Be encouraging but firm

Editor’s note: Tyler J. Walker is executive moderator at Johnston, Zabor, McManus, Inc., a Durham, N.C.-based research company.

Of all the moderating I do, the groups with kids are definitely the most fun. I often tell my clients that kids are brutally honest consumers; and this often means that they will get valuable feedback without having to read between the lines - like you often have to with adult consumer groups.

First of all, you only want a maximum of eight children in a group. Larger group sizes tend to shut down the quiet ones and add fuel to the class clown. It is important to establish immediately that you are the one in control. I like to ask kids about a teacher they may have in school (or some other authority figure) and then tell them that my job is similar - only we get to have more fun! Keep the groups between 60-75 minutes in length. Anything over that threshold and you run the risk of the children starting to get restless.

Much like a group with adults, lay the groundwork early to establish rules: no talking out of turn; feel free to jump into the conversation once someone has finished speaking; I’m interested in everyone’s opinion, not just those of a few of you. Also, alert the shy ones that you will be calling on them.

Important: Make sure you enforce your rules at the first opportunity because then it gets easier for them to catch themselves. Rewarding children with phrases like, “Thank you, Jimmy,” “Nice job, Tanya,” etc., leads to good discussion and good behavior.

Game plan

Having a game plan to deal with an easily-excitable youth is also important. Children will often follow the lead of the loudest person in the room. It is important to continue to stress how important everyone’s opinion is, and make sure that you call on individuals after questions so that you get response from everyone in the room.

In my experience, more often than not, it will be a boy who acts out. Once, while interviewing kids about board games, a particularly rowdy nine-year-old was starting to get out of hand. I had a couple of colleagues available at the ready, and I took the little boy and two other youths out to work on a “special project” with one of my co-workers. After about five minutes, I brought the other two back in and had my colleague do an informal one-on-one interview with the disruptive youth while cutting and pasting together a “game board.” This got the child out of the room without causing alarm and got the group back on track.

In addition, assigning “jobs” to the more outspoken children allows you more control of a group. When seeking an agree/disagree response, have the group raise their hands, then assign one of the kids to count and report for you. Stressing the importance of this job allows the child the chance to concentrate on the issues at hand so that they are ready when you call on them.

If you can establish who the shy ones might be during the introduction process, call on them early to get them engaged in the group right away. For purposes of a children’s group, it is okay if introductions run long. Give each child a chance to introduce themselves, talk a little bit about their family (parents, siblings, pets) and ask something that is easy for them to talk about, such as their favorite sport, team, or subject at school.

Listening skills are key with children. Just like a salesperson who needs to be quiet and listen to the client’s needs, the moderator needs to wait for the child to form thoughts after a question is presented to them. Kids who participate in groups are often excited to do so, but they also need to take time to digest the question and form their response.

One instance in particular reminds me why children are so much fun and such good interviewees. While conducting taste-tests with children between 6-12 years old, a common theme continued to emerge. Time after time, the children did not like the food they tasted. Consistently, sad or indifferent faces were being circled while testing the product. Some kids went so far as to spit the food back out. Then a little eight-year-old boy came in. He thought the product was fantastic. “This stuff is great,” were the first words out of his mouth. Curious, I probed to find out more about why he liked it. Finally, the child answered, “Really, my mom isn’t that great of a cook. My dad doesn’t even like her cooking, but he says we have to always tell her it’s good.” Laughter erupted from the back room. Stifling a chuckle myself, I thanked the boy for his honest answer. In a miserable day for the client - no one likes to hear their product is terrible - this burst of honesty synthesized what we were trying to discover.

Clear and simple

Questions need to be clear and simple. Make sure you address only one topic/issue/question at a time. Kids are really good at telling you things in their own words - “So (child’s name), tell me what you do when you go to playschool...you walk in the door and then…” Simple prompts - “Who do you see?” “What is the first thing that happens?” - are good ways to get a child talking.

I like giving kids exercises either before they come in or at some point during the group for the following reasons:

1. It gives them time to reenergize themselves during the group. Kids will tend to get very restless sitting in one place over the course of 90 minutes.

2. Giving them something to do and then talking about it works very well in jump-starting the conversation.

3. Children are very creative creatures, and often, in this atmosphere, they tend to be extremely creative. For example, I have had the most enlightening conversations with children who have to take medications, for example, by having them cut out and paste magazine pictures on a board to show me the importance of their medicine to them.

4. It can give the moderator a chance to discuss strategies with clients in the back room for the remainder of the group.

If you want to know how children feel about something, display the “something” - whether it’s a sign, picture, words, a drawing on board - and ask them to put a feeling sticker (smiley face, frowning, laughing, crying, etc.) or Post-it Note that describes their reaction to it. Have them post their reaction and then tell the group why they put that sticker on the visual.

Children are also very good at choosing and prioritizing but only up to about seven items. Make sure the sort cards are stiff/sturdy and large enough for the kids to easily handle.

Sharon Chamberlain, owner of Madison, Wis.-based Chamberlain Research Consultants, is a seasoned moderator. She finds her previous career as a schoolteacher invaluable experience when moderating with kids. “I like to let each of them know that I will find them and call on them from time to time. This lets them know that they cannot hide,” she says.

Chamberlain finds it helpful to start the conversation rolling with some easy questions that children are interested in. “For example, one project involved focus groups for tourism. We asked the kids, ‘Do you ever ask your parents to go somewhere? Where did you ask to go? How did you get the idea to ask to go to [location]?’ Then we would ask, ‘What did your mom/dad say when you said let’s go to [location]? Did you have to ask them more times? Who decided? Did you plan together what you would do on that trip? Was there one thing you really wanted to do? What happened when you got there?’ Starting with the simple questions can get you to the harder questions in a much easier fashion.”

Use words the kids use in everyday speech but don’t try to mimic their words and phrases, Chamberlain says. They can easily spot a fake. Just do it enough to show you understand their language. It’s better to have them explain things in more generalized terms, so Chamberlain likes to tell them, “You know, I’m an old fogey. Can you explain to me what [slang term] means?”

If kids respond to something in an offensive or derogatory way such as, “That is so gay…” don’t be afraid to let them know that type of comment is not acceptable in this setting. Then get them to tell you what they mean by the statement. Issues/things that elicit powerful responses like that often have a meaning behind them.

Chamberlain insists that as you change from talking from one issue to another, make sure that you specify the transition. For example, “Okay, so you were all telling me about your first reactions, and now I want to talk about how you explored the place…and now I want to talk about if you met other kids and how you did that...and now let’s talk about places to eat at this resort - did you have a favorite place? No? A favorite food?” Those cues are important to children (as well as adults).

Lots of praise

No matter what situation arises, always remember to reward (verbally) the behavior and the discussion you want from them. Give lots of praise. If you want them to go deeper, talk about feelings and bring out the visuals for feelings. If you want to get at memories, ask what they would take pictures of to show friends when they get home.

In some ways, when moderating groups with kids you have to be a parent. So be very patient, very encouraging and very interested in what they are saying. Hang on every word - but be very specific about what you are wanting and very specific about what reactions you want from the other kids.

In the end, the reward is a fun, very informative group for you and your clients.