Years ago, when I met up with friends at the mall, brand ambassadors would ask us for fifteen minutes of our time in exchange for a movie voucher, food court ticket, or even sometimes a few dollars.  All we had to do was complete a survey about a new product, commercial or service.  At the time, I had no idea I was partaking in a version of a focus group.

Once college came around, I learned that participating in a focus group was the quickest, and sometimes fun, way of making money.  So what is a focus group?  It’s an opportunity for brands to hear feedback directly from the consumer about a product/service to then evaluate the product and possibly change it according to what was said.

Focus groups take time and money, and brands today are scarce on both.  However, if brands listen to the conversation about its product/service via various social networks, they would be uncovering a huge resource, a free focus group.  In my opinion, one of the most vital ways a company can enhance its product is by paying more attention to the negative feedback during these sessions.

Here are a few examples:   Continue reading →