Skip to main content
A section can show one image, video, or PDF while the participant reads or answers. Use stimuli for concepts, packaging, advertisements, prototypes, and other material that needs a reaction.

​
Choose the format

  • Image: shown inline and available full screen.
  • Video: shown in a player with controls, or as a muted loop when controls are disabled.
  • PDF: shown as a page carousel, which works well for multi-page concepts.
Add the stimulus to its section in the Study guide. Then use the preview to check its size, legibility, and behavior on a smaller screen.

​
Show it only once

For an ad test or a first-impression test, turn on Limited exposure under the stimulus:
  • The stimulus starts hidden behind a cover that tells the participant they will see it only once. They open it when ready, and can answer only after opening it, or for a video, once it has played to the end. If the file fails to load or a video stops playing, answering unlocks anyway, so no participant gets stuck.
  • Image or PDF: shown for the number of seconds you set (5 by default, up to 60), counted from when it opens, then hidden.
  • Video: played once with sound, without pause or rewind, then hidden. Player controls is unavailable while the limit is on.
The participant cannot bring it back during the interview, including after reloading the page (unless their browser blocks site storage, as some private modes do), and the interviewer knows it is shown only once. The preview in the Study guide plays the limited version, starting over each time you open it.

​
Describe it for the interviewer

The interviewer receives the stimulus description, not the visual file. Describe what appears on screen and any distinctions it may need to discuss. For a packaging comparison, identify each option by a visible feature so the interviewer understands phrases such as “the blue one.” For multilingual studies, each language can use a translated stimulus file. See Languages and translation.

​
Use images as answer options

When participants choose between visuals, give each option its own image instead of combining them into one stimulus. On a single choice, multiple choice or ranking question, open the question’s menu and select Add option images, then add an image to each option. Option order randomization then moves the images too, so no visual keeps the same position for every participant. Participants tap an image to choose it and can open it full screen. Logos read best with Hide labels on image options: each option then shows its image alone, while its label stays the recorded answer. Options without an image, such as “None of these”, stay as text. Question Analysis and the interview page show each option’s image next to its results. An option image is the same in every language; only its label is translated.

Testing your study

Check the stimulus in the participant experience.