their value. However, researchers must avoid generalizing the reported feelings of
the focus-group participants to the whole market, because the sample size is too
small and the sample is not drawn randomly.^15
With the development of the World Wide Web, many companies are now con-
ducting on-line focus groups:^16Janice Gjersten of WPStudio, an on-line entertainment company, found that on-line
focus-group respondents could be much more honest than those in her traditional
in-person focus groups. Gjersten contacted Cyber Dialogue, which provided focus-
group respondents drawn from its 10,000-person database. The focus group was
held in a chat room that Gjersten “looked in on” from her office computer. Gjersten
could interrupt the moderator at any time with flash e-mails unseen by the respon-
dents. Although the on-line focus group lacked voice and body cues, Gjersten says
she will never conduct a traditional focus group again. Not only were respondents
more honest, but the cost for the on-line group was one third that of a traditional
focus group, and a full report came to her in one day, compared to four weeks.Analyzing
Marketing(^108) Opportunities
Companies Turn to Data Warehousing and
Data Mining: Exercise Care