The Information you wanted about Focus Group Research
The Information you wanted about Focus
Group Research
Why conduct Focus Group Research rather than other types of research?
The proponents of Focus Group Research believe it to be an excellent way to discover the attitudes of customers, prospects, consumers and other target groups relative to a wide variety of different topics.
Focus Groups enable a trained facilitator to utilize the dynamics of the group to discuss topics in depth; the views of all the participants can be considered. The interaction among the people in the group is one of the most important parts of the process.
During the Focus Groups, a facilitator may show stimuli to the participants, such as new products, advertising ideas, promotional concepts or new packaging. This yields first-hand, spontaneous reactions about the participants' attitudes toward the topic.
Focus Groups are a dynamic research process in that the areas and nature of the questioning can change to reflect the knowledge acquired from group to group. This enables the facilitator to maximize the learning possible from the research process.
How much does Focus Group Research cost?
The cost of Focus Group Research depends largely upon the types of people who would be recruited for the sessions; some are much more expensive to find and require a greater incentive for their participation than others. Also, the cost per group depends on the number of sessions that are conducted in the study; there are essentially the same fixed costs associated with conducting two groups as with ten.
How many Focus Groups should I do?
There is no single correct answer to this question. The decision is generally based on one or more of the following criteria:
- The budget available for conducting the research.
- The number of different constituency groups that need to be included in the research.
- The number of geographic areas that need to be covered.
How many people are in each Focus Group?
There is no right answer for this, however, many facilitators hold a very strong point of view that 8 to 10 people is the ideal number. It is felt that if a group is larger than 10 there are too many people to control and it is difficult to get meaningful interaction among the participants. If the group is smaller than 8, the opportunity for varied inputs is reduced.
Some people prefer to conduct mini-groups with 3 to 6 people as they believe the smaller number of participants will provide for greater in depth discussion. On this issue, opinions among moderators vary.
Why do people participate in Focus Groups?
Many people feel that since they themselves would not go to a Focus Group that others like them would not attend these sessions either. There are two main reasons why people come to Focus Groups.
The first reason to attend Focus Groups is because people like to give their opinions about various topics; they find it interesting meeting and chatting with their peers about subjects of interest. For many it also is a break in their routine and a fun way to spend an evening.
A second reason people attend focus groups is to learn about the research technique or the topic being discussed. Often focus groups can be very helpful to people who are seeking additional information about a subject. They can talk with others about various aspects of the subject, gathering much useful information. Many business and medical professionals attend focus groups to help them keep up with new developments in their field; often the groups will address topics that represent new products or services which will be introduced in the future.
Can Focus Group results be considered representative?
The objective of Focus Group research is to generate qualitative and not quantitative data. Therefore, while we try and obtain the best and most representative sample possible, it is not absolutely necessary in order to gather useful information. Focus Groups tend to concentrate on macro rather than micro issues, and one does not need statistical accuracy to gather extremely useful information in this context.
Who writes the Focus Group Report and how long does it take to get it?
Some facilitators feel that it is essential that they write the entire report themselves and others will pass the tapes on to someone else who will write a report. Either way, your report will ultimately be edited by the facilitator. For the Inventor Focus Group Program, all reports are written by the professional facilitators who conduct the groups.
The time it takes to get a report after the groups are held will vary by facilitator. We have a policy that the report must be completed and in the client's hands no more than five working days after the last group. Other organizations take 2 to 4 weeks to provide clients with the report.
