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Also, when aiming to survey small subpopulations and minorities, applying classical probability-based sampling techniques is not possible or is highly ineffective. On the one hand, lists or register information for rare target populations that could function as a sampling frame is often not available. On the other hand, common techniques such as random walks or random-digit dialing produce a large number of screen-outs, that is, individuals who in principle could be contacted and interviewed but who do not belong to the target population. And even with newer random-sampling approaches, such as the respondent-driven sampling used for recruiting members of rare and hard-to-reach populations in particular, some obstacles can be difficult to overcome (e.g., because such participants can only rarely assess their personal network accurately).
One worthwhile alternative to these problematic approaches is the use of non-probability convenience samples in which participants are recruited online to take part in a web survey. Using non-probability samples reduces the costs not only for the actual data collection (i.e., web surveys are less expensive than the more traditional survey modes) but also for recruiting survey participants (Dillman et al., 2014). Sending e-mail-invitations, using banners and pop-ups on websites, or implementing push-messages on mobile devices is usually less expensive than other recruitment strategies such as telephone screening interviews and advertisements placed in newspapers, on billboards, or sent through the mail. In addition, these reduced costs make it possible to reach rare and hard-to-reach population groups in particular by being able to recruit a larger number of potential survey participants, thus effectively compensating for the problems associated with falling response rates.
A rather new approach to recruiting web-survey participants makes use of online social media and networks such as Facebook and Instagram. Using social networks for recruiting appears to be increasingly worthwhile, because in many countries they represent a growing portion of the general population. For instance, according to a 2019 survey of Germans 14 years of age and older, 35 percent used Facebook and 21 percent used Instagram at least once a month (ARD & ZDF, 2019).
There are several potential advantages to recruiting rare and hard-to-reach populations via social media compared with other recruitment strategies for convenience sampling. For example, ads on social media platforms are rather inexpensive compared with ads either elsewhere on the web (banners, pop-ups) or offline (printed ads in newspapers and magazines and on billboards). Moreover, the greater reach offered by social media platforms can be considered an advantage when one wants to survey rare and hard-to-reach populations. Even a small number of social networks and their advertising platforms allow recruiters to reach hundreds of millions of individuals worldwide, thus increasing the potential for finding and recruiting extremely rare populations. No existing online access-panel service combines that many panelists, which explains why most access panels cannot be used when a relatively small subpopulation is under study. Finally, many users of social networks visit sites and use apps regularly and spend much time browsing the services (Huang, 2017), thereby increasing the number of occasions when researchers may reach out to potential participants.
Another advantage of recruiting via social media is the comparatively large amount of meta-information available on these platforms. Whereas traditional recruitment strategies for online surveys can ascertain only limited information about potential respondents (e.g., previous websites visited or the type of device used), social networks allow recruiters to specifically address and manage target groups. For instance, for researchers aiming to survey members of rare populations, these networks allow them to target specific gender and age groups who have specific interests within a specific geographic region.
In addition, converting potential respondents to the subsequent online survey is a short and uncomplicated process. Users access social network services via smartphones, tablets, and computers. Thus, potential respondents are being reached through the same technology that they would use when participating in a web survey. Transitioning from social media apps on a smartphone by clicking on a link (or an image) to the online survey website is simple for these participants, because they can respond without even putting their phone down. Today, ease-of-use for smartphone users is even more important in that web surveys are almost always mixed-device surveys, with a constantly growing share of respondents participating via mobile devices (Couper et al., 2017). This advantage has the potential of greatly reducing the rate of dropouts between recruitment and actual survey participation.
Recruiting survey participants via Facebook and Instagram relies on multiple sequential steps. Each recruiting campaign can be subdivided into three stages: (1) preparation, (2) creation of the ad campaign(s), and (3) monitoring and evaluation.
Advertising on Facebook and Instagram requires opening an account on each of these platforms. These accounts cannot represent organizations or companies but instead need to represent existing individuals. In the case of a research project, a project team member needs to create the accounts or use their own existing private accounts in order for any further steps to be taken in the setup process. Next, a Facebook page must be created that represents the research project or organization/institution. The Facebook page will then be connected to any ad used in an ad campaign, allowing network users to easily access more information about the advertisers by simply clicking on the name of the sponsor as displayed in each ad. Users will then be redirected to the respective Facebook or Instagram page.
Facebook approves each ad before publishing it based on both automatic and manual procedures. Some topics need special verification and authorization (see Facebook, 2020b), including political campaigning and ads thematically related to political or social topics (see Facebook, 2020a). Requirements vary across the countries where the ads are to appear. Because many social science projects relate to political, social, or sensitive topics, researchers may choose to verify their account at this point during the campaign planning stage. Otherwise, some ads may not be approved later on.
Facebook and Instagram ads emphasize visual aspects such as images and videos. Most ads display a single photo, and researchers need to produce, buy, or license these images. Because most users do not focus on text when scrolling through their Facebook or Instagram timeline, images are the most important part of any ad campaign and need to be selected carefully. If possible, images should be pretested with members of the target group or with colleagues to identify which ones will be most appropriate and effective. The overall goal in selecting pictures is to capture the attention of individuals in the target population. Once potential participants consciously take an interest in an ad and have read the accompanying information, they may then click on the ad and take part in the survey. Variations in the content of the photos (e.g., individuals of different gender, age, etc.) will allow the researchers to specifically address target population subgroups. This is an important aspect, since the content that people find interesting in images and that attracts their attention varies greatly. Thus, more variation in the images used in an ad campaign will also probably lead to more heterogeneity among the respondents.
Each ad set needs to be defined by a start and end date. Moreover, a given (maximum) budget needs to be assigned and will not be exceeded throughout the campaign. The actual costs of a campaign depend on an internal, algorithm-based auction system. Thus, costs vary with respect to time, location, and market demand. The more companies and organizations place ads at a certain time, location, and target audience, the higher the price. Facebook offers different cost plans. For researchers who want to direct users to converge on an external website to take part in a survey, the costs-per-click (CPC) approach fits best. Here, the algorithm aims to maximize the number of clicks on the ads and thus the number of individuals who can be redirected to the online-survey website. Other options include costs-per-mille (CPM) (i.e., costs per 1,000 impressions [conscious/subconscious views]), which maximizes the number of individuals who (in principle) saw the ad but did not necessarily interact with (click on) it. For each ad set, a maximum daily budget is specified (e.g., $20), and the ad algorithm then delivers ads to users until the specified daily maximum is reached.
Having outlined the step-by-step recommendations for recruiting survey participants via Facebook and Instagram, we now present the practical approach to working with these social media platforms as a sampling frame.
Diverse forms of living, sexual orientation, and gender identity are increasingly discussed topics in society, the media, politics, and research. However, in many countries, no reliable and representative survey data about sexual and gender minorities are available (see Khne et al., 2019). For instance, the first nationally representative estimate of the size of the LGB population in Germany was not available until 2017 (see Kroh et al., 2017). Moreover, high-quality survey data are greatly needed to investigate social inequality and discrimination in order to meet the supra-national and national standards demanded by the European Union (see Directive 2006/54/EC. and Council Directive 2004/113/EC.).
To address this limitation, our team at Bielefeld University initiated an additional online convenience sample for which participants were recruited via Facebook and Instagram. The questionnaire was programmed using LimeSurvey, and its design was optimized for mobile devices to assure compatibility with different hardware and software and functionality on mobile devices such as smartphones.
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