What's Needed Just Before the Group
Mental Preparation
Moderators must be mentally alert and free from distractions, anxieties, or pressures that would limit their ability to think quickly. Moderating a group discussion requires concentration and careful listening. Therefore, plan your schedule to minimize pressures that would limit your ability to concentrate (e.g., get enough sleep, don't fight with your teenagers, don't do more than two groups in one day). Moderators must be able to give their full attention to the group.
The moderator should be completely familiar with the introduction ' and the questioning route. Practice saying the introduction and questions aloud while in the shower or while driving. Get comfortable with the questions. Know why you are asking each question. Know how much time you expect to spend on each question. Know which questions are key questions. You want to sound conversational. You don't want to sound like you have it memorized, and you don't want to read it word for word. Glancing at the questioning route to remember the next question is tolerable, but reading the question (and taking eyes off the participants) destroys the spontaneous flow of the discussion.
Another aspect of mental preparation is the discipline of listening and thinking simultaneously. It is just not enough to be an empty vessel, listening and absorbing the comments of participants. If you do, you will end up with a fair amount of trivia. The skillful moderator listens and then knows just when to push the participants a bit farther or ask a probing question. This skillful moderator doesn't automatically believe everything that is said but, instead, compares it to what was expected or to what was said by others in previous focus groups. One of the critical moderator skills is knowing when and how to seek amplification. Sometimes participants intellectualize an answer-talking about how something could or should be done or giving a theoretical response instead of one based on their actual experience. Other times, participants will speak in cliches. Or sometimes the participant's response seems to be completely disconnected from the question. These digressions and mental detours are relatively easy to spot when you leisurely listen to the audiotape the next day but difficult to catch at the moment they are said. With practice, this becomes easier.
Without a doubt, the moderating process is hard work and fatiguing. Because of the mental and emotional discipline required, we don't conduct more than two focus groups on the same day. By the third group, it is hard to remember if something was said in this group or an earlier group. Also, allow sufficient time between focus groups to reenergize.
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Practice Small Talk
Qualities that make someone good at academic research may be different from qualities that make for good field research. Some researchers are uncomfortable and feel awkward when they meet people, and it shows. Let members of the research team practice the small talk with each other. Let those who have this gift coach others who seek to develop it.
Pre-Session Strategy
Everything should be set up and ready for the group when the first participant arrives. If you are still fiddling with the recorder or writing on the flip chart, it makes some people uncomfortable. The moderating team then act as hosts. We think of it as what we do when we welcome people to our home. We greet them at the door. Welcome them. Introduce ourselves. We introduce them to one another. We do whatever we can to help them feel comfortable. We offer refreshments and make small talk. Sometimes we split our roles. One will act as the greeter; the other will take care of any paperwork. Occasionally participants are asked to fill out a short registration form that asks questions about demographic characteristics, particularly those characteristics that we don't want to discuss within the group. In some situations, we have a human subjects form for them to sign as they arrive. Even if we have them filling out paperwork, the emphasis is on creating a friendly, warm, and comfortable environment.
Small talk helps put the participants at ease, but avoid the key issues to be discussed later in the session. If participants explain their perceptions in the informal part of the meeting, they may be reluctant to repeat their observations during the group. Purposeful small talk avoids the focused issue and instead concentrates on common human experiences such as weather, children, or sports. Avoid controversial topics (religion, politics, or sensitive local issues) and topics that highlight differences within the group (income, education, political influence, etc.).
Because participants arrive at different times, the small talk maintains the warm and friendly environment until a sufficient number of participants are present to begin the session. In most situations, this small-talk period will last only five to ten minutes, and the two-person moderating team should plan their welcoming strategy in advance. Often, if no paperwork needs to be taken care of, the moderator or assistant moderator meets the participants at the door and brings them into the social gathering while the other person on the team visits with the group.
During this period, the moderator and assistant are observing participant interaction and noting individuals who tend to dominate the group, those who consider themselves as experts, or people who seem shy or quiet. Individuals who talk a lot may later dominate the conversation and should be seated at the moderator's side if possible. Then, if necessary, the moderator can turn slightly away from the domineering individuals, thereby giving a nonverbal and diplomatic signal for others to talk. Shy and quiet participants are best placed immediately across from the moderator to facilitate maximum eye contact. The moderator might expect that about 40% of the participants would be eager and open to sharing insights, and another 40% are more introspective and willing to talk if the situation presents itself. The remaining 20% are apprehensive about the experience and rarely share (Kelleher, 1982).
This strategic positioning of participants is achieved in the following manner. The moderating team will have a list of participants who are expected to attend the discussion and will prepare "name tents" to place on the table in front of group members. Name tents can easily be made from 5-by-8-inch index cards, folded in the middle with first names printed. Last names aren't necessary. Name tents are preferred because they are larger and more legible than nametags. The moderator will casually "drop" the name tents around the table in a seemingly random manner. In fact, the moderator arranges the cards using observations from the informal pre-session, quickly checks perceptions with the assistant moderator, and then places the name tents.
Snacks and Meals
Food can help the focus group. Eating together tends to promote conversation and communication within the group. Most focus groups use a variety of snacks, such as cookies or pastries or fruit and vegetable trays, but full meals also can be effective. Snacks and light refreshments are typically placed on a table to the side of the room and are enjoyed during the pre-session small talk and during the discussion. Full meals require additional planning. If they are conducted in restaurants, then advance arrangements are needed to ensure speedy service. Meals can be catered or delivered (e.g., pizza, box lunches).

Thought should be given to when the meal is served. Traditional protocol was that the meal should occur before the focus group as a way for the participants to get to know each other. This can be awkward as the moderator tries to avoid the central topic of discussion. An alternative strategy is to provide the meal after the focus group, during which time the moderator continues to listen for relevant comments concerning the study.
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Serve Quiet Food
Veteran moderators have found that some meals are noisy and make it difficult to get clear sound on the tape recorder. Avoid glass, china, cans, and silverware. Instead, use paper cups and plates with plastic forks and spoons.