I hate focus groups...

I really do hate these 'controlled' focus group settings. Sitting behind a screen chomping on crisps, gazing through the one way mirror, hoping to gain a thunderbolt of an insight from the lips of the four 'carefully selected representatives of our target' testing the products.

What do you get?

People being polite about your product; people acting out a role; or plainly have a laugh. A comment such as "yeah, it's alright" somehow becomes a positive statement about the brand, which then serves to confirm the direction that the brand or their creative agency.

No-one can convince me that this is how brands should base their marketing decisions on, yet it is not unusual. Such research is false, it is fake and it is lazy. So there.

I'm sure there are a million reasons why this view is wrong, so if anyone out there wants to share examples of why these one-way mirror sessions add no value, contributions are welcome!