Question

Market Research  In what situations would you use a Focus Group vs. a Survey? How are these two market research methods different from each other?  There are 2 sets (types) of questions (Closed-ended and Open-ended) used when conducting market research. What are the implications in using these 2 different types of questions as it relates to the research process? (Hint: Think of the entire research process, not just on the collection phase). When would you use one or the other? You may want to use examples to clarify your answer.

Answer 1

Focus groups and survey research are the two popular market research methods. Focus groups provide qualitative data through discussions while survey provides quantitative data through questionnaire. Focus groups are costly and time-consuming while surveys are relatively cost-effective. Focus groups involve personal interaction while surveys are less personal or involve less interaction. Data obtained from focus groups are harder to analyze while survey data is easy to analyze

Surveys are adopted in situations to analyze the consumer base. The researcher uses the survey method to collect quantitative data from the end consumers by distributing a questionnaire. The survey method aims to cover the entire population (consumer base) or consider a large sample making the results reliable. Census study is an example of survey research

Researchers use focus groups interacting with a small sample size group. Qualitative data is obtained based on the ideas and opinions shared in an interesting manner to organize data for interpretation. Open discussions are possible in focus groups to collect the required data. Example of focus groups is to obtain information or feedback about a particular product or service from the consumers

A ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response is obtained from closed-ended questions while open-ended questions require some explanation and thought. Example of closed-ended questions – Do you have a fever? Example of open-ended question – tell me about yourself?

Both are used effectively in exams, closed-ended questions for one-word answer and open-ended questions for descriptive answers. In a market research perspective, closed-ended questions are used as multiple choice questions in the questionnaire to collect personal details and other research-related details from the respondent while open-ended questions are used to get descriptive answers and commonly found at the end of the market research questionnaire in the comments section or describing the features, value additions, specifications, design and other details of a product or service in a short response format