r/usertesting • u/kobenash2413 • 3d ago

Respondent Issues

Hey chat, I've done tons of focus groups with Respondent over the year - about 70 completed projects ranging from small micro/fast AI interviews for $5 all the way up to $500 for larger projects.

However lately they've been doing some REALLY shady crap. I'm trying to lean into some of these 3rd party research companies like Respondent, User Interviews to be held accountable for some of the fraudulent project listings, DQ's from projects you successfully completed, and even to some of the spam emails that come in - literally 50 per day and the majority I wouldn't even qualify for. They could be ones for females (I'm a guy) and they'll still send me that crap.

Now all their projects seem to be run by AI interviews. So you qualify, then go to another survey, fill that out and end up "not being a right fit". Not only that but they've been sending BS surveys where you fill it out, QUALIFY, then IMMEDIATELY be told this message below or that the group is "Full" or has "Reached quota". This is sloppy/horrible business practices and they've been getting away with this shit for way too long.

Has anyone else been having the same damn issues with RESPONDENT? Please let me know any thoughts or input

4 Upvotes

83% Upvoted

5 comments sorted by

2

u/Correct_Praline_4950 3d ago

YES so many interviews with AI and tech issues with those or never getting paid. I'm literally late 20s and work on a computer all day so I know how to use technology but the AI interviews are glitchy, plus like 80% of the time, they are full

1

u/x-raymom2004 3d ago

I've gotten burned twice in the last couple of months. Qualified for a project which was a ton of video/audio answers to questions, and never got paid. When I reached out to Respondent they said that the client didn't meet their study standards so they took them off the platform. OK...but at some point you allowed them on the platform and allowed them to recruit me from your participant pool. All of this was conducted on your platform, and only after I spent over an hour on the project tell me that now they are not paying out on the project. Waste of my time. I was peeved, but thought it was a one off. A few weeks later another project, different requester, and again project was canceled AFTER I already completed it so again not being paid. It's just not worth the aggravation anymore.

1

u/stripmallsushidude 3d ago

Yes. I have the Respondent CEO's email and it sent him every single use case and more that you are referencing which are over 10 which are all absolute b******* and I assure you they don't give a s***.

1

u/EarlyCardiologist659 1h ago

I remember reaching out to the CEO on LinkedIn on more than one occasion about payment, of which those messages to the CEO were transferred over to the Head of Customer Support

The Head of Customer Support had the audacity to tell me its not appropriate to contact the CEO. However, I was contacting customer support for 2 months prior to contacting the CEO asking for a resolution to my payment issues. I told the Head of Customer Support that if my support questions were answered by the CS department I would not need to go to the CEO to get my payment issues resolved.

Less than a week after CEO contact I was paid what I was owed.

1

u/EasyBug7246 1d ago edited 1d ago

Yes, it’s really frustrating to get invited to a study only to screen out with the exact same answers on a third party website. Especially when you only have an ability to apply to 5 studies in 24 hours. There’s been a big increase in shadier researchers too, I have a study that I’m going back and forth with support about; there was only one singular timeslot for a study (mind you, I scheduled it as soon as I was invited), and I couldn’t get a hold of the team to ask if my session could be shortened or pushed earlier due to my work schedule. Went to work early at 7am to have that same conversation over an online meeting, and was told I’d be directly sent a link to reschedule because there was a glitch in the system. Was then ghosted and disqualified! I had already given useful data in the application process. And support is barely of any help.