Key Principles of Effective Moderators

Key 1: Maintain absolute clarity on the study purpose.

It drives development of the screener, moderator’s guide, and final report. RIVA has a formula for writing a good purpose statement:

To… [qualitative verb] …POBAs about …[singular topic] … from … [specific set of humans].

Example: To determine POBAs about a new dog food infused with vitamins from pet owners with dogs weighing less than 20 pounds.

Note:  POBA is RIVA shorthand for:  Perceptions, Opinions, Beliefs and Attitudes.

Key 2: Have complete clarity about six important rules of effective guides:

An effective guide:

1. Is limited to 4 distinct issue areas;
2. Honors 2/3rds rule;
3. Moves from General to Specific;
4. Has probes that are delineated, but not numbered;
5. Has instructions written out [in ALL CAPS] to the moderator;
6. Has a closing question that is convergent in nature, requiring no probing, only rejoinders [e.g., “Got it,” “Thanks,” “I hear you,” etc.].

Examples of Closing Questions:

1. What one descriptive word or phrase defines the concept you found most appealing?
2. What one piece of advice would you give to the manufacturer of vitamin infused dog food?
3. What one thing did you learn tonight that was new for you?

Note: DO NOT PROBE. Just use “appropriate rejoinders.”

Key 3: Do what is right, NOT what is easy.

Someone needs to hold the flag for good research principles – not just take orders and do the bare minimum! Taking orders and just doing enough to “get by” means acting like a research lackey rather than a research partner. That means pushing back when a client wants something that is not in the best practices’ playbook.

Key 4: Practice Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR).

Acknowledge the worth of each participant and honoring all view points as expressions of how each respondent expresses their version of POBAs, without judging their “externals.” Moderators demonstrate sensitivity and respect toward respondents and encourage mutual respect among respondents.

Key 5: Able to link trains of thought and divergent comments into a cohesive whole.

Remember earlier comments and use them to springboard to the current discussion.

For example: “Kelly, earlier you said that because of the grocery store loyalty card discounts, you always buy your fresh flowers at Safeway.  Who else buys something specifically because of the loyalty card discounts?”

Key 6: Kind yet firm.

Effective moderators create a balance between control and permissiveness without talking down or over respondents.

Key 7: Be actively involved, but not ego-involved in the discussion.

Never reveal your own opinions, and create a safe space for respondents to open up and generate a deeper discussion.

Key 8: Be present in the moment in every moment.

Take an Olympic tennis player who hits the next ball over the net: they are not worrying about the last ball sent or the one not yet served; they are focused in the moment.

Key 9: Pursue understanding of intentions and meaning.

Use neutral questions and insightful probes to achieve this. Do not assume you know what their body language is telling you or that the language to describe their reactions is the same as what you would use.  Probe for clarity to understand the landscape of their lives, not what the moderator sees through the lens of their own research or life experience.

Key 10: Demonstrate flexibility and the willingness to vary approaches to achieve study purpose.

Be willing to shift to a different tool, rather than following a planned guide word for word, working to capitalize on hidden “nuggets” and “goldmines” of participant generated leads.

Written By: Naomi Henderson