User Interviews

What Is User Interviews?

User Interviews is a crowdsourcing platform that connects researchers with paid study participants. Founded in 2015, the platform supports a variety of study formats (in-person, online, etc.) and types (focus groups, 1-on-1, etc.), and has been used by companies like Adobe, Spotify, Amazon, and more.

Who Is User Interviews For?

User Interviews is for two groups of people: those looking to conduct market research studies and those looking to make money participating in said studies. For researchers, the platform offers many solutions for all kinds of research needs. For participants, although the platform doesn't offer a steady stream of income, there is potential for a good source of side cash!

How Does User Interviews Work?

There are 2 types of users on User Interviews: Participants and Researchers.

Here's how User Interviews works for each of those user types:

For Participants

User Interviews participants can earn money by taking part in a range of study types including focus groups, usability tests, surveys, 1-on-1 interviews, and more. There's no minimum payout on the platform, so earnings are paid out after each completed study via PayPal, direct deposit, or gift card.

Getting started:

Becoming a User Interviews participant is free. To get started, head over to the platform's website and create an account. You can do this by signing up via email or an existing LinkedIn or Facebook account. During signup, you'll also be asked to provide your phone number for identity verification.

Earning money:

The main way to earn money on User Interviews is by participating in paid studies. When you access your participant dashboard, you'll be able to see and filter through all of the available studies on the platform. When you see a study that interests you, you can apply for a chance to participate in it.

There are a variety of types of studies you can apply for, including:

• Unmoderated studies. These include online surveys and usability tests. Some will require you to record yourself, your screen, and/or your audio.
• 1-on-1 interviews. These involve getting together with a researcher face to face (either over webcam, phone, or in-person) and answering questions.
• Multi-day/diary studies. With these, you'll be asked to conduct certain activities over the course of multiple days, weeks, or months. For example, you may be asked to record your food/drink intake.
• Focus groups. With these studies, you'll participate alongside one or more other participants.

Be sure to accurately set up your profile to get matched with more relevant studies. Then, start applying to studies that you think are a good fit for you, your experience, and your interests.

Once you're accepted for a study, select a session time that works for you, and remember to show up on that schedule. After completing the study, you'll receive payment based on the study's payment terms.

Besides studies, you can also earn money by referring other participants to User Interviews. This can be done in two ways:

1. General referral. Refer someone to the platform and you'll both receive $10 once they complete their first study.
2. Study referral. Refer someone to a specific, eligible study and you'll both receive $30 if they successfully complete that specific study.

Referral bonuses are paid out via Amazon gift card.

Cashing out:

Once you have at least $0.01 in your earnings balance, you can cash out via Cash, Charity Donations, Check, Direct Deposit, Gift Cards, PayPal, Prepaid Credit Cards or Tango Card. Payouts typically take 0-12 days to be sent out.

For Researchers

User Interviews researchers (i.e. customers) can sign up for free and use the platform to conduct a variety of studies. Study participants can be sourced from the platform itself or brought over directly.

Getting started:

Becoming a researcher on User Interviews is completely free. To get started, you'll need to provide your name, work email, password, and reason for signing up. You can also sign in via an existing Google account.

Once signed up, you're ready to start conducting research.

Launching studies:

User Interviews offers two primary products for researchers:

1. Recruit. Quickly target, source, and filter quality participants from the existing User Interviews database. Different pricing plans are available depending on the size of your project (1 session = 1 successful participant):
   • Pay As You Go: $45/session.
   • Starter: $175/month with 60 sessions/year.
   • Essential: $325/month with 150 sessions/year.
   • Custom: If you need more than the above plans offer.
2. Research Hub. This is User Interviews' custom panel software. If you already have existing participants and want custom-branding + tools to manage and conduct your research, this is what you'll want. Different pricing plans are available (1 contact = 1 participant):
   • Free Forever: Max of 100 contacts.
   • Essential: $250/month with a max of 1000 contacts.
   • Premium: $1,250/month with a max of 5000 contacts.
   • Enterprise: Customizable.

(Plans include additional features as well, not just the ones listed above.)

With both of the above solutions, you can choose to run any of the four (4) types of studies available on User Interviews, including 1-on-1 interviews, focus groups, multi-day studies, and unmoderated tasks. Each of these can be done online, over the phone, or in person.