Let's Not Demonize Focus groups
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Nancy Frishberg advocates for rethinking focus groups to remove drawbacks of traditional focus groups, and engage participants and stakeholders with fun activities. http://www.fishbird.com/2013/03/11/lets-not-demonize-focus-groups/
Let's Not Demonize Focus groups
- 1. flickr.com/X2 Lets not demonize Focus Groups
- 2. Focus Group = 6-12 people moderator script flickr.com/bmwguggenheimlab
- 3. A lot of my colleagues dont like focus groups
- 4. 1 Opinionated person dominates Introverts hide
- 5. 2 Everybody talks to moderator and not with each other
- 6. 3 Moderator works from a prepared script
- 7. 4 Clients sit behind a mirror or on the phone; no idea if theyre engaged
- 8. Lets reconsider our condemnation of focus groups
- 9. Client requests focus group? Explore the possibilities
- 10. You can turn every drawback with fun activities
- 11. Participants DO first, then TALK
- 12. Moderator: guide, coach, facilitator
- 14. Client in the room, trained to observe
- 15. Focus Groups + Fun Activity = Useful Results Learn more: www.fishbird.com
Editor's Notes
- #2: Im Nancy Frishberg and Im here to say: Lets not demonize focus groups
- #3: Whats a focus group? Its a qualitative research method that involves gathering a small group (6-12 people) with a moderator (perhaps thats you) armed with a script of questions.
- #5: One of the dangers of focus groups is that one opinionated person can hijack the whole discussion, causing everyone else to go silent or just agree. Introverts are at a disadvantage in these kinds of groups.
- #6: The moderator is generating the discussion from the prepared script. So everyone talks to the person who asked the questions
- #7: Prepared script issues: Ask questions, people talk to moderator Prepared/vetted script often results from multiple peoples input; therefore may be intolerant/unappreciative of improvisation from script Therefore, we miss anything outside of the questions prepared and asked
- #8: The clients are stakeholders from your client organization. In a traditional focus group theyre sitting behind a mirrored window, or listening on the phone. They may be listening to a recording of the session. Whether theyre remote in space or time, you have little idea whether theyre engaged. And typically they have little awareness of the non-verbal communication in the room.
- #10: Focus group is a familiar term in the marketplace. Rather than refuse or reject your clients idea, you should explore with them what they want to get out of it -- Embrace customers language. Perhaps your client uses focus group as a generic, to mean that qualitative research you do just do your magic. Then figure out what problem they hope to solve or what question they believe a focus group can answer.
- #11: (vs. traditional prepared script)
- #12: Im advocating that if you have the participants DO something first, youll have a more lively discussion afterwards. Everyone has the shared experience of doing the activity. Everyones engaged for telling about it. Now you can pull out that script and see if there are any issues that need further discussion.
- #13: Moderator as guide, facilitator, coach rather than gatekeeper.
- #14: Doing an activity reduces the need for a scripted discussion.
- #15: What to do about those clients? Put them. Train them to observe, beforehand. Get them to take notes. Theyll be engaged and focused on whats happening. And eager to participate in the debrief following the session
- #16: Focus Groups that use a fun activity can and do yield useful results.