Recruitment strategies in app-based travel surveys: Methodological explorations

• Smartphone apps have potential as a new data collection method. • Recruitment methods are key for future travel surveys. • Recruitment material needs a group-specific design. Traditionally, travel survey data is collected through individuals’ self-reporting of trips using phone, web, or face-to-face interviews. Due to technological advancements, more effort has been put towards using GPS technology in smartphones to automatically register trips. Changing data collection methods can influence who responds. To date, no systematic study of different recruitment methods to motivate potential respondents has been completed. This paper includes results from a document study, literature review, technical test as well as 2 qualitative studies using focus groups and personal interviews, a short survey and 4 pilot studies using a smartphone app. We found that image, time, media attention and incentives influenced users’ participation. Campaigning the data collection using local ambassadors and social media, utilizing the name recognition of the university in the recruitment material (e.g. logo), and informing respondents of a lottery, made information distribution and direct recruitment easier. It was challenging to recruit participants due to privacy concerns and technical issues. Smartphone apps can potentially give high-detail travel data but are no quick fix to participation challenges, as the response rates from the pilots indicate that recruitment to these types of surveys results in low participation. Furthermore, the new data collection tool could introduce new types of biases if it is easier to recruit some groups, but harder to recruit others compared to previous tools. To ensure the production of high-quality travel data in the future, group-specific recruitment strategies should be identified and tested. In future research, respondent burden as a concept needs more attention.