Explanation
For most people, it might be unfamiliar to them why you need their feedback. Explain in your emails or messages or introductions to surveys why you need their feedback, and what you will be doing with it.
Knowing what will happen as a result will make sure that people know why they should spend their time giving you their feedback.
Anonymity
Make sure that the participants in your research know that their feedback will be kept anonymous. For example, if you are a Course Rep gathering feedback about students’ academic experiences, anonymity will help students feel confident that they can share negative feedback if they have any without it affecting their relationship with the departments.
If you’re using a survey, carefully consider what level of personal detail you need from someone. If you’re posting publicly on social media asking people to get in touch, ensure that they know how they can get in touch with you privately (by giving them your contact details) and ensure they know their comments will be kept private.
If the feedback cannot be anonymous, then you also need to make that very clear before people share their thoughts and opinions with you.
Convenience
Often, people will have little time on their hands and anything that will make their life easier is a great idea. If you can ensure that people can participate in your research in an uncomplicated and convenient way, then that will help you gather more feedback. You may wish to be open with people about how long a survey might take to complete, and be transparent about this when you promote your research so that people are informed in their choice to get involved.
