W7 Assignment “Focus Groups”

Marketing Management

Focus Groups

Context/overview: This week, we looked briefly at marketing research tools. One popular tool is the focus group. In your assignment this week, you will read more about conducting and analyzing focus groups, before conducting your own sample focus group.

First, locate the following articles through EBSCOhost:

1. Mcquarrie, E. F. (1989). The practical handbook and guide to focus group research/focus groups: A guide for marketing and advertising professionals. Journal of Marketing Research (JMR), 26(1), 121-125.
2. Herich, D. (2015). 7 reasons to add focus groups to your marketing mix. Global Cosmetic Industry, 183(4), 50-51.
3. Ingram, W. C., & Steger, R. A. (2015). Comparing the quality and quantity of information received from traditional, webcam and board chat focus groups. Business Studies Journal, 7(1), 33-45.

Second, document the steps you will take to organize a “focus group” for the product you are developing for this course.

Write 2-3 pages that include a discussion on:

• Who you would invite (if this were a “real” focus group)
• What questions you would ask (provide 5 sample questions)
• What information you hope to gain
• How you would compensate the participants for their time (if this were a “real” focus group)
• The logistics of conducting the focus group (refer to the assigned articles for ideas)
• How you plan to record the proceedings of the focus group

Third, conduct the focus group with family or friends to obtain some sample data for analysis. Upon completing the focus group, discuss the process of conducting the focus group along with your findings in approximately 2-3 pages.

• What issues arose during your sample focus group with family/friends
• How did the focus group participants interact with each other?
• What challenges did you face regarding data collection and analysis?
• What insights did you gain upon analyzing the results of the focus group?

The requirements below must be met for your paper to be accepted and graded:

• Write between 750 – 1,250 words (approximately 3 – 5 pages) using Microsoft Word in APA style, see example below.
• Use font size 12 and 1” margins.
• Include cover page and reference page.
• At least 80% of your paper must be original content/writing.
• No more than 20% of your content/information may come from references.
• Use at least three references from outside the course material, one reference must be from EBSCOhost. Text book, lectures, and other materials in the course may be used, but are not counted toward the three reference requirement.
• Cite all reference material (data, dates, graphs, quotes, paraphrased words, values, etc.) in the paper and list on a reference page in APA style.

References must come from sources such as, scholarly journals found in EBSCOhost, CNN, online newspapers such as, The Wall Street Journal, government websites, etc. Sources such as, Wikis, Yahoo Answers, eHow, blogs, etc. are not acceptable for academic writing.  

A detailed explanation of how to cite a source using APA can be found here (link).  

Download an example here.

Grading Criteria AssignmentsMaximum PointsMeets or exceeds established assignment criteria40Demonstrates an understanding of lesson concepts20Clearly presents well-reasoned ideas and concepts30Uses proper mechanics, punctuation, sentence structure, and spelling10Total100