Howell_D._Focus_Group_Report

Howell D.

TO: Proximity social networking team FROM: Dennis Howell DATE: March 30, 2010 SUBJECT: Focus Group Report

Here is my report on a focus group I ran with five Medieval Times employees on their social networking preferences. I was able to cover three of the five questions developed by our team. The participants reported that they look at and share pictures, actively use Facebook chat, and have reservations about businesses on Facebook.


 * Focus Group Rational**

Facebook is currently the dominant social networking site and therefore the most attractive place for businesses to connect with Gen-Y users. The social networking landscape, however, is volatile because users can easily switch from one site to another. Our focus groups seek to determine if Gen-Y still favors Facebook, how they primarily use the site, and what developments would cause this demographic to switch to another site. This information will allows to advise Proximity clients about how to create an effective presence on Facebook.


 * Setting and Participants**

The focus group session was held at a McDonald's on Friday, March 19, 2010. All the participants were Medieval Times employees. The participants were:

Sarah, 19, female, Anne Arundel Community Collage freshman pre-vet major Ashley, 19, female, Howard Community Collage freshman pre-med major Maggie, 20, female, Towson University sophomore business major Bob, 18, male, a high school student Joe, 23, male, United States army


 * Session Topics**

The focus group covered the following three topics

__The reason they used specific social networks__

The main social network mentioned was Facebook. All of the participants said they had a Facebook account. Sarah and Bob also had an active Myspace account. All the participants admitted that they use Facebook because most of their friends use Facebook. Joe expressed how important it was to have a site for keeping in touch with his friends when the army separates him from them. Besides the crowd factor, the participants discussed how simplicity was the main factor that drew them to Facebook. The female participants discussed how easy it was to upload and organize pictures on Facebook.

__The way they used social networks__

All the participants except for Ashley said that they were active users of Facebook. Ashley said she only uses Facebook a few times a week. All the participants use Facebook chat. Sarah talked about how convenient it is to be able to chat with all of her friends on a single account. Maggie pointed out how Facebook chat is sometimes "glitchy and annoying." Sarah and Maggie also talked about how they like to comment on their friend's pictures on Facebook.

__Business and social networks__

The participants had mixed opinions about businesses on social networks. At first they complained that advertisers would just crowd social networks with pop up ads. They later conceded that it would be nice to get inside information about promotional events from their favorite stores. Ashley explained that it would be nice to get information about special deals from her favorite clothing stores. Sarah and Bob admitted that it would be nice to get inside information about their favorite music groups. Joe pointed out that "that's the reason they have websites." Joe also talked about how he uses "Ad Blocker" to avoid having to deal with advertisements while on Facebook.


 * Findings**

The session revealed that Gen Y
 * has a "follow the crowd" mentality toward selecting social networks
 * uses social networks for chatting
 * likes to share pictures using social networks
 * has reservations toward businesses using social networks

These findings should be compared with the results of other sessions. The session revealed that chat may be a major factor in deciding the future of social networking. Gen Y users prefer social network sites that are convenient and easy to use.

I would recommend that Proximity clients do not waste time and money trying to reach Gen Y through Facebook. Gen Y does not want to be bugged by advertisers while on Facebook. Even though Gen Y may consider friending their favorite stores/businesses, it would not help our clients. Social networking sites are not the best option for expanding business.