General characteristics of focus-group research

· Focus group research involves organised discussion with a selected group of individuals to gain information about their views and experiences of a topic.

· Focus group interviewing is particularly suited for obtaining several perspectives about the same topic.

· The benefits of focus group research include gaining insights into people’s shared understandings of everyday life and the ways in which individuals are influenced by others in a group situation.

· Problems arise when attempting to identify the individual view from the group view, as well as in the practical arrangements for conducting focus groups.

· The role of the moderator is very significant. Good levels of group leadership and interpersonal skill are required to moderate a group successfully.

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· an interactive group discussion led by a moderator

· unstructured (or loosely structured) discussion where the moderator encourages the free flow of ideas

· usually 8 to 12 members in the group who fit the profile of the target group or consumer but may consist of two interviewees (a dyad) or three interviewees (a triad) or a lesser number of participants (known as a mini-group)

· usually last for 1 to 2 hours

· usually recorded on video/DVD

· may be streamed via a closed streaming service for remote viewing of the proceedings

· the room usually has a large window with one-way glass - participants cannot see out, but the researchers can see in

· inexpensive and fast

· can use computer and internet technology for on-line focus groups

· respondents feel a group pressure to conform

· group dynamics is useful in developing new streams of thought and covering an issue thoroughly.

The environmental school. 

The external environment shown as a set of forces of the general character, is the main element of process of creation of strategy. The organisation should or react adequately to these forces, or it should «leave from a scene». Thus, the management is considered as a passive element of strategic process, its problem - identification of external forces and maintenance of adaptation of the organisation. The organisations gather in special niches of ecological type where they remain until their resources do not become scanty also animosities of environment does not become excessive. Then the organisations stop the existence.

STEP –analysis

PEST analysis stands for "Political, Economic, Social, and Technological analysis" and describes a framework of macro-environmental factors used in the environmental scanning component ofstrategic management.

· Political factors are basically to what degree the government intervenes in the economy. Specifically, political factors include areas such as tax policy, labour law, environmental law, trade restrictions, tariffs, and political stability. Political factors may also include goods and services which the government wants to provide or be provided (merit goods) and those that the government does not want to be provided (demerit goods or merit bads). Furthermore, governments have great influence on the health, education, and infrastructure of a nation

· Economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and the inflation rate. These factors have major impacts on how businesses operate and make decisions. For example, interest rates affect a firm's cost of capital and therefore to what extent a business grows and expands. Exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy

· Social factors include the cultural aspects and include health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Trends in social factors affect the demand for a company's products and how that company operates. For example, an aging population may imply a smaller and less-willing workforce (thus increasing the cost of labor). Furthermore, companies may change various management strategies to adapt to these social trends (such as recruiting older workers).

· Technological factors include technological aspects such as R&D activity, automation, technology incentives and the rate of technological change. They can determine barriers to entry, minimum efficient production level and influence outsourcing decisions. Furthermore, technological shifts can affect costs, quality, and lead to innovation.

Qualitative marketing research.

Qualitative Research is about investigating the features of a market through in-depth research that explores the background and context for decision making.

There are two main qualitative methods - depth interviews and focus groups. However qualitative research can also include techniques such as usability testing, brainstorming sessions and "vox pop" surveys.

Depth Interviewing

Depth interviews are the main form of qualitative research in most business markets. Here an interviewer spends time in a one-on-one interview finding out about the customer's particular circumstances and their individual opinions.

The majority of business depth interviews take place in person, which has the added benefit that the researcher visits the respondent's place of work and gains a sense of the culture of the business. However, for multi-national studies, telephone depth interviews, or even on-line depth interviews may be more appropriate.

Feedback is through a presentation that draws together findings across a number of depth interviews. In some circumstances, such as segmentation studies, identifying differences between respondents may be as important as the views that customers share.

The main alternative to depth interviews - focus group discussions - are typically too difficult or expensive to arrange with busy executives. However, on-line techniques increasing get over this problem.

Group Discussions

Focus groups are the mainstay of consumer research. Here several customers are brought together to take part in a discussion led by a researcher (or "moderator"). These groups are a good way of exploring a topic in some depth or to encourage creative ideas from participants.

Group discussions are rare in business markets, unless the customers are small businesses. In technology markets where the end user may be a consumer, or part of a team evaluating technology, group discussions can be an effective way of understanding what customers are looking for, particularly at more creative stages of research.