focus group
08-22-2006, 12:48 PM
#1
Race Car
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focus group
Got a voicemail last night asking me to participate in a local focus group for Porsche. I've done some of these before (to say that they are a waste of time would be a big understatement...). Anyone else get called on this? Maybe it's re the Panamera? Or the hole in the roof of the RS?...j/k 
08-22-2006, 10:03 PM
#5
Burning Brakes
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Originally Posted by Holger B
Got a voicemail last night asking me to participate in a local focus group for Porsche. I've done some of these before (to say that they are a waste of time would be a big understatement...). Anyone else get called on this? Maybe it's re the Panamera? Or the hole in the roof of the RS?...j/k
JJB
08-23-2006, 12:55 AM
#6
Race Car
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by cosmos
I would fly up to Bay area to attend. Can you ask if you can bring a friend?
I've done this before, this one's the same format as last time. It's a round table discussion with about a dozen people led by a moderator in a room with a 2-way mirror. The other people aren't car nuts, most don't even own a P-car ("my wife had one once" & "I bought it to haul the dog around" types). The moderator controls the discussion and they only acknowledge what they want to hear. After 2 hours they arrive at the dumbest conclusions you've ever heard...Porsche should focus their racing efforts on F1, building minivans would be a great idea, etc.
This isn't something where they want your input on new product that you get to see up close.
Now I'm wondering why I agreed to go...
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08-23-2006, 01:23 AM
#8
Race Car
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The woman who called me was with something called Infoco (?) and the meeting is at Nichols Research (same place I went last time). They give you a little cash, roughly equivalent to about 3 tanks of gas or 2/3 of a track day or an oil change at the dealer or...
Maybe I said too much. Cos is on the phone right now giving them a call.
Maybe I said too much. Cos is on the phone right now giving them a call.
08-23-2006, 03:45 AM
#11
The Rebel
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Originally Posted by cosmos
I would fly up to Bay area to attend. Can you ask if you can bring a friend?
08-23-2006, 01:29 PM
#12
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Who runs this focus group? I had a call last week from Assistance in Marketing for a "luxury auto" focus group in Philadelphia. Cocktails and dinner at a good restaurant and $300 payment for two hours. I ignored the call, but when I saw this thread I called and signed up. Is this Porsche connected? The telephone rep did not know who he was working for ("they don't tell me anything").
08-23-2006, 01:46 PM
#13
Race Car
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by Phokaioglaukos
Who runs this focus group? I had a call last week from Assistance in Marketing for a "luxury auto" focus group in Philadelphia. Cocktails and dinner at a good restaurant and $300 payment for two hours. I ignored the call, but when I saw this thread I called and signed up. Is this Porsche connected? The telephone rep did not know who he was working for ("they don't tell me anything").
Probably different than mine, since it's in a cramped conference room with coffee & donuts and a 2-way mirror and pays half as much.
08-24-2006, 03:02 AM
#14
Race Car
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Cos, you really missed out...not!
Focus group was all about Porsche's website. Specifically, they want to add an owner's area like BMW, MB, etc have. There were 9 of us, almost everyone else owned a 997 and it was a good group (all male). They asked us what we'd like to see, then we critiqued the owners sites for Mini, MB & BMW. Finally, they showed us some mocked-up pages from what Porsche has in mind. Let's just say that the guy who decided the GT3 must come with a sunroof has much more job security than the website people. It was really pathetic, all fluff with no substance (unless you want to post a photo of your car, look up how much hp they claim it has or order a Porsche Design coffee grinder). I suggested that we be able to access & print out our service history (drives business to the dealers & makes it easier to show to a potential buyer), they want us to input the data (why would I need or want to go to their site to do that?). Someone else suggested being able to do dealer inventory searches when looking for a car. I wanted race videos & news, etc, etc. That's what it was all about.
The one interesting thing was that we finished at least half an hour early (scheduled for 2 hours). The moderator left the room & came back asking all sorts of questions about the Gayman. How do we perceive it? Who's the typical owner? What's wrong with it? Except for one guy who recommended it to a friend, everyone ripped on it (guy with a Turbo S said it's a "girls car"). The interesting thing was that a number of people (who weren't hardcore enthusiasts) all wanted to know when we'd see one with a GT3 motor. We all laughed & agreed that ain't gonna happen anytime soon.
Since it was being video taped, I went on a rampage about the GT3 sunroof issue (thinking of my friends here)...and I probably came off like a lunatic. Oh well, I tried.
Focus group was all about Porsche's website. Specifically, they want to add an owner's area like BMW, MB, etc have. There were 9 of us, almost everyone else owned a 997 and it was a good group (all male). They asked us what we'd like to see, then we critiqued the owners sites for Mini, MB & BMW. Finally, they showed us some mocked-up pages from what Porsche has in mind. Let's just say that the guy who decided the GT3 must come with a sunroof has much more job security than the website people. It was really pathetic, all fluff with no substance (unless you want to post a photo of your car, look up how much hp they claim it has or order a Porsche Design coffee grinder). I suggested that we be able to access & print out our service history (drives business to the dealers & makes it easier to show to a potential buyer), they want us to input the data (why would I need or want to go to their site to do that?). Someone else suggested being able to do dealer inventory searches when looking for a car. I wanted race videos & news, etc, etc. That's what it was all about.
The one interesting thing was that we finished at least half an hour early (scheduled for 2 hours). The moderator left the room & came back asking all sorts of questions about the Gayman. How do we perceive it? Who's the typical owner? What's wrong with it? Except for one guy who recommended it to a friend, everyone ripped on it (guy with a Turbo S said it's a "girls car"). The interesting thing was that a number of people (who weren't hardcore enthusiasts) all wanted to know when we'd see one with a GT3 motor. We all laughed & agreed that ain't gonna happen anytime soon.
Since it was being video taped, I went on a rampage about the GT3 sunroof issue (thinking of my friends here)...and I probably came off like a lunatic. Oh well, I tried.
