A focus group is one of the qualitative research methods that allows, in the form of an open discussion, to determine the opinion of representatives of the target group about a product/service. A group interview is conducted according to a pre-developed scenario, according to which the moderator leads the group, but which is not known to the participants in advance.
Focus groups should be used when necessary:
- Study consumer attitudes towards products, brands, companies, services
- Develop a strategy for positioning a product or service
- Identify negative characteristics/disadvantages of goods/services in the minds of consumers
- Determine the portrait and characteristics of consumers
- Identify the consumption pattern of products/services
- Search for new ideas for product/brand/service development
- Test new products/services in order to analyze their possibilities for existence on the market
- Test advertising materials
- Test hypotheses, identify existing stereotypes
- Determine the image characteristics of the company/product
Advantages of the focus group method
The main advantage of this method is the free atmosphere, the use of various standard and creative techniques, thanks to which it is possible to obtain spontaneous and open statements from participants,which contribute to the generation of new ideas.
Disadvantages of the focus group method
The main disadvantage of focus groups is their lack of representativeness. The number of participants used cannot be take for all consumers of a particular product/service.
