Gathering Input from the Community
Focus groups, surveys and interviews will help your committee interact with these groups and help you meet needs and address concerns. Offering opportunities for people outside of the committee to provide input helps to foster a sense of ownership. This can be as simple as a juried photo contest or as complex as seeking out members for content specific sub-committees.
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Focus groups are a wonderful tool for getting insights and opinions from a group of like-minded individuals. Here are a few guidelines for focus groups:
- Length should be an 1 – 1.5 hours
- Group size should be about 10-12 (you will need to invite twice that number)
- Group members should have similar characteristics (all business owners, all members of the chamber of commerce, or all parents of school-aged children). Ideally these people would represent your target audience.
- You will need a facilitator to pose the questions and a notetaker (an audio tape can also be useful in capturing data).
- You should have specific information to present for feedback. For example, have three sample site designs and ask which they prefer, or have a couple of logo designs and have them comment on what they like and don’t like.
Surveys offer you the opportunity to get a lot of feedback from a lot of people. Here are a few guidelines on surveys:
- Electronic surveys can be sent to many people quickly. If you have email addresses, you can send them directly to individuals, or you can post links to the survey in places where people might be looking. Of course, they are biased in favor of people who are already using technology.
- Paper surveys can be collected, but you will have to identify someone willing to tabulate the results.
- You can post sample site designs in a public place and have people vote for their favorite.
- Surveys should be short (8-10 questions)…less is more when it comes to surveys.
- Questions and responses have to be carefully composed so that you get useful information.
- Only ask those questions where you really want input.
Interviews can be formal or informal. Because interviews are a conversation, you can get a lot of input from an interview. Be sure to ask clarifying questions to ensure you understand their opinions. Here are a few guidelines on interviews:
- Keep the interview short. Usually 5-7 questions will be enough.
- Questions should be open-ended to encourage more detailed answers. For example, “What 2-3 things do you like about this design?” is better than “Do you like this design?”
- The interviewer will need to keep careful notes or record the interview.
- Use clarifying statements and questions to get more useful information. For example, “I heard you say you would like more information related to our community library on the site. Can you tell me a bit more about what type of information you would suggest?”
- As with surveys, ask only those questions where you really want input.