Question

Assume you are a manufacturer of small kitchen electrics, like Hamilton Beach/Proctor Silex, and you want to determine if some innovative designs with unusual shapes and colors developed for the European market could be successfully marketed in the U.S market. What qualitative research would you recommend, and why? Please elaborate

Answer 1

Focus groups can be an excellent way to hear the voice of true research within a group of any size (Chase, 2009). With all different types of research an in depth look into a group can easily be established through focus groups. Focus groups are formed on a voluntary basis most of the time, so that people are engaged in the outcome and results right from the beginning.

I would use focus groups, as they are unique in research due to the researcher’s involvement in the process. Most facilities permit the researcher to observe the group and its dynamics in real time, drawing conclusions from insights from the conversations and nonverbal signals he or she observes. Many facilities also allow the client to supply the moderator with new topics or questions that are generated by those observing in real time. This option is generally not available in an individual depth interview, other group interviews, or survey research. Fewer and lengthier focus groups are becoming common. As sessions become longer, activities are needed to bring out deeper feelings, knowledge, and motivations. Besides, the creativity sessions that employs projective techniques or involves the participants in writing or drawing sessions, or creating visual compilations, are other common activities within focus groups. This is probably the easiest method to gather the information quickly from a diverse group.

One topical objective of a focus group might be a new product or product concept, a new employee motivation program, or improved production-line organization (Cooper & Schindler, 2011). The ideas of these observations are used for later quantitative testing.