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FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS
If you have
a question yourself that is not answered below, either about market research
generally or about how to plan a particular project - send
it to us and we'll contact you with an answer...
Q
1. How do I know whether to use focus groups, face
to face depth interviews or telephone interviews?
Q
2. For what type of survey would you use an e-mail
survey?
Q
3. Do the participants in a focus group know they
are being watched from behind a one way mirror?
Q
4. How long does a typical market research survey
last?
Q
5. How do you know whether a focus group is representative
of a given market sector?
Q
6. Market research is fine for products that are
familiar to interviewees. How can you research new technologies where
participants can not envisage the future?
Q
1. How do I know whether to use focus groups, face to
face depth interviews or telephone interviews?
A 1. Focus
groups are excellent for generating new ideas and for obtaining feedback
on proposed concepts that you might be considering. Depth interviews are
appropriate for exploratory research, and telephone interviews are best
used as back up to personal interviews for example with distant or exceptionally
busy interviewees.
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Q
2. For what type of survey would you use an e-mail survey?
A 2. E-mail
surveys are fast and enable market research to be done cheaply. Questions
should be mainly closed, but with good questionnaire design it is possible
to gain in depth information on a variety of topics, eg new product concepts,
new developments in a marketplace, promotion activities etc.
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Q
3. Do the participants in a focus group know they are
being watched from behind a one way mirror?
A 3. Yes, we
always tell them and it has never caused a problem. We also tell them
we are recording the session to help us with analysis.
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Q
4. How long does a typical market research survey last?
A 4. A typical
answer would be two months from the moment the study is commissioned to
the presentation of the results and report. The Internet panel is much
quicker because the participants are aready in place. Hence, e-mail surveys
take 2 - 3 weeks.
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Q
5. How do you know whether a focus group is representative
of a given market sector?
A 5. One group
would not be. Traditionally focus groups are used within qualitative research
ie to generate ideas, and a subsequent quantitative phase is done afterwards.
However, once you have done 2 - 3 groups, especially with medical and
scientific sectors, you can see general themes coming through.
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Q
6. Market research is fine for products that are familiar
to interviewees. How can you research new technologies where participants
can not envisage the future?
A 6. The methodology
for researching unconscious needs starts with the identification of user
frustrations. Provided you can identify genuine frustrations you can then
go on to design solutions to match. We use various of De Bono's techniques.
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