Focus group market analysis: cheap and cheerful

Focus-group: how does it work?

First, you define your target audience. Then, find a certain number of people who fit the profile of the target consumer and are ready to spend some of their time. Often they can agree for a small fee or gift.

Then you rent a small (or large) conference room; prepare a sample of your product, questionnaires or any other material needed for analysis. Then you collect the needed amount of target customers and conduct your research.

How many individuals should participate in a focus group test?

Number of participants is usually dependent on the number of parameters that you need to clarify (representation). To a lesser extent, the number of respondents will depend on the population of the target consumers. The city with a population of 2 million people, of which your customers are about 500 000, there will be enough to interview about respondents 500-600 to get a clear enough idea of a set of reactions to your product. However, such a research would take a long time and resources. We need to make a rapid and low-cost study.

The number of respondents in focus-group is being reduced to 50-100. They should accordingly repeat an overall picture of your target audience. For example, if your TA consists of men for 80%, then the focus group should be 80% of male respondents.

Questions for focus group are aimed to identify respondents’ reaction to your product or some of its properties.

This way, you can test the likely reaction to the old product before exposing its rebranding or for a completely brand new product before release it on the market.

However it is important to remember that the results of the focus group are also subjective, as well as any other surveys, and do not guarantee the similar 100% reaction of the target audience in real market conditions.

Artem Safarov is author of the section “People and Brands”. He is specialist in marketing and PR. He studied crisis management at World Technological University. He worked as manager and director of marketing and PR. He launched his first product in the market at his 20s.