What you get

Keep scrolling: the reel runs sideways.

Screened participants

People checked against your brief, for one-to-one interviews, groups or tasks they do at home.

Each recruit's screener answers

You know why every person is in the study, and you can check it against the brief.

AI video and audio interviews

Questions people answer on camera or out loud, with up to three AI follow-ups each, run with many people at once.

Transcripts and themes

For every video and audio answer: a transcript, themes with sentiment, and a word cloud, ready in the report.

Numbers and reasons from the same people

Put a survey and spoken questions in one study, so the reasons sit next to the figures they explain.

More voices than a room can hold

Run the same questions as AI video or audio interviews

When you need depth from more people than live sessions allow, video and audio questions with AI follow-ups run inside a survey, and every answer comes back transcribed and grouped into themes.

AI video interviewsReal people, on camera, in their own wordsAI audio interviewsSpoken answers, without the cameraAudience samplingReach the right people for your survey

FAQ

Questions, answered

How do you check that recruits are who they say they are?

Every recruit answers a screener before they are invited, and open answers are checked for relevance. Adding a short video or audio question lets you see or hear people before you confirm them.

When should I use AI interviews instead of live sessions?

Use AI video or audio interviews when you need to hear from many people and the questions can be set in advance. Use live sessions when the topic needs a person to steer, read the room, or follow a long thread.

How are participants rewarded?

PocketsFull members are paid for every survey they complete. Members who are screened out currently get a small reward for trying. Incentives for longer sessions are agreed for each study.

Which standards do you follow?

The MRS, ESOMAR and AQR codes of conduct. Our certificates, including ISO 20252 for market research, are listed with their details on our accreditations page.

Related

Goes well with

ProductAI video interviewsReal people, on camera, in their own wordsSolutionAudience samplingReach the right people for your surveySolutionConcept testingFind the winning idea before you build itOverviewAll productsThe platform, panels and checks behind our research.

Tell us who you need to talk to

Send the profile, the numbers and your dates. We'll come back with how we would find them and what we would check.

Talk to sales

Nearest office: Orlando, FL (corporate office)