Boldstream’s human panel puts real people on demand. Describe what you want to learn in chat, approve a fixed quote, and the results come back into the same thread - most closed-question studies inside a day, smaller ones often within the hour. Every respondent is a real, verified person, paid fairly for their time. Nothing runs, and nothing is charged, until you say go.
This page is your map of what the panel can do: the questions you can ask, the people you can reach, and the few things that need a different tool - we’d rather tell you up front than let you find out later. If you’re new to panel studies start with Run a real-human panel survey with the Human Panel Expert - that's the how; this page is the what.
What you can ask
Question type | Available? | Good to know |
Multiple choice (pick one or several) | ✅ Yes | The fastest option - recognition, consideration, preference |
Open-ended (answers in people's own words) | ✅ Yes | First impressions, spontaneous recall, the unprompted "why" |
Pick one, plus why | ✅ Yes | The winner and the reasoning behind it - made for tagline and concept tests |
Numeric answers | ✅ Yes | Spend, frequency, how many - hard figures, not bands |
Image questions | ✅ Yes | Show the real ad, pack, poster or design and ask - people react to the actual creative, not a description of it |
Grids, matrices and rating scales (e.g. 0–10) | ❌ Not supported | We ask these as separate choice questions instead - usually a cleaner questionnaire anyway |
Ranking and trade-off exercises | ❌ Not supported | Approximated with repeated choice questions |
Branching journeys or removing people mid-study | ❌ Not supported | Everyone answers the same questions; screening happens up front instead |
Video | ❌ Not supported | Use an image or a described scene |
Live interviews and focus groups | ❌ Not supported | The panel runs surveys, not conversations |
You can mix up to five questions in one study. A typical concept test pairs an image question with an open-ended first-impressions question and a couple of multiple-choice measures. For a walkthrough of putting a study together, see Ask richer questions in your research studies.
What comes back
Multiple-choice and numeric questions return clear counts and percentages, usually the same day. A recent 100-person study launched one evening had full results by 8 the next morning; smaller studies started earlier in the day often finish within the hour.
Open-ended questions don't arrive as a pile of quotes to wade through. Results come organised into themes, with how many people raised each one (counts and percentages), the overall sentiment, representative quotes, and notable minority views and every individual answer, word for word, is there when you want it.
The raw data tables are yours. Download the full response-level dataset - every respondent, every answer and run your own analysis, models or crosstabs on top.
Who you can reach
Audience | Available? | Worth knowing |
UK adults, national spread | ✅ Yes | The default - a broad cross-section by age, gender and region; most studies run 100–250 people |
Targeted UK audiences | ✅ Yes | Age, region, household and category screeners (e.g. "pays the energy bill"), plus hundreds of finer targeting options |
Vetted professionals | ✅ Yes | Credential-checked doctors, nurses, legal professionals, fact-checkers and more - best as smaller, focused studies |
Professionals by role and industry | ✅ Yes | Marketers, senior decision-makers, sector pools - we check the audience size first, free |
US and other markets | ✅ On request | Audience sizing is instant in chat; we run the study with you |
Going back to the same respondents | ❌ Not supported | Each study draws a fresh sample |
Tracking the same individuals over time | ❌ Not supported | Trends are tracked at audience level instead - that's how monthly brand tracking works |
If you can describe an audience, we can size it - instantly and free - before you commit to anything. If a pool is too small for a reliable read, we’ll tell you rather than run it anyway. UK studies are the default and the fast lane; for the US and other markets, just ask your Boldstream lead. To reach credential-checked professionals, see Put your questions to vetted experts, not just consumers.
Speed, cost and trust
You’ll always know the cost first. The exact quote sits in the thread before you confirm, and you’re never charged more than it.
It's fast. A 25-person study showing an image and collecting open-text answers has returned complete results in minutes. A 100-respondent study runs overnight at most. Multi-brand tracker studies of 250 people complete the same day.
It's real. These are recruited, verified UK adults - not AI, not simulated. When you want a fast directional read first, a synthetic panel can score a concept in seconds (see Test a concept on a synthetic panel in seconds); when you want a number for the presentation, the media buy or the board, the human panel is the real thing.
People are paid fairly for their time - which is why longer questionnaires cost more. We'd rather be straight about that than understate a task.
What's next?
Run a real-human panel survey with the Human Panel Expert — the full flow, from brief to results.
Ask richer questions in your research studies — open-ended, numeric, pick-one-plus-why and image questions in practice.
Put your questions to vetted experts, not just consumers — reaching credential-checked professionals.
Test a concept on a synthetic panel in seconds — the instant, simulated read before you spend real budget.
💡 Not sure which shape your question needs? Ask in chat, or talk to your Boldstream lead — sizing an audience or drafting a study costs nothing.