Using Facebook Advertisements for Women's Health Research: Methodology and Outcomes of an Observational Study.

Deeonna E Farr,Darian A Battle,Marla B Hall

doi:10.2196/31759

Abstract

BackgroundRecruitment of diverse populations for health research studies remains a challenge. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these challenges by limiting in-person recruitment efforts and placing additional demands on potential participants. Social media, through the use of Facebook advertisements, has the potential to address recruitment challenges. However, existing reports are inconsistent with regard to the success of this strategy. Additionally, limited information is available about processes that can be used to increase the diversity of study participants.ObjectiveA Qualtrics survey was fielded to ascertain women’s knowledge of and health care experiences related to breast density. This paper describes the process of using Facebook advertisements for recruitment and the effectiveness of various advertisement strategies.MethodsFacebook advertisements were placed in 2 rounds between June and July 2020. During round 1, multiple combinations of headlines and interest terms were tested to determine the most cost-effective advertisement. The best performing advertisement was used in round 2 in combination with various strategies to enhance the diversity of the survey sample. Advertisement performance, cost, and survey respondent data were collected and examined.ResultsIn round 1, a total of 45 advertisements with 5 different headlines were placed, and the average cost per link click for each headline ranged from US $0.12 to US $0.79. Of the 164 women recruited in round 1, in total 91.62% were eligible to complete the survey. Advertisements used during recruitment in round 2 resulted in an average cost per link click of US $0.11. During the second round, 478 women attempted the survey, and 87.44% were eligible to participate. The majority of survey respondents were White (80.41%), over the age of 55 years (63.94%), and highly educated (63.71%).ConclusionsFacebook advertisements can be used to recruit respondents for health research quickly, but this strategy may yield participants who are less racially diverse, more educated, and older than the general population. Researchers should consider recruiting participants through other methods in addition to creating Facebook advertisements targeting underrepresented populations.

Highlights

Researchers must engage in effective recruitment efforts to solicit large data pools of diverse populations for study participation [1]
We can assume that in uncertain times, individuals are inclined to focus on tasks that strengthen their day-to-day livelihood rather than health research participation
For round 1, the headline Breast Density Survey had the highest number of link clicks (n=148), and the headline Voluntary For https://formative.jmir.org/2022/1/e31759

Summary

Introduction

Researchers must engage in effective recruitment efforts to solicit large data pools of diverse populations for study participation [1]. Recruitment of diverse populations for health research studies remains a challenge. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these challenges by limiting in-person recruitment efforts and placing additional demands on potential participants. The best performing advertisement was used in round 2 in combination with various strategies to enhance the diversity of the survey sample. Conclusions: Facebook advertisements can be used to recruit respondents for health research quickly, but this strategy may yield participants who are less racially diverse, more educated, and older than the general population. Researchers should consider recruiting participants through other methods in addition to creating Facebook advertisements targeting underrepresented populations

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Discussion

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