Ballpark has full video and audio recording capabilities built into the browser, with no plugins or installs needed. You can record participants’ webcam, microphone, and screen as they complete your study.
Ballpark streams video in real time, meaning that even if a participant gets disconnected part way through, you will still be able to play back the video up to that point.
Enabling recording
Open your study and go to the Build tab.
Click Recording in the left sidebar.
Select whether you want to record webcam, microphone, and/or screen.
Recording options
Webcam: Captures the participant’s face so you can see reactions and emotions.
Microphone: Records audio so you can hear think-aloud commentary. Enabling the microphone also enables automatic quality control, where participants who do not provide enough verbal feedback will be automatically rejected.
Screen: Records the participant’s screen, which is especially useful for website tasks and prototype tests.
Tips for reducing drop-off
Asking participants to record themselves can lead to higher drop-off rates. In our experience, this is usually because participants were not aware they would be asked to record. To reduce this:
Let participants know they will be recorded before sending them the link.
Mention recording expectations again in the Welcome step.
If you want participants to speak out loud, include clear prompts in your step titles and descriptions. See set up speak-aloud studies for detailed guidance.
Recording on mobile devices
Due to the recording capabilities available in mobile browsers, there are some limitations:
iOS and Android do not support screen recording. For prototype tasks on mobile, Ballpark uses prototype replay to simulate the participant’s journey based on event data from Figma.
Due to mobile privacy restrictions, the webcam will be paused while a participant completes website tasks in another browser tab.
Screen recording on mobile: Is coming soon via Ballpark's dedicated iOS and Android apps. Contact us in the chat bubble to discuss early access.
Next steps
You can find recordings when viewing responses. For guidance on think-aloud studies, see set up speak-aloud studies.