A Focus Group is a moderated session in which you ask your (potential) customers for feedback, opinions, beliefs and attitudes. A Focus Group can be used to improve a specific product or service. More generally, it can also be used to discuss ideas or strategy. With the results of a Focus Group, you can better match your product or idea with customers’ needs and behaviours.

Time

1 day

Complexity

Target group

Advanced

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Tips for use

Use the Focus Group template to prepare for the Focus Group. It can also be used to capture the results.

Have a look at the example of FitnessTracker to see how they have organised a Focus Group.

How to use

It is very important to prepare for a Focus Group session. Use the Focus Group template to prepare. Fill out the template and make a printout that can be used to capture results. There are 7 steps that guide you in arranging a Focus Group:

Step 1: goal and context

Define the goal and the context of the Focus Group. Write them down on the Focus Group template. The context provides the reason for organising a Focus Group. You may want to discuss an idea or evaluate a service with users. A goal reminds you of the result you like to have, like improvements to your product or service.

Step 2: participants

Select and invite participants. Make sure that you include the people that represent your market. Write down a description of participants on the Focus Group template.

Step 3: logistics

Plan for logistics for your Focus Group. The meeting should be held in a convenient location. Also take into account the date and time should suit your participants. Look for a convenient location and organise some food, refreshments, etc.

Step 4: script

Think about the structure of the meeting. What topics need to be discussed? Calculate the time you need for each topic. Think of when it is time for explanation and when it is time for feedback. Write a small script of how your Focus Group should run, e.g. which questions you want to ask. Write this script on the Focus Group template.

Step 5: moderator

It might help to assign someone else to moderate the discussion. Look for someone who is fit for this position and can keep the entire group focused. He or she can also interpret subtle signs from the participants and move the discussion accordingly.

Step 6: record

Record the meeting. A (second) person may take notes, but voice or video recording is advisable. A lot of ideas and topics come up in a Focus Group meeting, you may miss things when you only take notes.

Do not forget to ask participants for their consent before recording.

Step 7: results

Write the most interesting or remarkable results on the Focus Group template.