As customers lay claim to the ownership of products, experiences and brands, the business case is getting stronger for more penetrating ways of listening to the customer. Susan Abbott, Customer experience researcher and strategist, interviewed Rick Wolfe on method for her excellent blog, Customer Experience Crossroads.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Getting out from behind the mirror: having clients in the focus group

If you want to maximize the learning from your focus group investments, get out from behind the glass, and sit at the table with the respondents. At least that’s what skilled moderator Rick Wolfe tells me. Here’s his rationale:

Trust, atmosphere and authenticity are all issues, but there are reasons more central than these:

1. When people are in the room they see more, hear more and feel more. That makes the learning more powerful.
2. When people are in the room, the experience is more memorable. They make better use of the learning down the road. They tell more stories about the customer back at the office. They compare notes more.
3. When people are in the room there are no distractions (good food, good wine, good gossip) that keep them from paying attention.
4. When people are in the room, paradoxically, the moderator has to worry about them less than when they are behind the glass. There is no need to play to them the way you have to when they are separated from the conversation.

In summary: greater efficiency, greater effectiveness, less noise in the system.

I’m a big believer in placing client learning as the highest goal in any project, so the concept had a lot of appeal for me. I have done on-site interviews with clients by my side, and found this works quite well. And having now tried it in a traditional focus group setting, I think he’s on to something. It does change the dynamics of the group a bit -- and can be a bit hairy for the client people if there is negative feedback. But the benefits outweigh the obstacles. Qualitative research is expensive -- there’s no question about it. But it is also very powerful. You can add to its power by getting in closer. Challenge your moderator to consider this option for your next project. You’ll eat less junk food AND you’ll learn more.