Customer Reviews

The Mirrored Window: Focus Groups from a Moderator's Point of View

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This outstanding book has become my preferred resource as I develop in the practice of qualitative research consulting on Judith Langer's side of the mirror after years in the back room. It provides a comprehensive, intelligent and thoughtful approach to qualitative research that I highly recommend for anyone involved in learning more about consumers. I especially enjoyed discovering her process for writing actionable, meaningful moderator reports. The challenge of conducting analysis and developing implications is demystified, thanks to Ms. Langer.

Whether you're looking at using focus groups for the first time, looking for ways to make your projects more productive, or looking to make your facility the regional star, look no further. Expert moderator JUDITH LANGER guides you to success step-by-step, using real examples, from defining your project to writing the report.

o Compare the advantages of focus group research over quantitative studies.

o Understand the process and timing for selecting a facility, scheduling groups, screening respondents, re-screening respondents, conducting sessions, and reviewing results. Learn which features and services to look for when selecting a facility.

o Find out what you need to know about cheaters, repeaters, and deceivers. Learn how to deal with know-it-alls, people who talk too much, respondents who are rude, and conversations that stray off the topic at hand.

o Review dozens of tips, actual phrases and signals you can use to keep a group on track-how to get the group talking, how to ask questions without biasing responses, how to control group dynamics, when to probe and when to use a firm hand.

Get the most out of your sessions and research dollars. As a client, learn when to speak up and when to let the moderator do her job. As a moderator, learn how to address client concerns and how to deliver the most value to them-Every Time!

In The Mirrored Window: Focus Groups From A Moderator's Point Of View, Judith Langer (senior vice president of Langer/Roper Qualitative Research Division) draws upon her more that twenty years of experience and expertise to cogently clearly explain the role and performance of the focus group as an important aspect of the marketing process. With the use of examples drawn from a variety of different industries (including parts of an actual transcript from focus groups for Playboy Enterprises), Langer illustrated the client's role, offers tips for controlling rambunctious groups, and how to energize groups that lag or get distracted from the targeted issue or presentation. The Mirrored Window is essential reading for all aspiring marketing professionals and is a core addition to any Marketing or Business School reference library.

The hidden persuaders of marketing have come out of their mazes to explain willingly how they probe people to find out what makes them tick and why they buy one product instead of another. Everybody knows about surveys and nose counting from political polls and other quantitative research. Now Judith Langer covers qualitative research (QR), the established, but often less explained, way to find out what consumers like and dislike on a deeper level. She notes the advantages and disadvantages of focus group set-ups that allow marketers' clients to hide behind big one-way mirrors, and watch and hear representative customers responding to their product. QR's chief drawback and the reason some companies prohibit it, Langer notes, is that some clients find it "vague," and are uncomfortable with its surveillance tactics. We recommend this authoritative look behind the one-way mirror to those who deal with focus group results.

This text was excellent for those intending to create and facilitate focus groups for the first time. The book adopts practical tips to create the topic guide for the session, along with identifing various techniques to conduct the research and achieve the desired outcomes. Not sure how valuable it would be for an intermediate or advanced market researcher, but for the novice it is definately worth the read.