Focus group moderators play an important role in qualitative market research studies including focus groups, in-depth interviews, and online bulletin boards. Moderators are responsible for leading the focus group discussion. They use a variety of techniques to keep the discussion on track and ensure that all participants have a chance to voice their opinions. In addition to facilitating discussion, moderators also analyze the data collected during the focus group and prepare reports that provide valuable insights to the company commissioning the market research study. Thus, the focus group moderator plays a vital role in ensuring the success of qualitative marketing research studies.

Limelight Insights by Shugoll is a focus group company that provides custom, full-service consulting for qualitative marketing research studies. This includes everything from study design and data collection, to data analysis and preparation of reports and presentations including actionable insights and recommendations.

We are known for having the industry’s most experienced and creative staff of qualitative project directors and moderators. Our moderators tend to focus on certain vertical specialties to lend even greater expertise and value to your project. We have four highly skilled moderators with multi-cultural and multi-generational research expertise. And we’re known to provide some of the most insightful analyses, report writing and debriefings in the industry.

Our moderators are skilled in using projective techniques to reveal underlying motivations, including:

• Anthropomorphization or metaphors
• Brainstorming
• Collage and photo sorts
• Conceptual mapping
• Diary logs
• Expressive drawing
• Forced relationships
• Laddering
• Personality associations (fixed or variable)
• Sentence completion exercises
• Situational associations and drawings
• Storytelling/Wishful thinking exercises

Why You Should Hire A Professional Focus Group Moderator

In order for a focus group to be successful, the data must be collected and analyzed properly. Without an experienced moderator, your research study could lead you to make the wrong business decisions.

A focus group moderator must…

• Ask the right questions: In order to obtain all the key information, a moderator must ask the right questions at the right time while creating an environment that encourages open and honest discussion. 
• Remain unbiased: Professional moderators are impartial observers. They can provide valuable insights into the ways that participants interact with each other and with the products or services being studied. Remaining unbiased also means not asking suggestive questions.
• Have analytical skills: A moderator needs to be able to summarize and analyze the opinions of all focus group participants.
• Be professional and flexible: In qualitative research, some things are unpredictable. It is important for a focus group moderator to have the skills to refocus the discussion if it gets off topic.
• Be familiar with the topic and participants: In order to lead the discussion, a moderator needs to have at least a general knowledge of the topic. They should also be informed of the participants’ screening responses to ensure the honesty and integrity of the results.

Limelight Insights has over 50 years of experience conducting market research for a variety of companies across multiple industries. If you are looking for a reliable focus group moderator and research partner, Submit a Bid Request to get started!