Think you know how your patients will react to something new? You might be surprised. To avoid wasting money and effort, marketing expert Stan Joseph recommends holding a focus group.

A focus group assembles 6 to 10 people in a room for 1 to 3 hours, to find out what they think of the options you're considering. You'll get unexpected reactions to your ideas – maybe good, maybe bad – and discover alternatives you might not have thought of on your own.

To ensure optimum results from your focus group:

• Use the right moderator
. A focus group can be led by a practice administrator – provided he or she can remain objective – or by a professional facilitator. The moderator keeps the group's discussion on track while encouraging active participation and attempting to elicit relevant remarks.
• Invite participants from the audience you're trying to reach
. For example, if you're discussing laser vision correction, you'd want to assemble men and women 18 to 55 years old, rather than a geriatric crowd.
• Try your ideas out on at least two groups
. This helps avoid accidental bias.
• Consider using an outside marketing research firm
. They'll provide a moderator and recruit the participants. You'll also be able to observe the proceedings through a one-way mirror.
• Record the sessions
. Ideally, the sessions should be videotaped or recorded (with prior permission from the participants) so that no details are overlooked or omitted in translation. If you're using a research firm, the cost for this service is usually included in the fee.

Remember: no focus group is ever a perfect representation of all of your patients. But they can save you thousands of dollars in wasted time and money, and they may help you find even better options.