5 tips for running online focus groups

If you have experience facilitating in-person focus groups and want to strengthen your practice in digital formats, we share here our perspective on the strengths of the method and the key considerations to keep in mind when the focus group takes place online.

To begin with, let us establish that online focus groups offer some clear advantages, including the following:

• A broader representation of the Danish population: We overcome the geographical blind spot that in-person focus groups often place us in. In our online focus groups, we can ensure participants from all parts of Denmark — even voices from small island communities can be represented.

• A faster and more agile process: While online focus groups are not necessarily less costly to conduct, our experience is that we can mobilise participants and deliver insights more quickly. Online groups are easier to recruit for and less time-consuming to run, both for participants and for the moderator.

• We get closer: Participants are in safe and familiar surroundings — their own homes. This can also be used actively during the session, for example by asking them to show something in their home if it is relevant to the issue we are exploring.

Although much of your knowledge and experience as a moderator can be carried over to facilitating online focus groups, there are also some important differences that need to be taken into account. In the following, we share the lessons we have learned from planning and conducting online focus groups at Epinion over the past year.

 

1) Consider the platform and technology — the technical setup is critical to success

There are many platforms that are well suited to running focus groups. When choosing which platform to use, you should consider how well it supports your specific needs. For example, if you need to run brainstorms or co-creation exercises, or allow clients to observe from a virtual “back room,” not every platform will support this.

It is also important to test your technology well in advance. Can you play the video material you want to show? Can you use all the functions in, for example, Teams when inviting participants from outside your organisation? And of course, if you are recording your focus group, you need to make sure your platform is GDPR-compliant. (More generally, make sure you stay on good terms with your IT department — you are going to need them!)

 

2) Think through — and spend a little more time on — participant preparation and onboarding

There are also a number of things to consider when recruiting and onboarding participants. You need to make sure that participants confirm they have a stable internet connection, access to a webcam, and are comfortable using it.

When we send out invitations with the link to the group, we also include guidance on what participants should keep in mind beforehand. For example, we ask them to sit comfortably, make sure they will not be disturbed, have a headset available, and prepare something to drink and eat during the session. This is important both to ensure a good experience for them and to minimise interruptions during the session.

Finally, we always ask participants to arrive 10 minutes early. This gives both them and us time to test that the technology is working properly.

 

3) Make sure you have the right support in place during the focus group itself

You should also make sure you have the right support in place when facilitating the group. If clients are observing from a virtual “back room,” it is a good idea to have at least two additional people involved besides the moderator. One person can keep track of what is happening in the observation room and make sure that any questions that arise are brought into the group discussion. The other can focus on supporting participants in the group if they run into technical issues.

 

4) Consider the number of participants and the length of your focus group

There are differing views on how many participants a focus group should include — typically, an in-person focus group will have 7–9 participants, sometimes more. But it is important to remember that the number of participants affects your ability to create a good group dynamic in which everyone feels included and has space to contribute. When running focus groups online, it can be more difficult to establish that kind of dynamic. For that reason, it can be a good idea to reduce the number to 5–6 participants in an online focus group.

At the same time, you should also consider the length of the session. Our in-person focus groups typically last two hours, but we have had good experiences shortening our online groups to 1.5 hours. Facilitating a strong conversation and maintaining good energy in the group is more challenging in an online setting, where participants also tend to get tired and lose energy more quickly.

That said, it is easier to maintain good energy and group dynamics if you use different activation and engagement techniques. This might include varying the format by splitting participants into breakout rooms to complete a task in pairs, or building in other reflection breaks where they work on individual tasks.

 

5) Adapt your moderation techniques — and expect the group dynamic to change

Group dynamics are different in an online focus group, where conversation does not flow as easily or as naturally as it does in an in-person setting. Most people are now used to using the mute button and politely signalling with a raised hand when they want to speak. This is also necessary to avoid people talking over one another. At the same time, it may be easier for participants to withdraw behind the screen, which means the moderator needs to pay close attention and actively ensure that everyone takes part. Participants also see less of each other, which can make it harder for them to interpret who exactly they are in the room with. On the other hand, you may also catch glimpses of participants’ homes, which can provide access to other sociocultural cues about who you are speaking with.

Your moderation techniques also need to be adapted. As a moderator, it is crucial to establish trust and a sense of safety quickly, both in relation to you and to the situation. Online, you do not have the same opportunities to create that sense of comfort simply through your physical presence — for example through gestures, a welcoming smile, and other non-verbal signals. It is therefore well worth using the ten minutes before the group begins to engage in small talk with participants as they arrive in the digital space, in order to build trust and familiarity.

There are also some technical considerations to keep in mind. If you are using Teams, for example, consider using Large Gallery Mode or Together Mode so that all participants are visible on screen at the same time. This helps avoid the screen creating an unhelpful hierarchy between participants. Think about your own lighting, so that participants get the best possible view of you. And remember to look into the webcam as often as possible, so that participants feel you are making eye contact with them.