Marketing research is often a mysterious field: fortunately for market researchers, savvy marketers recognize that market research is an invaluable tool to better decision making. One of the tools in the research practitioner’s toolbox is qualitative research, which comes in the forms of focus groups, 1-1 interviews, ethnographies, and other methodologies. Qualitative research is the tool to which market researchers put “meat to bones” on a particular subject: it is the opportunity to explore in-depth consumer perceptions and “go deep and long” on a topic to better understand consumer motivations. Surveys give you measurements, qualitative research helps you understand why those measurements are what they are.

There are host of suitable usages for qualitative research, and how they can help your business. For brevity, I point you to the AMA’s web site and look up “focus group best practices” to learn more about focus groups and why they are useful, or contact a research firm like L&E Research to discuss your needs, as making such a decision is not an easy or cheap one. But if you have concluded that qualitative research could help you and your business decision making, I offer these five tips to find the right qualitative firm for you:

1. Determine first if research makes financial sense. The number one objection I hear to performing qualitative research (focus groups, 1-1 interviews, ethnographies, etc.) is its expense. Many a client I have spoken to has said “I’d love to do some focus groups but they aren’t cheap, and $10,000 is more than I can justify.” Market research is no different than buying a new copier; it is an overhead cost which you are willing to encumber to improve your business through higher sales and/or greater profits. In the end, all business decisions must make economic sense. As an example, if you are getting ready to roll out a new three-year $150,000 marketing campaign that is targeted to increase sales by $750,000 over three years, with your margins 10% on those sales, is it not a wise investment to spend $10,000 to improve the chance of your $150,000 investment getting these returns? More so, is it not a wise investment to spend $10,000 to ensure your campaign doesn’t say the WRONG things and in the end cost your business a lot more than $10,000 in addition to the $150,000? Like all business investments, if you can determine that the research would pay for itself in 2-3 years, the consideration should be how can you afford not to?

2. Do a little homework on the industry first. There is lots of good reading material on proper qualitative research methods. In addition to several books, you can find numerous articles on the AMA’s web site and in Quirks Market Research Review, Qualitative Research Consultants Association (QRCA) Views magazine and the Marketing Research Association’s (MRA) Alert! monthly newsletter. You don’t need to be an expert on the subject, just learn enough to know how to do the next step: get the right moderator.

3. Get the right moderator. Most moderators have degrees in social psychology, understanding what to say as well as how to say it… if you’ve ever said “that didn’t come out right” to a friend, remember that in a focus group that faux pas probably cost you invaluable insight to the tune of about $500 per participant. Finding the right moderator is critical to your project, and the good ones are worth their fees (usually $200 or so an hour). How do you choose the right moderator? Checking references, ensuring the moderator is a QRCA member and has training certifications from reputable organizations like Burke or RIVA are the first steps. Another good interview step is asking them about their “technique:” in the end, how they intend to get invaluable insights from your groups to meet your objectives is something they should be able to tell you. Your moderator should have no problem answering questions about their craft, just as you shouldn’t about yours. With a little research, you should be able to tell if the moderator is right for you.

4. Trust your moderator to execute your project. Your moderator will be your consultant, helping you determine its objectives, establish desired outcomes, manage expectations and oversee the project process (which includes overseeing companies like L&E that do the recruitment and other study components for your research). Once you have determined that you have the right consultant, listen to your consultant; it should be a partnership.

5. Do not try and cut corners to save money. Now that you have your moderator, if you were thinking of finding your research participants on Craig’s List, like I have seen some marketers do, or having your executive assistant do the recruiting, then you might as well set your money on fire. I witnessed one client recruit half of their groups using both methods but needed L&E’s help to recruit the other half. What we found was nearly 75% of their recruits were on our “Do Not Call” list for being professional respondents --basically people that lie and will say anything to get into a research study because they want the cash we pay for our studies (another value of professional recruitment firms: large databases of people that fit your profiles and ones who don’t fit anyone’s profiles!). Besides choosing the right moderator, having good recruiting is by far the next most important element to getting good qualitative research. Believe me when I say, recruiting is not a simple process and garbage in equals garbage out. This applies to many steps in the research process companies try to cut corners on, and invariably it results in wasted time and money.

These five steps should help you conduct good qualitative research when you have the need for it. Good qualitative research is not a panacea… it will not answer all of your marketing questions, nor will it decide for you whether launching that product is a good idea or not. It will, however, provide you food for thought, as well as stimulate discussion amongst your leadership team and give you insights into new directions, or validate old ones. Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu once said, “If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are going.” Good qualitative research and the consultants you hire to do that work can help you ensure your marketing direction is the right one.

Brett Watkins, PRC is President/General Manager of L&E Research