How We Are Using Visual Facilitation To Get The Most Out Of Our Research Participants

May 1, 2020

While we have conducted online qualitative in many forms since 2000, COVID-19 and the reality of conducting ALL of our work online for the foreseeable future prompted us to re-evaluate our approach. 

The status quo is not acceptable and one of our methods, the video group using Zoom, has quickly become it. But the novelty of Zoom happy hours, cooking classes, and surprise parties has quickly worn off. Maintaining constant attention, annoying cross chatter, and dealing with people’s tech issues has caused “Zoom fatigue.”

We never want our research to feel like research. And we certainly cannot have it feeling tiresome and routine either.  

To help solve this problem, we’re now using Visual Facilitation as an accompaniment to our discussions. If people can think it, we can draw it. Simple drawings not only hold attention but also keep creativity flowing. The experience is altogether different than your typical Zoom call and can work for many topics.

We want the best from our people and won’t stop innovating until we get it! Below are some short examples from recent groups.

The Zoom Room

While talking with people about opportunities for brands in a COVID-19 world, we uncovered an opportunity for home builders and interior designers. What if there were special rooms in homes designed just for video conferencing? Perfect lighting and acoustics as well as dynamically changing backdrops would give everyone that professional look.

The Oreo Package

High schoolers can talk endlessly about food. But when it comes to Oreos, they have some especially strong opinions.

Is it really milk’s favorite cookie?

That pesky sticky tab…!

You have to touch all of them just to get one out…ick.

How about a variety pack?