1. The Perfect Respondent Profile

Looking for “someone” in general is hard. It gets much easier once you know exactly who you need. At the very beginning of your research, create a profile of your ideal respondent. Define the factors that will guide your search, put them into a clear list, and make sure everyone involved has access to it. At Mish, when selecting respondents, we focus on:

• Product usage
• Gender balance
• Age range
• Geographic location

When a company’s target audience is broad, we make sure every segment is represented in our research sample.

2. Quantity Matters

The more respondents you find, the more data you’ll get — but… time and budget still come first. For qualitative studies, it’s better to keep each interview under an hour. After that, attention drops, fatigue kicks in, and the data quality suffers. We also limit the number of questions per interview — and with each new participant, that list gets shorter, because much of the information starts repeating.

3. Rewards Are Essential

A respondent’s time and opinion are their main assets — and you’re essentially buying them. In most cases, financial or material incentives are what guarantee participation. We pay for the knowledge and experience we don’t have. That doesn’t always mean cash. It could be points, coupons, or discounts. Sometimes people agree to an interview for free, if they’re genuinely interested in influencing the product. Ideally, your sample should include both types of respondents.

4. Where to Find Them

Don’t limit yourself to the obvious channels. Sure, social media and job platforms like LinkedIn or HeadHunter are classics — but unconventional methods can bring unexpected insights. For example, you can use local marketplaces like Avito to find people interested in specific products in specific regions. Finding respondents is a structured, logical process — it takes time, but it always pays off.

5. Trust, but Sometimes Verify

Sometimes, it’s worth double-checking the information you get from respondents. If the research doesn’t rely on specific skills or expertise, you can skip verification. But if it does — assess those skills first. Here’s how we handle it at Mish:

• Test: a short set of questions on the research topic (Google Form, separate file, or a quick message in chat).
• Intro call: the first voice contact and confirmation of the upcoming interview.
• Interview: the actual conversation on the research topic.

6. Not All Respondents Are Equal

Even if someone perfectly matches your ideal profile, if they feel uncomfortable during the interview, your data will lose value. So first, make sure the interview time works for everyone. Before the call, build a little rapport — make the person feel at ease. If during the session your respondent reacts with aggression or total indifference, don’t be surprised if the data turns out useless.

7. One Respondent — One Research Direction

No matter how universal your respondent seems, don’t reuse the same person across multiple studies. It leads to biased, repetitive data and narrows your perspective. That said, keep their contact info, you might want to reach out again later once the problem you discussed has evolved.

Hopefully, this “golden seven” gave you something to think about. Follow these tips, and your research will deliver valuable insights that help your product and your company grow.