Strategies for Finding Participants
Several strategies are used to identify participants for focus group interviews. These include the following.
The List
If possible, find an existing list of people fitting your screens. A list is fast and economical. This could include existing lists of clients, members, employees, or those who use services of the organization. If it is needed, try to get more than the name, phone number, and address. The organization may have a database of customers' sociodemographic characteristics or employees with years of experience, age, and educational level. These additional demographics may be of use in screening participants. Make sure the list is up-to-date. Some lists are well maintained, but others contain substantial errors.
Once the characteristics for selection have been determined, the researcher might contact existing groups in the community to find if they have members with these characteristics. Are there churches, recreational groups, or community groups that might have members like the people you are seeking? Some groups will be reluctant to release names or have restrictions on releasing member lists. Organizations are more cooperative when the researcher explains the study and how the participants, the organization, or the community will benefit from the study. Explain that there is no selling, that volunteers can decline to participate, and that participants will receive something for their time. In some situations in the nonprofit environment, a contribution to the group's treasury, tactfully offered, can be a reflection of the value placed on assistance in obtaining names of potential focus group participants.
Piggyback Focus Groups
Piggyback focus groups are added to another event, meeting, or occasion. The participants are gathered for another purpose, and the focus group is held during free time, during a meal, or after hours so as not to interrupt the primary purpose of the gathering. This strategy works well with professional associations or special interest associations, especially when national representation is desired. For example, if you want to conduct focus groups with school principals from around the state, find out when principals get together for regional or statewide meetings. Then arrange to conduct the focus groups while the principals are at the meetings.
On Location
Increasingly, focus groups are being held on location-at the place where the participants come for recreation, shopping, or other purposes. Recruiters stop participants as they pass through a gate, turnstile, hallway, and so on; ask several screening questions; and then offer an invitation to the focus group. The focus group is then held soon after recruitment in a convenient location. Care must be exercised in using this method so that those selected have the requisite characteristics of your target audience. This is the method of choice when the purpose of the study relates to their attendance. Some nonprofit organizations are able to recruit "on location" by inviting people using the services to participate in a discussion. For example, a nature center, zoo, or recreational center might intercept a random assortment of people passing through the gate and invite them to a special discussion. The incentive for participation might be free tickets for another visit. Recently, a state department of natural resources wanted to learn more about visitors' experiences at state parks. Park employees were trained to conduct focus groups with park visitors. At designated times when a vehicle entered the park, a park employee offered a special invitation. "We'd like to invite one adult from your party to join us for an hour discussion at 7:00 p.m. tonight. We will be talking about the park, and we would like your suggestions. If someone is willing to join our discussion, we'll give you a free bundle of firewood."
Nominations
An effective strategy in community studies is to ask neutral parties for names. These neutral parties are often people who have an opportunity to get to know a number of other people. They might be local merchants, clergy, or influentials, or they might be local residents selected at random. The first step is to identify the specifications for participants in observable terms and then use multiple sources for a nomination list. Only a few names are sought from each source to ensure an adequate mix of participants. Names are then randomly selected from this nomination list for the invitation to the focus group. For example, if you wanted to find senior citizens who live within a community and who own cars, you might seek nominations from local service stations, other senior citizens, or merchants who do business with seniors. If you wanted to find parents from the community who have at least one child in high school but can't get a list from the school, you might ask park and recreation staff, clergy, or perhaps randomly selected teens. In these studies, it is often advantageous to have the identification of focus group participants conducted by local residents who are trusted and have roots in the community. When asking for nominations, make sure to briefly describe how the results of the study will benefit the participants or the community.
A variation of the nomination process is the snowball sample. In a snowball sample, you ask those who have already passed through the selection screen for nominations. The logic is that people know people like themselves. The study must have obvious benefit to the community or individual, or another type of incentive to participation must be used. This snowball sampling could be used at two different times. When making initial contact with the potential participants, you might ask if they know of others who meet the qualifications, or you might ask at the conclusion of the focus group.
Screening/Selection Services
These services are located in most metropolitan areas around the country and are used by commercial market research firms. These agencies have a database of potential focus group participants categorized by sociodemographic characteristics. In addition, they supplement their existing lists with telephone screening if needed. These agencies are listed in the "market research" section of the telephone book. Screening and selection services can be expensive.
Random Telephone Screening
Commercial market research firms also use random telephone screening. The procedure typically begins by random selection of names from a telephone directory. A series of screening questions is used to determine if those called meet the criteria established for the focus group.
Telephone screening is most efficient when searching for participants with fairly common characteristics. As the number of screens increases, the efficiency of this procedure will decrease. For example, in an effort to reach women working outside the home, it was necessary to call fifty households to identify twenty-five women working outside the home. However, only ten were able and willing to participate in a focus group interview at the designated time. If the screen had been more restrictive-for example, women working outside the home with children between the ages of five and ten-then the efficiency of the calling would decrease.
The efficiency of the telephone screening procedures is also affected by the skills of the interviewer. Friendly and sincere calls that convey interest and enthusiasm are most effective. Several years ago, we had an opportunity to work cooperatively with a market research company in helping a community nonprofit organization. The nonprofit organization had employed several college students and used a predetermined interviewing script for calling. The students were finding that people did pass through the screens but then often declined the invitation to attend the discussion. The percentage of invitations accepted dramatically increased when a professional moderator began making the phone calls. The professional conveyed a sense of confidence, friendliness, and sincerity that was developed through years of experience. Because invitations over the phone are often regarded with suspicion, those making the invitations require considerable communication skills.
Ads or Announcements in Newspapers and Bulletin Boards
A recruitment strategy that is used by some marketing agencies is the media ad. For example, "Bought a new car lately? If so, call Ruby at 765-4321." Or an ad placed on the apartment bulletin board: "Wanted, apartment residents who recycle cans, glass, and paper to participate in a market research study. No sales. $25 if you qualify. Call Cynthia McArthur at 876-5432 for more information."
These ads can be effective in certain situations, but the primary draw is often the financial incentive for participation. As a result, there is a slight risk that those motivated by the $25 incentive are different in some way from those who do not call.
The process of identification and recruitment for focus groups is considerably easier when you have names, phone numbers, and background information about these potential participants. Existing directories, membership lists, or organizational records can help identify potential candidates. If you don't have a list, recruiting may take more time and effort.