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Market Research Focus Groups: A Brief Introduction
by Bill Brine
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When a company is considering introducing a new project they may turn to a group of six to eight regular people. These groups give information regarding the products or services that sponsor the group. The moderator is there to ask the market research focus group questions and to encourage dialogue in the group. Sometimes there are people observing the group and sometimes it is taped by audio or video. Market research focus groups tend to last one hour for a session. The people who make up the market research groups are usually screened by various selection and recruitment
criteria.
The qualifications tend to be related to usage, demographics, and the participant’s behavior in using the product which is being tested. There are many research agencies that do not allow people to take part in market research focus groups if they have already been part of a focus group of the same product or service.
Participants can also not qualify if he or she has friends or family that have a professional relationship with a person who works for the company whose product is being tested. Also the participants can be disqualified for being related to someone in the marketing or advertising agency that is conducting the groups. Generally the participants in a market research focus group are paid in cash or with a gift for taking part in the group.
Those who sponsor these groups generally are given verbatim transcripts of the group. This can sometimes be a short summary and in most cases the raw data such as audio tapes and video tapes. Many times within market research focus groups the clients can watch the group live as it is taking place.
Recently there has been some controversy about using market research focus groups in Asia, as generally Asians do not talk about themselves in group discussions. But these
controversies ignore the fact that regular market research focus groups do not consider the cultural aspect of the specific target group to begin with. Market research focus groups in Asia, and taken part by Asians,
can provide useful data, prividing that the methodology used takes into
account such aspects as race, gender, age, ethnicity, and class structure.
Utilizing a group of potential consumers is a great idea for the producers of products as they will receive live feedback about the products. The groups can also be beneficial for the participants as well as they are generally compensated with money or
gifts..
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About the Author
Bill
Brine is a recognized author of diverse articles on a wide
range of topics relating to internet marketing and online business.
At his website www.brincom.com
you will find more free articles, and lots of useful tools, advice and
services which will assist you in building a successful and profitable
online business. Personal consultation and coaching is also
available.
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