It’s All Qualitative: Why

and How to Conduct

Focus Groups

L2L Presentation, July 2011

Research Business Confidential

The How and Why of Focus Groups SUMMER 2011

Professor: Catherine “Kit” Harris Phone: 703-575-5654

Course Objectives

Course Requirements

Homework Assignments

Class Participation

Grading Scheme

U of ASCD

Today’s Objectives

1. Introduce the basics of research data gathering and usage

2. Focus in on qualitative research

3. As a group, go through a research activity

Objective 1. Basics of research data gathering/usage

Systematic gathering, recording, and analyzing

of actionable information concerning your:

To help make better decisions!

Customers/members/attendees

Operating environment

Products/Services/Events

Research Data Gathering Overview

1. Carefully focus on what you need to know to make the decisions you need to make

2. Think about how you can collect the information and from whom

3. Collect the information

4. Work to analyze/interpret it/present it

Objective 2. Data Collection Method: Focus Groups

• WWII, audience reaction to radio programs.

• Useful in understanding how or why people hold certain

beliefs

• Exploratory in nature

• Methods include focus groups, triads, dyads, in-depth interviews, observation, etc.

• More than discussion; need a lot of planning

Interacting individuals with a common interest or characteristics brought together by a moderator, who uses the group’s

interaction to gain information about a specific issue

• Typically 7-10 people, unfamiliar w/each other

• Moderator creates permissive environment; encourages different points of view

• No pressure to vote/reach consensus

• Discussion is conducted several times with similar participants to identify trends

• Careful analysis of the discussions provide insights

When to use Qualitative versus Quantitative

• Research projects are led neither by quantitative nor qualitative; they work together like peanut butter and jelly

• Focus Groups should be used for exploration and in-depth understanding, but never to make final decisions.

• Can be used before, at the same time, or after a quantitative study

Advantages

• Facial expression/language • Naturally interact/influenced by others (high face

validity) • Quick and a lower cost than IDI; assembled quickly • Interact directly with respondents; non-verbal

responses supplement verbal • Own words, deeper levels of meaning, connections,

subtle nuances • Flexible, wide range of individuals and settings • Results easy to understand/accessible to lay

audiences • Insights on the way to talk about products, services

Disadvantages

• Less control over group; information obtained • Relatively chaotic data • Small numbers/convenience sampling limit ability to

generalize • Trained moderator knowledgeable about group dynamics.

Moderator can bias results unknowingly • Uncertainty about accuracy. Results may be biased by

dominant member; reserved members may hesitate to talk.

What Focus Groups Can Tell You

• How people think or feel • Greater insight into ‘why’ • Improve planning /design • Evaluate existing programs • Understand why consumers react to a product • Guidance to development process • Form hypothesis when none exist • Understand the story, the ‘why’ behind the numbers • Input about issues that will be measured using

quantitative

What Focus Groups Can’t Tell You

• Valid information about individuals - idea is to take advantage of group interactions

• Valid ‘before and after’ information

• Information you can apply generally to other people

• How much progress a client has made toward his own goals

• For making go/no go decisions

• Profiling and sizing target markets

• Measuring marketing effectiveness, awareness, or usage

Common Uses of FG

• New product development studies • Positioning studies • Habits and usage studies • Packaging and assessments • Attitude studies • Advertising/copy evaluation • Promotion evaluation • Idea generation • Employee attitude/motivation studies

Brainstorm

How to Conduct a Focus Group

1. Conceptualization/Planning

2. Interview

3. Analysis/reporting

1. Conceptualization/Planning

• Determine the purpose

• Determine whom to study

• Estimate procedure, time line, costs

• Develop a screener to recruit the participants

• Arrange for room rental (with or without mirror), recruitment, gratuity

• Arrange for viewers

Screening Questionnaire • Introduction – basic

background questions

• Security and participation questions

• Series of attitude and behavior questions

• Demographic summary

• Articulation Question

• Invitation – if they pass above criteria

Recruiting Process

• Homogeneity important – similar experience with product or practice under discussion

• Depending on topic – can divide age groups, can divide genders

• Reminders sent

• Re-screen day of to ensure you are getting who you recruited

• Recruit more than you need to offset no-shows

2. Interview

• Develop the topic guide/questions

• Moderator Preparation

• Participants

• Record the discussion

• Begin the discussion

Discussion Guide

• Facilitates discussion between the client/moderator • Directs the flow of conversation • Predetermines the structure of report • Written in brief outline form • Sections:

o Introduction of moderator o General purpose of group o Administrative details o Introduction of participants to group o Easy ice-breaker discussion/technique o Some do written materials here o Discussion

Stimuli

• Written product/service concept descriptions

• Product or packaging examples

• Ads/storyboard

• Website/Internet

• Written exercises

The Moderator

• Gender, ethnicity of moderator

• Basic rules of good moderating

• Create inviting, friendly, relaxed atmosphere

• Open with small talk

• Avoid a teacher student environment

• Avoid ‘voting’

Moderator Fundamentals

• Establish rules o only one person talks at a

time

o Speak loudly

o Food and drink

o Beepers and cell phones

• Table name cards for first names only

• Use ‘write down’ exercises if some don’t seem to be having their say

Qualitative Techniques

• Pause and probe

• No head nodding/yes’s/uh huhs

• Quiet Group - Observe body language - if someone is nodding in agreement, she probably has something to share

• Open with a free association exercise by asking how they feel about ___

• Ask them to bring in an example of their favorite item in the category (say magazines)

• Storytelling – in the intro have people talk about their perfect ____, priming them for the discussion to come.

Qualitative Techniques

• Projective techniques – such as mind mapping

• Advice to __ (the president of the organization)

• Exercise that polarizes the group

• Listen carefully

• Probe with ‘take that deeper’… ‘meaning what?’... ‘Because…?’

• Position-profiling exercises

• Energizing exercises

The Four Question Sequence

Used to dig beyond top-of-mind responses

(explore, discover, expand)

1. Main Question

2. Follow-Up Questions

3. Probing Questions

4. Prompts

Poll Question

Don’t forget: You can copy-

paste this slide into other

presentations, and move or

resize the poll.

Laddering

Used to understand product or service benefits, moving from importance of features to

emotional benefit

1. Which feature do you like best?

2. What does that feature do? (functional benefit)

3. What does that (functional benefit) do for you? (higher benefit)

4. What does that (benefit) do for you? (emotional benefit)

Projective Techniques

Explore associations with products, services – project their feeling/beliefs, revealing their own

1. Metaphors, Analogies and Similes

2. Third Party Projections

3. Role Playing

4. Associations (word, image)

5. Personification

The Back Room

• Pre-group briefing: avoid been seen by respondents

• Meet with moderator beforehand

• Plan visits from the moderator to the back room

• Bring an open mind

• Listen to what ALL participants have to say

• Big picture in mind

• Post-group briefing

3. Analyzing and Reporting

• Taking notes

• Debriefing/field notes

• Working with transcripts

• Writing report:

o Create sections based on objectives or questions

o Work with transcripts, move the highlighted relevant comments into the appropriate section

o Write a paragraph or two that analyses each question based on comments

o Select a sample of 1 - 4 representative comments

o Draw overall conclusions and or recommendations.

o Report should include topic guide and screener as an appendix; transcripts available upon request

Common Qualitative Mistakes

• Lack of clear objectives • Wrong participants are recruited • Groups that are not homogeneous enough • Not enough time/topic guide • Not enough time/adequate stimuli • Not objective moderator • Disruptive communication between the moderator/back

room • Inexperienced moderator • Analysis

Up and Coming Techniques

Online Qualitative Research

• Quantitative research is going beyond focus groups

o Bulletin boards Real time chats o Research blogs Research communities o Social networking monitoring Video journals o Webcam focus groups web Web intercept/chats

• Has made qualitative research faster, better and in some cases

cheaper

• Advantages: o Geography o Candor o Convenient time access o Longitudinal capabilities

Objective 3. Focus Group Activity – Mind Mapping

Top mentions in “Mind Map” Top mentions in “Mind Map”

Prepared for the Future

Supported

Individual Attention

Character Development

What parents said Whole Child Education means to them

Parents idea of a Whole Child Education matches fairly close with the actual components of the Whole Child Initiative definition.

Notably, however, parents do not volunteer safety or health.

Respect for self and others

Well-rounded

Real World

Personalized

One-on-one

Community involvement