Case Study: NORC achieves more representative panel engagement with Virtual Incentives

NORC boosts panel engagement with Virtual Incentives as 82% of 18–30 year-olds choose gift cards under $51

NORC, a research organization at the University of Chicago, faced the challenge of strengthening the representativeness of its AmeriSpeak panel. They sought to deepen participant engagement and improve performance across diverse demographic groups by moving from a one-size-fits-all model to a more personalized, participant-centered rewards strategy. Virtual Incentives collaborated with NORC to analyze incentive behavior and understand what participants truly valued.

Virtual Incentives worked with NORC to analyze thousands of redemption events, uncovering strong correlations between reward preferences and demographics like age, income, sex, and race. The solution provided actionable insights, such as finding that 82% of 18-30 year-olds chose lower-value gift cards. These results allowed NORC to design a more tailored and effective incentive model, which deepened trust, increased engagement, and helped create a more representative research panel.

NORC