Don’t Let Your Jury (Continued from page 12)
of the group members are emphasized at the conclusion of the deliberations. In addition, group members routinely complete a background questionnaire when they first gather and before the pre- sentations are made. The questionnaire includes information such as family back- ground, employment and hobbies, as well as information not seen during a typical voir dire. This information also is confi- dential and the attorneys must pledge to the group members that it will remain so.
Facilities and Equipment
Focus group presentations and discus- sions can be held at a hotel conference room, the conference room of an office or at a facility specifically designed to con- duct marketing focus groups. It needs to be a quiet place with access to restrooms and easy parking. Most attorneys hold focus group research projects at a location outside of their offices to reduce the like- lihood that a focus group can identify which party the attorney represents. The room used for discussion should be 25' x 15' or somewhat larger in size. It needs to be comfortable with enough
room for tables and chairs to be placed with the focus group members facing each other and so that the lawyers and facilita- tor can fulfill their responsibilities at one end of the table. Use a video recorder to tape all of the deliberations. The videos can be reviewed later and you will pick up some nugget of information that was not identified be- fore.
The focus group confidentiality
agreement should acknowledge that the proceedings are being video taped and audio taped so that a member is not un- comfortable. Experience shows that once discussion begins, group members quickly ignore the camera. Of course, someone needs to be designated to supervise the recording to change tapes and to make sure the camera is working properly. Be sure that the video camera is equipped with a good microphone. It is highly de- sirable to set up a tabletop mike to be sure to capture all of the comments made by the group members. If you already have the equipment, run a cable to a monitor in another room for your client or other interested people to observe the process. If a video recorder is not available, even a $29 Radio Shack audio recording ma- chine can be used. Purchase an inexpensive external microphone and put it near the middle of the table. All of the
comments must be recorded even if the picture is not. Snacks, finger sandwiches, and bever- ages should be available. Nothing fancy is necessary or desirable. The presentations and deliberations generally last a minimum of four hours and sometimes may extend to five or six hours. After the group members are dis- missed, all of the remaining participants - facilitator, lawyers and interested persons - should remain in the room and methodi- cally synthesize the information that has been learned. Discuss alternative meth- ods of presenting the information if you decide to convene another focus group later. Record all of these comments on the video or audio tape as well.
The Facilitator
After you have participated and watched an experienced facilitator con- duct a few, concept focus groups and a few, structured focus groups, consider undertaking that role in the future for your own cases. It is not particularly dif- ficult and it can be very intellectually stimulating. Recognize, however, that the facilitator’s focus is somewhat distracted
(Continued on page 16)
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Trial Reporter
Fall 2005
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