Fuse 2011
Extraordinary Experience #Duh: Do focus groups reveal purchase behavior?
What do focus groups reveal about consumer behavior?
Let's put it this way, if you want to learn how an elephant lives do you go to the zoo? Or do you go to where the elephant lives, eats, poops, and dies? How can you learn about purchase behavior when you're not where the purchase behavior happens? Where does purchase behavior happen? In the aisle. Where do focus groups happen?
Yeah, that's right, "how can focus groups reveal purchase behaviors?" They reveal more about corporate consumer behavior.
If you were in the research session today, you enjoyed some dramatic theatre. We had a discussion where the audience took over in a great way. The discussion was dramatic and there were misinterpretations and misunderstandings.
A fist fight almost broke out.
Someone took the microphone up to the front of the room and gave some "focus" to the focus group conversation. If I wasn't sure I would have thought this was a planned thing, but I'm certain it was all by accident.
The discussion should have gone further. The solutions should have been revealed, we were almost there. It was good to hear the passion around research and we got some clarity.
Thank you FUSE for creating the platform for the discussion. Now let's continue it here and beyond.
So, I ask the broader community. What do focus groups reveal about consumer behavior?