Focus Insite

Last week’s blog covered the basics of expert networks. This week we’ll focus on how expert networks can enhance qualitative research. It will come to no surprise to qualitative research consultants that market research is becoming more demanding, especially if the scope of the study requires executive-level or expert-level participation. Recruiting for such studies is much more challenging and often nationwide qualitative research firms will work with market research recruiting firms to help connect to hard-to-reach participants. Because of the challenge of getting a group of experts in a room for a focus group recruitment agency , some researchers design their studies to rely more on in-depth interviews, which can more easily accommodate demanding schedules. If it is so much trouble to get experts or executives to agree to participate in market research, you may wonder why bother. The short answer is including experts in certain market research studies can greatly enhan...

There is no shortage of qualitative research scholarly articles discussing the challenges of recruiting hard-to-reach participants. When it comes to recruiting for medical studies, finding participants who represent a broad range of demographic categories is crucial to the success of the qualitative study. Not every nationwide recruitment agency is experienced in recruiting healthcare professionals or hard-to-reach participants, and it is imperative to scrutinize the recruitment agency to ensure it has successfully recruited these hard-to-reach categories for past studies, and be able to explain their methodologies for recruitment. While social media platforms have made recruitment outreach easier, there still remain significant barriers to reaching populations that are critical for certain qualitative medical studies. As more medical studies aim to address disparities of care, or efficacy of drugs within populations, it is important to have meaningful sample si...

As the calendar flips to a new year, it isn’t unusual for people to wonder how they’re going to pay for all their holiday spending. The good news is the side-hustle economy is well enough established that with some extra effort, people can look for ways to earn some extra cash. Participating in Focus Groups or market research studies is one such way to earn extra income with minimal commitment. Participant recruitment agency abound, but choosing legit studies is not always a given. So how to know if a study is legit? Here are three considerations before signing up to participate in a market research study. 1.) What is the reputation of the focus group recruitment agency doing the recruiting? Does the nationwide recruitment agency abide by the Respondent Bill of Rights? If the answer is no, then you’ll want to seek out a different recruitment agency. 2.) Privacy. Does the participant recruitment agency have a written privacy policy statement? You’d be surprise...