Editors’ note: Lisa Boughton is director at market research firm Angelfish Fieldwork, Cheltenham, U.K.
Focus groups have been one of the most important items in the marketing researcher’s toolkit for more than half a century. We all know how useful they are for gathering qualitative data: from discovering consumers’ attitudes and opinions to unlocking insights through informal meetings, focus groups are without a doubt one of the top research tools available. But as technology continues to advance the definition of exactly what a focus group is, is constantly changing.
Being able to interact with a target audiences digitally has had a huge impact on traditional brick-and-mortar focus group sessions – and as technology continues to evolve, we could soon be living in a world where we can gather in-depth insights without even needing to look our respondents in the eye. My team is still flying the flag for traditional focus groups. In fact, rather than abandoning them altogether, combining traditional and digital research methods can be the secret weapon that gives your research that extra edge. Below you will find a list of the advantages and disadvantages of keeping it old school.
Advantages
The human aspect: For starters, one thing that sets traditional focus groups apart from their modern counterparts is empathy. After all, nothing beats one-to-one interaction when it comes to picking up on small changes in body language and reading people’s nonverbal communication to get to the bottom of participants’ true thoughts and feelings – and no matter how many video conferences you dial in on, that’s something that just isn’t possible with online sessions.
It’s easy to interpret data: The trouble with online focus groups is that respondents can sometimes word their thoughts and feelings in a way that can be tricky to interpret. When it comes to traditional face-to-face focus groups, though, by asking the right questions and reading body language, moderators can encourage respondents to correctly phrase their opinions and get a clear understanding of what they’re trying to say. The result? More accurate readings of thoughts and feelings and data that’s easy to interpret.
Guaranteed security and privacy: Focus groups often deal with sensitive subjects and confidential information, so it goes without saying that participants’ privacy should be guaranteed and respected at all times. With a physical focus group this is pretty easy to manage by implementing clear guidelines and rules – however, when it comes to the online world, respondents can often be more wary about sharing sensitive information because of potential security threats and hacking.
Disadvantages
Expensive and time consuming: It’s an understatement to say that setting up a successful focus group requires a lot of work: from recruiting participants to finding a venue and scheduling a time that everyone can make, it’s an organizational minefield out there. Even after the group has met, your work isn’t done; you’ll still need to sort through, process and analyze your data. That’s where online alternatives come in. Not only are they cheaper and faster but researchers can also analyze data in real time – and as people’s lives become busier, it’s no wonder online methods are becoming more popular by the day.
There’s a limited scale: Getting a group of eight to 15 people to commit two hours of their day, excluding travel time, can be difficult at the best of times. And when you add in geographical constraints and budgetary issues it gets harder still, resulting in limitations to scale and distribution. Online focus groups don’t have that problem. Need to get a group of shift workers from Aberdeen, London and Cornwall to meet at the same place at the same time? It’s not a problem with online focus groups.
They don’t appeal to Millennials: Like it or loath it, smartphones, social media and the Internet of Things are deeply ingrained in our cultural DNA. We’re used to working and living online, and are generally becoming more and more inclined to take part in research from the comfort of our own homes through digital channels. This is especially true of the Millennial generation who are more comfortable online – and as the Millennial generation grows up, be prepared for online methods to become even more prevalent.
A vital methodology
So, does the advance of technology signal the end for the traditional focus group? At the end of the day, focus groups are a vital methodology for uncovering qualitative market research insights and they’re not going anywhere anytime soon. The solution? Instead of weighing the pros and cons of traditional approaches vs. more innovative methods, the best philosophy is to adopt the positive parts of all the techniques available to conduct a fully-rounded research project.
And always remember, what you decide to do for your MR project should be governed by the needs of your research, not by the methods that are popular at the moment.