30. Recruiting Players
Step 2. Preparation
To recruit players for your playtest you will need to:
Find players.
Advertise your playtest.
Triage responses.
Confirm the final selection.
Finding players
Once the team are aligned on a definition for the target audience, it is time to make efforts to connect with potential participants. Approaches for doing this change regularly, but here are some ideas for advertising that you are running a playtest and are looking for suitable players:
Community management - players you might already be in touch with as they follow your studio.
Local universities - students are often a useful audience for playtesting many game types, and they might have the time available to attend.
Build your own mailing list - if you know that in 6 months from now you’ll be playtesting a prototype, start building a database of players local to your area.
Advertising the playtest
Advertise your playtest 1-2 weeks in advance, this should give enough time for your advert to be seen by enough people.
Triage responses
Once responses have come in from potential participants, narrow down the list to the most promising options. It would be recommended to talk on the phone to the potential final selection to ensure they are indeed who they claim to be. You don’t have to confirm with them there and then that they’re selected (either they are or are not), just say you’ll confirm selection shortly.
Confirm the final players
Once you have spoken in person to the small number of potential players, make your final selection and inform everyone you spoke to whether they have been selected or not. You should also confirm the time slot of the playtest they have been selected for.
Reserve players
It may also be useful to select one or two reserve players, these are players who are on standby just in case someone drops out. However, you may not need any reserve players, if someone does drop out on the day, you could just decide to run with one less player, or even call back a previously declined player and see if they’re available the next day.
Trust
It is worth highlighting that player although recruitment may not be seen as the most interesting part of the playtesting process, it is one of the most important. You do not want the playtest results to be dismissed because it was discovered that some players were not ‘suitable’. Build confidence in the results at all stages.
Key Takeaway
Have a plan for how you are going to find suitable participants, and give yourself enough time to put it into action. Speak to potential participants on the phone to confirm they are as suitable as they claim to be.