Through Express, you can run a Media survey or a Usability test. Not sure which type of activity to run? Check out this guide: When to Use a Media Survey or Usability Test.
- Creating a Usability Test Express mission
- Recruit / Invite tab
- Create tab
- Submitting for review
- Launching your Mission
- Scoring
Creating a Usability Test Express mission
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Tap the "+" icon next to Express: usability test on the left-hand side of your project page.
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You can also duplicate an existing mission rather than creating a mission from scratch.
When duplicating a mission:- The recruitment approach can be edited.
- The device type can not be changed in a usability test.
- You can not adjust the mission type (i.e., switchin a media survey to a usability test)
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Choose your recruitment method. You can auto-recruit through the dscout panel, invite dscout panel scouts from a previous screener, or bring your own participants via a share link. You must choose a single recruitment approach for your mission – you can not combine recruitment approaches in a single mission. To learn more about your recruitment options with Express, read this guide: Recruitment Options for Express
4. Choose a device. Select the device you want your participants to use to complete this mission. You must select a single device, and participants must use that device to complete the mission.
Usability tests can be set to either mobile (beta) or desktop, note that usability functionality differs based on device type. The device selection for a usability test can not be changed once it is selected, even when duplicating the mission. You can view a full device functionality comparison here.
If you select to run a desktop usability test, these missions are continuously recorded meaning the entire session is recorded from beginning to end. You will Choose your recording option. Screen and Camera will record your participant and their screen throughout the duration of the mission. Screen only captures the screen and audio, but not the participant’s video camera. Learn more: Usability testing features per device comparison.
5. Give your mission a title. Note that your mission title is participant-facing (don’t worry, you can edit this later if needed before you launch your mission). You also have the option of including an internal mission name that is not visual to participants.
Recruit / Invite tab
The Recruit /Invite tab is where you will target and screen your potential participants and set up your mission details. If you are using auto-recruit or adding from a screener, this tab will display as Recruit. If you use a share link to invite external participants, this tab will display as Invite.
Recruit tab – Auto-recruit missions
Auto-recruit Express missions recruit scouts directly through the dscout panel. You’ll target your ideal participants through screening questions, targeting attributes, and quotas. Any scout who is eligible based on the screening criteria will move directly into the mission. The mission will automatically close once you have received your desired sample size of eligible recruits.
- Participant Limit: Set your desired sample size of eligible entries. Once the mission has reached that sample size it will automatically close and you can view the submissions from the eligible participants.
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- Usability tests can include up to 100 participants
- Incentive (visible to participants): Select the incentive that scouts will receive upon completion of the mission. Auto-recruit missions pay participants automatically after a 7-day payment hold. Incentives should be determined by the types of questions and level of effort required to complete your Express mission. If you have questions about determining incentive amounts, reach out to your Research Advisor.
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- Usability test: Choose from a range of incentive amounts between $10 - $200.
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Description (visible to participants): Describe the general objective of your Express mission and what the scout will have to complete in the mission. Keep your teaser general and do your best to not reveal any of your knockout logic here to encourage unbiased and honest responses. The description is the ideal place to communicate any instructions that are important for participants to know before beginning the mission, i.e., if they need to be at home in order to successfully complete the mission.
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Targeting attributes: Targeting attributes can be used to better target your scout audience; upon launch, the Express mission will only be seen by scouts who meet the criteria you've specified in your targeting attributes. If you don’t include targeting attributes, the mission will be available to all scouts to apply. Learn more about Targeting Attributes.
To include targeting attributes, select the Targeting Attributes menu item and select the desired attributes to target on from the Targeting Attributes menu on the right-hand side. Select the criteria you want to include in your mission. For example, this education attribute will only target people with the highest education level of some high school or high school graduate.
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Screener questions (visible to participants): Auto-recruit missions include the option to include up to 5 unique close-ended screening questions to determine participant eligibility. Each screener question must include termination logic (knockout or mustl-select). Single-select Screening questions can also include quotas. You must include at least one screening question.
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Exclude Recent Participants: Exclude participants who have participated in any paid activity at the project level or at the account level within the last 90 days. This can be toggled off after launch. Find this setting in the Settings menu of the Targeting Attributes area.
- Balance Participant Demographics: Ensure your participant pool is a good mix of scouts. No segment within demographics of Age, Ethnicity, and Gender will exceed 65%. This can be toggled off after launch. This feature is only supported for US based participants. . Find this setting in the Settings menu of the Targeting Attributes area.
Recruit tab – Add from screeners missions
With the "Add from screeners" option, you can bring participants into Express from a screener run through dscout’s Recruit tool. This approach allows you to leverage Express while giving you the ability to hand-pick your participants.
- Incentive (visible to participants): Select the incentive that scouts will receive upon completion of the mission. Participants will automatically receive payment after a 7-day hold. Incentives should be determined by the types of questions and level of effort required to complete your Express mission. If you have questions about determining incentive amounts, reach out to your Research Advisor.
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- Usability test: Choose from a range of incentive amounts between $1 - $200.
- Participants: Select the participants you would like to complete the mission following these steps: Adding scouts from a screener ("manual recruit") to Express
Invite tab – Invite your own participants
If you’d like to work with participants outside of the dscout panel, you can bring your own participants to the dscout platform using a share link. There will be no screener questions or targeting attributes in BYO Express missions, so you should only invite pre-screened participants to your mission. You will also be responsible for paying your participants outside of the dscout platform. Learn more: Bring Your Own (BYO) Participants to Express
- Description(visible to participants): Describe the general objective of your Express mission and what the participant will have to complete in the mission. The description is the ideal place to communicate any instructions that are important for participants to know before beginning the mission, i.e., if they need to be at home in order to successfully complete the mission.
- Share link: Once the mission is launched, the shareable URL becomes active. Copy the URL provided and share it directly with your participants.
- Incentive (visible to participants if enabled): You can choose if you’d like to display an incentive amount. Communicate what your participants will receive for completing your mission. dscout is not able to process payments for this recruitment type, so you will be responsible for paying them directly.
Additional Recruit settings
- Hero Image (visible to participants): Pick something relevant and fun! If you have multiple similar missions within the same project, different hero images can help you distinguish between them.
- Company branding (visible to participants if enabled): Let participants know who they're working with by enabling company branding. Learn more: Company Branding
Create tab
Use the Create tab to design your mission by providing mission instructions and adding questions. Only participants who are eligible based on your screening questions, or participants added directly to an Express mission will answer these questions.
Instructions
The "Instructions" section gives you a preview of what scouts will see after completing the Recruit portion of—and qualifying for—your Express Mission. You can include custom instructions if desired.
To include custom instructions tap Instructions, toggle on Custom message, and include your custom message text.
Writing your question script
To begin adding questions to your mission, select the Add button and choose your question type.
Task questions are a unique question type for usability missions. Read more about how to set up task questions here: How to use Task Questions in an Express Usability Test.
For a full breakdown of each question type, question description, and which activity it is available in, check out: Question Types in Express.
- You can include an unlimited number of questions in an Express mission.
- Usability Tests can include up to 10 task questions.
- Use Skip logic to jump scouts to different questions.
- Attach up to 5 pieces of Question Stimuli (not available in task or screen recording questions).
Thank You
Tap the "Thank You" section in the left-hand panel to view what scouts see when they complete your Express Mission. Similar to the "Instructions" section, you'll see a Settings menu in the right-hand panel where you'll have the ability to write a custom thank you message for scouts.
Submitting for review
Once your mission is finalized, it can be submitted for review by the dscout Research Advising team. Some users may be able to launch an Express mission without a review from a Research Advisor. Learn more about the review process: In-Platform Screener + Express Approval Workflow.
Launching your Mission
Select the green launch button in the upper right-hand corner to launch your Express mission. Confirm your mission details on the launch review module. It is important to note that Express missions can not be edited once they are launched, so we recommend previewing and testing the mission before launching.
Scoring
In usability tests, dscout will ensure that scouts’ media is successfully uploaded. If it doesn’t successfully upload, they will be removed as a participant and replaced with a new participant.
After an entry is assessed for quality, the scout and their entry will be available in the Express mission viewer and put on a 7-day payment hold. During this time, you may review the entry to ensure the scout appropriately responded to all mission prompts. After 7 days, the payment will be automatically released to the scout unless it is flagged by you or your team for low quality.
Note: only “approved” scouts can submit entries to your Express missions. These scouts have proved a minimum level of quality through their work on screeners or other missions.
Now that you have launched your mission, you are ready to dive into the data:
Learn more about running Usability missions on dscout: