Focus group discussions are one of the most formalized and utilized participatory research methods. As a formal qualitative research method, the strength of a focus group discussion relies on the process of discussion rather than the result of the discussion. As such, a good scientific question is whether the virtual focus group is as methodologically rigorous as the traditional/face-to-face focus group. In response, the data are clear: online focus groups are methodologically sound and offer additional advantages that improve qualitative research. Most notably, Turney and Pocknee (2005) argue that virtual focus groups meet the Krueger (1988) and Morgan (1997) criteria.

Recent experiences of conducting virtual focus group discussions in Malawi and Kenya during the COVID-19 pandemic show that convening online focus groups presents extraneous considerations in recruiting cohorts, choosing the platform, structuring, and timing the discussions. To optimize the quality of discussions, the focus group moderator also needs to make additional considerations to ensure that, despite the geographical barrier and potential resource limitation, the discussion is rich and natural and that participants can provide a range of opinions and ideas on the research question(s). This research note outlines key learnings drawn from those experiences.

Once you establish a clear objective for your focus group, recruiting the right cohort of participants is critical. One of the numerous advantages of online focus groups for stakeholders is that they eliminate the need for travel to a central location. However, as technology is involved, the key is to ensure that you eliminate barriers to participation, giving due consideration to contextual limitations.

Offering incentives to focus group participants is common practice. In challenging times such as the current global pandemic, research and monitoring and evaluation teams might be required to operate on a lean budget. Granted, teams may be forced to reduce their incentive expenditure. Considering the additional family care responsibilities, pragmatic concerns, and mental distress occasioned by the current pandemic, where budgets allow, consider offering higher focus group incentives to maximize research participation. For instance, in addition to other incentives for participation, a relevant measure would be to budget for mobile data expenses incurred by the participants.

After developing a qualifying participant selection checklist and deciding on the incentive mechanism, it is vital to ensure that you are using the most suitable medium to recruit participants. While recruiting via online calls and the use of social media is a great way of reaching out to a variety of participants, consider taking advantage of reliable local partners and networks to identify potential candidates. Cultural factors can be demographically relevant. In one of our recent experiences, we discovered that men were more likely to use social media thus more likely to see and respond to our call for focus group discussion candidates. As such, we had to find creative ways of reaching out to a more gender-diverse group.

Recruiting the right focus group moderator(s) is just as important as recruiting the set of participants. Once you know what your focus group is going to explore, we suggest formulating a relevant checklist to qualify a moderator. In many scenarios, the project leader or principal investigator serves as the focus group moderator. However, the project leader or principal investigator may not have the experience necessary to excel in a virtual collaboration setting. In such cases, it is critical to recruiting a moderator with some experience with focus group methodology, topic knowledge as well as familiarity with managing online interaction.

There may be contextual factors that may require that you also make use of demographics — including gender, cultural background, languages are spoken, and age, among others — in determining your choice of moderator. In addition to the fact that building rapport between the moderator(s) and the focus group might be more challenging in virtual environments, the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to widespread emotional distress that may create unfavorable dynamics. The ideal moderator should be relatable enough to swiftly gain the respondent’s trust and empower them to fuel the discussion. Appearing neutral is sacrosanct in achieving a good flow of interaction within your focus group. When the moderator introduces themselves, it is important, for example, that they address any issues that might create an appearance of partiality in order to achieve the highest level of participant confidence.

When hosting a virtual focus group discussion, researchers might gravitate to traditional approaches to selecting a platform best suits their needs. One might consider what software their organization/institution avails and how it integrates with other virtual tools, among other factors. While such selection criteria might lead you to a platform that is best suited for you, we suggest that development researchers and practitioners go for a platform selection approach that centers on focus group participants. A golden rule is to try as much as possible to meet participants where they already are, that is, in the platforms that they already use and are familiar with.

The choice of platform for an online focus group will likely determine the participant’s ability to seamlessly connect with the moderator as well as the actual conduct of your focus group session. For instance, some virtual platforms might include excellent features that enable excellent call quality and virtual collaboration. While these factors are of utmost importance, it is important to ensure that the software user interface is easy to use and geared towards your audience. In some settings, one of the first issues you need to address is whether the prospective participants will incur additional costs (both material and immaterial) downloading, installing, and learning how to use the virtual platform. While your organization might be in the position to provide generous financial reimbursements to participants, this could lead to significant challenges in running your focus group session. New and unfamiliar software applications might be difficult to troubleshoot when problems arise during the focus group discussion, rendering participants incapable of participating in a part of or the entire session.

Right from the planning stages, be sure to consider local infrastructure such as gaps in digital connectivity capability in your selection process. In the worst case, it would be preposterous to select a platform that is not optimized for use on locally available mobile devices.

In-person focus group discussions can run for up to 2 hours. The ideal amount of time to set aside for a productive virtual focus group discussion is anywhere between 45 to 75 minutes. However, as the challenging pandemic circumstances continue, it is important to consider the additional family care duties and mental distress that have affected people at this time. Therefore, while balancing the need to explore the discussion topic fully, focus groups should aim to keep to a 60-minute average. A smaller focus group, coupled with a strong moderator, will allow adherence to this timeframe. Where larger groups are necessary or other contextual factors do not allow for a short focus group length, consider creating a series of small focus groups.

Among recent cohorts, we noted a high preference for evenings and weekends, which are outside of normal research working hours but work better for the participants as they are less disruptive and quieter, taking work and care obligations exacerbated by the current pandemic into account.

On some occasions, focus groups are part of a regular, iterative research experience for an organization. In those cases, it will be important to dedicate time to adapt your discussion guide prior to the online focus group discussion to ensure that time considerations are accounted for.

Once you have selected the cohort of participants, the next step is to ensure that the working arrangements for your focus group discussion are communicated early and clearly. As opportunities to meet the respondents in person are not likely, and to ensure that the focus group session is dedicated solely to the discussions, create early opportunities to communicate the core focus group arrangements to participants. Prior to the session, be sure to:

1. Provide a concise description of the study objectives and procedures;

2. Answer any questions that participants may have regarding the data collection process;

3. Obtain informed consent to take part in the study and be recorded, where necessary; and,

4. Set and communicate the focus group ground rules.

In traditional in-person focus group discussions, focus group participants collectively create the ground rules at the beginning of the meeting. However, as the participant’s location cannot be determined by the facilitator in a virtual session, it is vital to ask the participants to identify and reserve suitable locations prior to the discussion. As part of the ground rules, communicate the need for participants to call in from locations that are free from distractions, with the best possible connectivity, and ask them to set up the refreshments they need within reach prior to the session.

The role of the virtual facilitator depends wholly on the capability of the chosen online platform. As such, be proactive in setting up a virtual meeting link and create opportunities for participants to test their connectivity issues ahead of time. If your discussion guide includes any questions that require ranking or sorting by the study participants, you might need to organize live demonstrations of the online tool that involves polling.

Thorough preparation is the most important element in facilitating a successful focus group. However, in addition to the tips expounded earlier in this paper, the following pointers can be utilized to make your focus group more successful:

  • Trial and error can play an important role in polishing your online focus group methodology. Where resources allow, plan multiple sessions to pilot test your questions and script.
  • Consider recruiting support for the moderator. Having another person on hand for thematic and technical support will ensure the moderator can focus on moderating. Some of the important gaps moderating assistance can help to fill include directly asking for clarification, signaling the moderator to probe on certain questions, and engaging participants on the in-meeting chat feature. In some situations, assistants can also help the moderator with language interpretation, but in some settings, the project leader might have to recruit separate language interpreters altogether.
  • Pre-session: Time limitations notwithstanding, consider setting aside 3–5 minutes for an icebreaker as your first virtual group interaction. Checking in with your virtual focus group before kicking off the discussion can create space to allow everyone to settle into the session and help build trust with the participants. Check-ins can be casual without getting overly personal.
  • If your circumstances support excellent video capabilities, you might have some useful opportunities to observe some non-verbal cues. Nonetheless, pay attention to verbal cues, such as tone and pauses.

The authors wish to thank Patricia Maritim for sharing research insights.

Krueger, R. A. (1988). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research.

Morgan, D. L. (1997). Focus groups as qualitative research.

Turney, L., & Pocknee, C. (2005). Virtual focus groups: New frontiers in research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 4(2), 32–43.

Written by Vivian Ntinyari with support from Neema Iyer, Founder @Pollicy