Focus groups have been used for many years in the private sector as a common tool for product development. The method's use in what has been termed “social marketing” is less common, being seen most often in the arena of public health, where basic marketing tools, including focus groups, are utilized in efforts to influence health related behavior (Andreasen, 1995). While there is no specific literature on the use of focus groups in marketing communities, the method has theoretical merit. In this study, focus group interviews will be targeted toward market research related to a public good - the retention and recruitment of newcomers to the community. The process will provide a unique opportunity for group interaction and a better understanding of why particular opinions are held. Using this qualitative technique as a component of the study will give the researchers an opportunity to ask questions of the target audience that were previously unanswered through the initial survey and secondary census data research. More importantly, the process will allow researchers to determine how various residential “marketing” strategies are viewed by actual movers.

The focus group process will follow widely accepted guidelines provided by Krueger (1994):

• The groups will be composed of six to 10 people chosen by a purposeful sample based on certain predominate characteristics of completed newcomer surveys. A monetary incentive of $50 will be given to each participant to help defray transportation costs and to indicate that their opinions have value.
• In order to detect patterns and trends, a series of focus groups will be conducted. After the third group, the data will be reviewed to see if additional groups are needed.
• Participants will be selected based upon common characteristics, chief of which will be recent immigration to the Nebraska Panhandle.
• Focus groups collect data on perceptions, feelings, and a way of reasoning about services, products or opportunities. In order to facilitate the analysis of these data, group conversation will be audio-taped and notes will be taken by an assistant to the moderator.
• The formulation of the questions will be customized to the data obtained from the previous three project phases of census and survey research. Attention will be given to understanding the reasoning and thought processes used by the participants.
• The analysis will include the preparation of an abridged transcript “comments that directly relate to the topics at hand plus the moderator's or assistant moderator's oral summary at the conclusion of the focus group” (Krueger, 1995, p. 143).
• The coding process will follow Tesch's (1990) eight step sequence and will also include an audit trail of researcher decisions and informant member checks or feedback to assure that the categories or themes reflect the outcome of the focus group sessions.
• University of Nebraska protocols for research with human subjects will be closely adhered to during this process. Those protocols are defined by the University of Nebraska Institutional Review Board in order to ensure that appropriate informed consent and confidentiality requirements are met (Creswell, 1994).

The focus group interview component will provide the study with a better understanding of the reasoning process potential new residents go through as they make a decision to relocate. This aspect of the study will help to reveal how individuals rationalize the decision.

• What was important to them in making the decision to migrate to the Nebraska Panhandle?
• Why was it important?
• What were the “pull” and/or “push” factors that influenced them?
• How did they find a particular community?
• Was the community what they expected?
• Are they currently active in community activities?
• Do they wish to be active?
• What is keeping them here?
• What might push them away from this location in the future?
• All of these questions and others will be highlighted during the interview.

Survey research combined with the focus group interview data will help rural communities see themselves as a potential newcomer might see them. The cloak of familiarity will no longer cover up aspects of the community that have been taken for granted and therefore are no longer being acknowledged by local residents. It will give the community a new perspective and opportunity to more fully create an environment that is truly conducive to new residents as well as established residents.

Qualitative focus group interviews have a unique set of limitations. One of the first questions that could be asked is, “Are the interview results valid? Does the process really measure what it is supposed to measure? Is there confidence in the results? Krueger (1994) concludes that “focus groups are valid if they are used carefully for a problem that is suitable for focus group inquiry” (p. 31). Both face validity (plausibility of results) and predictive or convergent validity (results confirmed by future behavior) are important aspects to consider. The sincerity of the participant comments typically lead to high face validity and believability. The future behavior of the selected target audience is typically only confirmed by additional research.

The ability of focus group research to be generalizable to the larger population has been an issue of much discussion. Focus groups by design are composed of small numbers of participants. There is no attempt to select individuals that reflect characteristics of the entire population. The goal of the session is to obtain data that gives depth not breadth. Krueger (1994) suggests that a researcher can make “cautious generalizations” (p. 34). “If the focus group research has been carefully conducted and appropriately analyzed, then the user should be able to make generalizations to other respondents who possess similar characteristics” (p. 34). External validity or limited generalization can also be considered for the themes or categories that emerge from the data and for the data collection protocol that was used (Creswell, 1994).

The limitations of replicating the study or reliability can be moderated by the researcher's attention to detail in listing central assumptions, documenting the selection of the participants, and stating the values and biases of the researcher. All of these factors will increase the chances of the study being successfully replicated in the future (Creswell, 1994). Documenting the detailed focus group interview protocol or guide is also highly encouraged so that the procedure can be replicated in other settings (Yin, 1989).