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I have developed a method of removing chronic pain and train people to be able to help others. When I train them I demonstrate on a "volunteer" member of the public. I also like to arrange one volunteer per trainee to work on at the end of the training. The thing is that it works with a 97% reduction of pain on average, so this isn't being a guinea pig or a test and when I promote it for free and ask for "volunteers" it doesn't get much response. I believe "volunteer" has a negative feel, like being asked to do something for no return.

Is there a better word I can use that suggests that it is a win-win situation, that they stand a very good chance of leaving pain-free and that the newly trained practitioner gets a lot out of working on their first client under supervision?

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    It would help to have an example sentence for context, but instead of saying something like “pain reduction volunteers wanted” you could say “free pain reduction session with trainee practitioner” - that makes it clear what’s in it for them and what’s in it for you.
    – mclayton
    Commented Feb 5, 2020 at 14:33
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    Volunteer is a normal word to use in these scenarios. It's possible you're not getting a response because the people you are speaking to are skeptical.
    – Ian MacDonald
    Commented Feb 5, 2020 at 14:51
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    Participants wanted for free treatment samples.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Feb 5, 2020 at 17:46
  • The people you describe can be regarded as receiving something for free rather than donating their time. You just need to describe your invitation to participate in these terms. You could even call them applicants in order to suggest a service in demand. We are now calling for applications to participate in the Laurel Program, offering potential relief from chronic pain, delivered free by our trainee practitioners. Applicants will be required to...
    – Orbital Aussie
    Commented Feb 6, 2020 at 0:37
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    Not guinea pig, then.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Feb 8, 2020 at 13:02

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As suggested by Yosef Baskin, these people can be seen as participants in a free treatment program (or at least an opportunity to sample that program). They are not merely volunteers as they are as receiving something for free rather than merely donating their time. I suggest you frame your invitation to participate in these terms, treating them as applicants in order to suggest a service in demand:

We are now calling for applications to participate in the Laurel Program, offering potential relief from chronic pain, delivered free by our trainee practitioners. Applicants will be required to...

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