Before going to market with a new product, companies generally use focus groups to test the reactions of potential future customers. Pity then that focus group participants frequently lie . Will Leitch talked about how and why he does it:

• Focus groups can pay up to $300 an hour just for sitting and talking.
• Technically individuals are only allowed to participate in focus groups every six months – but there are no explicit checks to make sure this is happening. Rather, it depends on the honour system. Leitch himself has done four in a week.
• Before placing you in a focus group there is generally an interview where individuals will be asked questions such as “have you purchased a treadmill recently” answer yes and the individual will be a part of the group.
• Generally those behind the focus group make it obvious what answer they want to hear. Individuals simply have to let the focus group lead them – ensuring that they are pleased and hear what they want.
• During the focus group it is also important to be as invisible as possible. If the individual is tagged as an outlier whose views don’t reflect the mainstream, then they are less likely to be invited back.

Read more about how to manipulate focus groups and make some extra cash on the side over here.

Source: New York Magazine

Via: Newmark’s Door