What is a Focus Group?

A focus group is a market research method that brings together 6-10 people in a
room to provide feedback regarding a product, service, concept, or marketing
campaign. A trained moderator leads a 30-90-minute discussion within the
group that is designed to gather helpful information. The moderator arrives with
a set list of 10-12 questions that will be shared with the group during their time
together that are designed to elicit thoughtful responses from all the participants.
The moderator’s goal is to hear from everyone and to encourage many different
opinions and ideas to be shared.Focus group participants are recruited based on
their purchase history, demographics, psychographics, or behavior and typically
do not know each other. To ensure that the maximum number of different ideas
or reactions have been captured from participants, companies typically hold
several focus groups, often in different cities; 3-4 is common.

While participants are responding to a moderator question, the moderator and/or

other observers take notes.

Focus Group Format

During the focus group, the moderator takes participants through three different
types of questions designed to gather as much information from them as
possible. They include:

 Engagement questions. These are easy questions posed early on to

introduce the participants to each other, to make them more at ease, and to
familiarize them with the topic to be discussed, whether it’s reacting to a new
ad campaign for coffee or thinking about self-driving cars.
 Exploration questions. Once participants have begun to relax and open
up in the group, the moderator begins to ask deeper, probing questions about
the topic and how the participants feel about it. These might include, “What
makes you say that?” “and “What would be a better solution?”
 Exit questions. After the moderator is confident the group has shared all
that it can, wrap-up questions are posed to confirm that everything has been
said. These might include, “Is there anything I haven’t asked that I should
have?”
Focus group advantages

 A window into customers’ heads

 In-person focus groups allow an organization to gain valuable insight into
how their customers think about various topics, products, services or the
brand in general. A well-planned group discussion, led by a skilled
moderator who creates as natural an environment as possible, gives
organizations a window into their customers’ heads. In a group setting,
different opinions and perspectives will emerge, all of which combine to
paint a detailed picture for an organization looking at launching a new
product or a new website.
 Focus group discussions lead to valuable output
The dynamics of the focus group can have a hugely positive influence on
the quality of the research output. A good moderator will know how to
conduct a focus group discussion with the goal of stimulating a spirited
discussion among the participants. In some instances, these discussions
can produce new thinking among participants which could result in a
much more in-depth discussion. This kind of dynamic discussion also
allows group participants to easily share their opinion, whether they are
agreeing or disagreeing.
 Organizations can see the research ‘in action’
With focus groups, organizations have the opportunity to observe the
group discussion from behind a one-way mirror. This offers a number of
advantages, not least that they can hear and see the research first hand and
the data is not diluted or misrepresented in a report. Crucially it also
means that the organization can offer clarification or input during the
discussion via the moderator, which could have a positive effect on the
resulting information.
 Data is gathered quickly
Because focus groups tend to involve up to 10 people, organizations can
gather valuable insights from a cross-section of their market in just one
90-minute discussion. In an age where real-time is the new mecca and
data moves at the speed of light, organizations need access to qualitative
research faster than ever before. Competitive advantage relies on being
ahead of the game, and focus groups give organizations the ability to
gather insightful information faster than individual interviews or
interpreting and analyzing thousands of survey responses

Focus group disadvantages

We’ve seen how focus groups can deliver invaluable insights, but it’s
important to mention that their effects are largely determined by the
moderator. A good focus group moderator will keep the group focused
(the clue is in the name). With groups of people from different
backgrounds and demographics, keeping people ‘on a topic’ can be
challenging, and this is one of the main problems with focus groups. A
 weak moderator, who doesn’t drive the conversation to make sure it
covers all the required angles, can severely limit the output of a focus
group.
 Some voices are louder than others
In any group of people, there will be extroverts and introverts; people
who are comfortable giving their opinion and those who are not. The goal
of any focus group is to ensure that all voices are heard. In order to get
valuable insights, it’s also important that participants are reassured that
what they say will be listened to and valued, and not ridiculed, dismissed
or shouted down. This is where the moderator comes into play. They need
to ensure they involve all participants in the discussion, perhaps asking
shyer participants for their input directly. It might also be a good idea for
the moderator to outline some ‘housekeeping rules’ at the beginning of
the discussion, e.g. no speaking over someone else.
 May not be representative of entire target market
Don’t assume that your focus group represents a cross-section of the
population. It’s always going to be difficult to assemble a true societal
representation, so bear that in mind when assessing the output as any
agreement might only represent a small portion of your target market. It
is better to use the output of a focus group to feed into supplementary
research, rather than relying on the discussion as the main source of your
information.

 For sensitive topics, it can be hard to get honest insights

Naturally, there will be different types of focus group questions: general
discussions about new products, services, initiatives; insights into
customer service/engagement; and brand positioning. When discussing
particularly sensitive topics, or products that may be of a sensitive nature,
a group setting might not be suitable and a moderator may not be able to
get any real useable information. In cases where you are dealing with
topics of a delicate nature, you may get more honest insights from a
confidential questionnaire or survey.

Types of focus groups

Dual-moderator focus group: There are two moderators for this event. One
ensures smooth execution, and the other guarantees the discussion of each
question.

Two-way focus group: A two-way group involves two separate groups having
discussions on the topic at different times. As one group conducts their study,
the other group observes the discussion. In the end, the group that observed the
first session conducts their own conversation. The second group can use insights
gained from watching the first discussion to dive deeper into the topic and offer
more perspective.

Mini focus group: This type of group restricts participants to 4-5 members
instead of the usual 6-10.

Client-involvement focus group: Use this group when clients ask you to
conduct a focus group and invite those who ask.

Participant-moderated focus group: One or more participants provisionally

take up the role of moderator.

Online focus group: These groups employ online mediums to gather opinions
and feedback. There are three categories of people in an online focus panel:
observer, moderator, and respondent.