As the world strives to become more inclusive, paid market research opportunities for people with disabilities are on the rise!
As we shared in our blog “How you can give accessibility a voice through market research,” people with accessibility needs and impairments can take part in market research that:
1. explores the products and services that are created specifically for those with accessibility needs.
2. aims to find out how everyday products and services can be improved for everyone, including for those with accessibility needs.
But what format might these kinds of research projects take, and how can you get involved? Read on to find out!
Here are 6 great paid market research opportunities for people with disabilities to get involved in:
1. User research/User experience testing
User research and user experience (UX) testing are all about making your personal experience of a product or service as easy, comfortable and enjoyable as possible.
For example, you might be asked to test out a retailer’s new website alongside other participants to see how easy and fun the overall shopping experience is.
You’ll then have the chance to suggest ideas on how it could be made better for you to use; for example, including text-to-speech functionality, or making colours contrast more strongly so that text is easier to read.
2. Ethnography
An ethnography is a more unusual kind of market research project where, instead of you going to the researcher, the researcher comes to you to observe you in your everyday environment.
For example, researchers may be conducting an accessibility-specific study on how easy it is for wheelchair users to get around their local town or city to find ways that this can be improved.
In this instance, you may be tasked with completing video or written diaries on your phone, or answering a selection of mobile quizzes so that researchers can truly understand your experience and see how it can be made better.
For a real-life example of an ethnography, check out our own case study where female gamers kept a WhatsApp diary about the games they played and the experiences they had in the gaming community!
3. In-home interviews
An in-home interview is pretty much what it says on the tin – it’s an interview with a researcher(s), either face-to-face or online, in your home, so that they can see how you interact with and use their products day-to-day, among other things.
An example of an accessibility-specific research project might be if you have a mobility impairment and use a stairlift, so that researchers can understand how well this works for you and how they can improve upon the design.
There are hundreds of examples of in-home interviews you could be asked to participate in for more general research – from your use of home cleaning products to your experience in donating to charities (as was the case in this case study).
4. Focus groups
When taking part in a focus group, you’ll be one of (usually) around six to ten people gathered together either online or in person to take part in a discussion monitored by a moderator.
For accessibility-specific research, you could find yourself in a discussion with other participants who have a similar disability or accessibility needs to your own, talking about ways that an accessibility-specific product or service could be improved.
Or, you could take part in a research project where you represent the voice of yourself and other people with disabilities around the products and services made for the general public.
For example, you might get to take part in a focus group for your favourite fashion retailer, where you’ll have the chance to share how their clothing designs make you feel, and what you’d love to see them do next.
At Angelfish, we aim to source venues that are accessible to those with any mobility issues or physical disabilities so you don’t have to worry about this when you arrive!
5. Accompanied shops
Accompanied shops are where you as a participant will visit a specific shop or set of shops, and be observed by a researcher as you browse, so that they can get an idea of how you shop best and how they can improve the overall shopping experience.
One great example is the grocery shopping study that some of the Angelfish Marketing community got to get involved in!
In accessibility-specific research, the project could centre around eradicating any barriers that may be preventing you from having as easy and enjoyable shopping experience as everyone else – for example, by reducing the volume of music in the store to including mobility aids (supermarkets having quiet time hours has been one of the biggest steps forward in this remit).
6. Online communities
Finally, online communities offer a great paid market research opportunity for people with disabilities.
An online community is a small group of participants who complete a variety of tasks and get involved in different discussions via a secure online platform, usually for around 15-20 minutes a day for seven to ten days or more.
Our Angelfish Community recently took part in one that supported a marketing and communications agency to create an awesome new advertising campaign for their end client’s cider brand!
As a disabled person, you could find yourself getting involved in a very similar project, or one that is looking to explore the representation of disabled people in the media and advertising specifically, with the opportunity to, for example, get creative and come up with your own storyboard for a TV ad!
So, how can you get involved in these projects?
By far the best and easiest way to get involved in paid market research for people with disabilities is to sign up to a market research community.
This way, you’ll be the first to hear about upcoming market research projects that may be of interest to you, and it’ll be super-quick and easy to apply.
Here at Angelfish Opinions, we believe that market research should be open to everyone, regardless of their unique circumstances or experiences. In fact, we make it a part of our processes to ensure the brands we work with make their research open to everyone where possible.
As such, our market research projects are inclusive – this means that, whatever accessibility needs or impairments you may have, you can apply for absolutely any of our current projects that takes your fancy!
Sound good? Then be sure to join the Angelfish Community and have a browse of the projects we currently have on the go!
