Focus Group
Welcome. Thank you for participating in this focus group. My name is Michael Blankenship, and I am a graduate student in the marketing communications program at St. Bonaventure University and serve as a communications strategist with the ICCompassion. You have been selected to take part in this focus group discussing the work of not for profit organizations. The purpose of this session is to hear your thoughts on nonprofits and the issue of immigration within the United States. Our format today will be simple. I will pose a question to the group, after which, we will hear from each of you. There may be some follow up questions, and please feel free to contribute any relevant information to our conversation. I will also provide each of you with a flyer highlighting a new outreach by the ICCompassion. You will have five minutes to review the document before we begin a discussion, focusing on your impressions of the nonprofit organization and its new mission. Before we begin, I want you to remember that there are no right or wrong answers in our discussions. You may refrain from answering any question you do not feel comfortable answering. That being said, I would like to hear from each member of the group, as all of your responses are valuable to this research. This session will be recorded so that it may be referred to at a later time. Please relax, enjoy the refreshments provided, and at the end I will answer any questions you may have for me. Introductions: Let’s begin by introducing ourselves. Please state your name, occupation, and favorite holiday pastime to the group. Nonprofit Questions: Do you regularly give to a not for profit organization? Why/why not? t Do you give financially, volunteer, donate items? How often? t How did you learn of the organization (personal connection, website, etc)? What factors generally influence your donation decisions? t Do you research an organization prior to giving? What tools do you use (organization’s website, Better Business Bureau/ similar sites, personal reviews, etc)? t Do you contact the organization before making a donation? How important is the mission of the nonprofit? t Do you research the organization’s mission? t What are some areas you are most passionate about supporting? t What kinds of causes might you not support? Have you ever regretted making a donation? t What prompted you to give? t When did you decide it was not the best choice?