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A test runs a structured study across a whole cohort. Use it to pre-test creative, compare messages, or rehearse a launch — and get both the numbers and the reasoning behind them.
Tests list showing campaign message tests with sentiment scores and statuses

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Build a test

Go to Tests → New test. The builder is organized into sections; work down the form and use the live panel to preview your setup.
Test builder for a cost-of-living TV spot with variants A and B and a Young Voters cohort selected

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Identity

Name the test and state a hypothesis — what you expect to happen and why. Stating it up front keeps the read-out honest and gives you something to check the result against.

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Creative

Choose the format:
  • Video — react to a video cut.
  • Image — react to a static asset.
  • Messaging — react to copy you type or upload.
Add variants to compare options side by side — up to four, labelled A through D. Attach a creative or message to each. See Creatives.

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Audience

Pick the cohort the test runs against, or create a new one inline. Every variant is shown to the same audience, so differences in the result come from the creative, not the crowd. See Build a cohort.

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Context

Set the real-world environment the population is reacting within:
  • Current — today’s prevailing issues, mood, and events.
  • Neutral — strip out context for a clean baseline.
  • Custom — specify the issues, mood, events, and competitive pressure yourself.
Context is saved with the test so a run can be reconstructed and validated later.

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Metrics

Select the quantitative measures you want scored, such as Recall, Sentiment, and Purchase intent. Each is reported out of 100 and can be cut by segment.

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Questions

Add the questions each persona answers. Question types include:
  • Open-ended — free-text responses that become verbatims.
  • Rating 1–5 — a numeric scale.
  • Multiple choice — fixed options you define.
Drag to reorder questions. A good test mixes a few open-ended prompts with structured ratings.

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Panel and behavior

Tune how the run executes:
  • Sample size — how many personas to draw from the cohort (capped at the cohort’s n), or Max.
  • Randomize — vary the order variants are shown to reduce order bias.
  • Attention checks — include checks that keep responses honest.
  • Agent behavior — toggles such as allowing refusals, requiring grounded answers, capturing verbatims, and probing with adversarial follow-ups.

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Run it

Click Run test. Simulant questions the population and assembles the results; you’ll be notified when the run finishes. You can also Save draft to come back later.
Run time scales with sample size, number of variants, and question count. Larger panels take longer but tighten the confidence of the quantitative measures.

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Read the results

Open a finished test to see:
  • Headline metrics — recall, sentiment, intent, and clarity, each scored out of 100 against a benchmark.
  • Sentiment by segment — where the creative resonates and where it falls flat, split positive / neutral / negative.
  • Verbatims — what individual personas said, filterable by tone. Read the reasoning, not just the score.
  • Themes — verbatims clustered into the patterns that recur across the panel.
  • Recommendations — the actions the result points to.
Test results for the cost-of-living spot showing recall, sentiment, intent, clarity, segment breakdown, and voter verbatims
Themes view showing recurring patterns such as cost-of-living resonance and doubts about funding
Use Share to bring in teammates or Export to take the results into a deck or report.
Comparing variants? Look past the headline number to the segment cuts and themes — a variant that wins overall can still lose the audience you actually care about.

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Next

Run a focus group

Hear the same cohort deliberate in conversation.

Compare and track

Find patterns across every test you run.