Focus Groups Toronto

By Author: John James
Total Articles: 102
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What is a focus group? It is an informal interactive session where a group of people discuss or assess how a product will perform in the market. The intent is to get them to talk about a particular product or to bounce new ideas about a product or service and gauge their reactions. Focus groups are imperative to marketing new products. Since participants come from myriad backgrounds, they offer feedback on the market potential of a product. A typical session can run for 2 hours. A moderator, who is in charge of the groups’ ‘focus,’ makes sure the discussion does not go off track.
The discussions bring out the groups’ spontaneous response to ideas.
How Do Focus groups Help
Questions put to the participants are designed to elicit responses that provide an insight into how a product will be viewed by a consumer. Other types of market research like surveys or feedbacks don’t provide the same level of understanding of consumer perspective. Focus groups are a more accurate source of gathering data and information. This is purely because of the interactive nature of discussion. But they are not useful in all situations. Focus groups are best suited when
• The targeted consumers are a mixed group.
• You are looking for an elaborate explanation to responses, rather than the usual yes/no.
• You are looking for in depth answers that are honest and meaningful.
There are drawbacks though. Some people may simply know-tow to popular opinion rather than say what they really think. If members do not know each other, this is not likely to happen.
Getting a Focus Group Together
The participants should be carefully selected for the session to be effective. Members should not be acquaintances. They should have an interest in the topic under discussion (stamping out counterfeiting for example). If they are randomly picked out of the crowd, no insightful conclusions can be drawn. The opinions and perspectives of one focus group alone should not be the basis of any conclusion. At least 5 focus groups should be conducted, the observations, information and data analyzed to arrive at the final conclusion. The group should be informed that the session can last for up to 2 hours. This will buy time, if a question needs further exploration. The participants can summarize their views at the end of the session. Focus groups Toronto can be used for brainstorming ideas