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 Not measurements, but WORDS!  Seeking rich data, nuances ◦ Avoids reductionism, generalizations ◦ Instead of asking how many times someone purchased an item, you ask "WHY...?" ◦ Typically the samples are small, and not "random" Marketing Research2

 Group Interviews ◦ Focus Groups  Individual Interviews ◦ Experience Surveys ◦ Depth Interviews  Structured or non-structured ◦ Protocol Analysis ◦ Projective Techniques  Case Studies Marketing Research3

 Advantages ◦ Greater depth ◦ People's own words ◦ Immediate feedback ◦ Insights can come from participants  Limitations ◦ Lots of data ◦ Hard to "code" ◦ Not enough people to generalize ◦ Idiosyncracies of a few people may mislead Marketing Research4

5 The Focus Group  Method: ◦ Moderated discussion group ◦ 6 to 12 participants ◦ Approx. 90 minutes  Goals: ◦ to understand what people have to say, get people to talk in detail, develop a synergistic discussion

Focus Groups A loosely structured interview conducted by a trained moderator among a small number of informants.

 Select a relatively homogenous ◦ Hold several to hear from different groups  Develop protocol in advance ◦ Consider length, progression, probes, coverage, and wording  Assure comfort, appropriate location  Offer refreshments, compensation  Determine method of record keeping ◦ Agreed to by participants Marketing Research7

 Transcription ◦ Word for word transcription (best approach)  All that was said  Significant facial expressions, gestures  Long pauses, silences ◦ Summary (when resources/time is limited)  Must listen/view group several times for appropriate emphasis  May summarize some portions, transcribe others word for word  Code findings ◦ Look for “themes” or topics that emerge. ◦ Apply a code each time the identified topics come up.  Develop conclusions Marketing Research8

9 Buick division of General Motors used focus groups to help develop the Regal. Buick held 20 focus groups across the country to determine what features customers wanted in a car. The focus groups told GM they wanted a stylish car, legitimate back seat, at least 20 miles per gallon, and 0 to 60 miles per hour acceleration in 11 seconds or less. Use of Focus Groups

Marketing Research10 Based on the results, Buick engineers created clay models of the car and mock-ups of the interior. These were shown to other focus groups. The respondents did not like the oversized bumpers and the severe slope of the hood, but liked the four-disc brakes and independent suspension.

Marketing Research11 Focus groups also helped refine the advertising campaign for the Regal. Participants were asked which competing cars most resembled Buick in image and features. The answer was Oldsmobile, a sister GM division. In an effort to differentiate the two, Buick was repositioned above Oldsmobile by focusing on comfort and luxury features.

Marketing Research12 The tag line for the 1998 Regal, “official car of the Supercharged family,” was based on focus group findings.

 Rests on reflective thinking  Not representative or generalizable  Subjective interpretations  High cost per participant  Potential demand effects Marketing Research13

Marketing Research14 Individual Interview Methods Depth Interviews one-on-one interview Unstructured, semi-structured, or structured Protocol Analysis Verbalization of decision process Projective Techniques For penetrating a person’s defense mechanisms Intent: To gathering more revealing information

 Encourages respondents to project their feelings ◦ to another person ◦ or to another situation  Facilitate deeper examination of feelings and motives  To overcome embarrassment, shyness, and minimize deception Marketing Research15

Marketing Research16 Projective Techniques: Rationale 1. Thoughts have emotional and subconscious content. 2. The emotional and subconscious content is important in buying and usage decisions. 3. This content is not well verbalized by the respondent through direct communication. 4. This content is better verbalized through indirect techniques.

 Word Association  Sentence Completion  Thematic apperception: Elicits perceived themes. ◦ Explain picture ◦ Picture frustration: Cartoon/balloon Test ◦ Construction techniques: draw pictures, make collages, write stories, etc.  Role-playing Activity Marketing Research17

 Also called Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).  Subject writes a story describing picture (20 min).  May report verbally instead.  What’s happening?  Why?  What are the person’s feelings? Marketing Research18

Marketing Research19 Role-Playing Cartoon Test Sears ? Let’s see if we can pick up some housewares at Sears

 Assess experience in situation  Provides rich data ◦ Can observe all variables in play  Idiosyncracies of their situation may mislead Marketing Research20

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