A Focus Group is a moderated meeting in which you ask your stakeholders for feedback, opinions, beliefs and attitudes. A Focus Group can be used to improve your idea or solution direction. More generally, it can also be used to discuss ideas or strategies. With the results of a Focus Group, you can better match your idea with stakeholders’ needs and behaviours.

Time

1 day

Complexity

Target group

Advanced

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Tips for use

Use the Focus Group template to prepare for the Focus Group meeting. The template can also be used to capture the results. Have a look at the example of FitnessTracker to see how they have
organised a Focus Group.

How to use

It is very important to prepare for a Focus Group meeting. Use the Focus Group template to prepare. Fill out the template and make a printout that can be used to capture results. The following 7 steps guide you in arranging a Focus Group.

Step 1: goal and context

Define the goal and the context of the Focus Group. Write them down on the Focus Group template. The context provides the reason for organizing a Focus Group. You may want to discuss an idea or evaluate a solution direction with users. Defining the goal helps you to focus on the result you would like to have, such as improving the area for its users.

Step 2: participants

Select and invite participants. Make sure that you include the people that represent the stakeholders of the area. Write down a description of participants on the Focus Group template.

Step 3: logistics

Plan for logistics for your Focus Group. The meeting should be held in a convenient location. Also, consider a date and time that is suitable for your participants. Look for a convenient location and organize coffee, food, refreshments, etc.

Step 4: script

Think about the structure of the meeting. What topics need to be discussed? Calculate the time you need for each topic. Think of when it is time for an explanation and when it is time for feedback. Write a small script of how your Focus Group should run, e.g. which questions you want to ask. Write this script on the Focus Group template.

Step 5: moderator

It might help to assign someone else to moderate the discussion. Look for someone who can keep the entire group focused. He or she can also interpret subtle signs from the participants and move the discussion accordingly.

Step 6: record

Record the meeting. A (second) person may take notes, but voice or video recording is advised. A lot of ideas and topics may come up in a Focus Group meeting, you may miss things when you only take notes. Do not forget to ask participants for their consent before recording.

Step 7: results

Write the most interesting or remarkable results on the Focus Group template.