Award date: November 22, 2011
Contract no: 60074-110166/001/CY
POR 036-11

Focus Group Concept Testing Report

Final Report

     January 2012

Prepared for:
The Department of Finance
140 O’Connor Street
613-943-0193
e-mail: webmaster.webmestre@fin.gc.ca
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Prepared by: Nanos Research Corporation

Table of Contents
Research Objective

Executive Summary

Pre- & Post- Discussion Input

Concept A – Key Findings

Concept B – Key Findings

Concept C – Key Findings

Appendix– Methodology

Research Objective
Nanos Research was retained by Finance Canada to conduct creative testing qualitative research. The ads being proposed by the Government of Canada were intended to communicate about some aspects of Canada’s Economic Action Plan, now and into the future.
Three concepts were tested by Nanos.
Executive Summary
On December 12th and 13th, 2011, six focus group sessions were conducted in Montreal (2 Francophone groups), Toronto (2 Anglophone groups) and Winnipeg (2 Anglophone groups). 
The engagement was a call-up against Nanos Research’s Standing Offer with the Government of Canada (S.O. EP363-090027 025 CY) and the total budget for the focus groups was $38,919.16 including expenses and HST.
Because focus groups are qualitative in nature, projectability to the population is not possible. To follow are the key findings of the feedback provided by participants on the three preliminary ad concepts that were tested. 
1.	Overall impression - All of the comments related to the three concepts effectively conveyed to participants that the Government of Canada did have a plan and that the government was being proactive in terms of the economy (jobs and growth). The concepts conveyed that Canada is moving forward/taking positive steps on the economic front.
2.	Tone - Many of the participants found the positive tone of the three concepts very appealing - even those who were more cynical. Participants did note, however, that the concepts must also convey a sense of reality in terms of the real economic situation.
3.	Target - A number of the participants thought that the concepts appealed to and were aimed at them directly and also at groups that are priorities such as individuals in the manufacturing sector, older workers, new Canadians, businesses and families. 
4.	Link between visuals and message - Participants preferred direct, explicit, easy to consume messages. They also suggested that supers would help to create a direct connection between visuals and the message. 
5.	Impact of first image – Some participants suggested that the first image presented in a concept must be relevant to them or else they would lose interest. Suggestions were made that an overarching initial message relevant to all Canadians would help engage people. 
6.	Content volume - The research suggests that the concepts were ambitious in terms of Canada's Economic Action Plan elements covered, resulting in a limited ability to convey details or concrete examples of the effectiveness and impact of government action. The ability to deliver a unified narrative was undermined.
7.	Audiences - Based on a review of the input, there are likely two very broad overarching audiences or thematic elements - those seeking work and those that create jobs.
8.	Content - The aspects of the plan received positive reviews with one exception; the message related to job sharing received mixed reviews. A number of participants believed that the message of job sharing was inconsistent with the jobs growth message.

Pre and Post-discussion Input
Pre-discussion input - Rating the concepts prior to the group discussion where 1 was a very low score and 10 a very high score suggests there were only marginal variances of opinion among the 56 focus group participants on the three concepts prior to the discussion.
Post-discussion input - At the end of the group discussion after all three concepts had been introduced, participants were asked to identify the concept that they liked least of the three.  Concept A fared comparatively better than Concepts B and C and was the one concept that received the fewest number of “least liked” mentions by participants.

Concept A Key Findings
A majority of participants thought the key message or idea conveyed related to the government having a plan to boost the economy and getting Canadians back work.
•	The tone was considered positive and story-like.
•	The conversational tone and coffee shop setting was seen as being a natural visual and approach that a number of participants could empathize with.
•	Participants also suggested that supers (text tags on the screens) could help to make the key messages or takeaways understandable.
•	Participants wanted more concrete details on the key messages and preferred fewer messages in the concept.
•	A minority of participants felt that the setting was not realistic (listening in – at a coffee shop) or that it was too stereotypical in nature because of its focus on donuts, coffee and pick-up trucks.

Concept B Key Findings
Although a number of participants thought the concept conveyed that the government had a plan for the economy, participants were also likely to cite apprenticeship and training as a key message or idea.
•	Participants liked the reference to the new Canadian couple opening their retail store.
•	The use of the new Canadians and hockey settings resulted in a number of participants saying that this concept had more of a ‘family feel’ to it.
•	A number of participants could not empathize with the opening segment’s focus on construction and heavy machinery, which left the impression that the target was not them.
•	Participants wanted more concrete details on the key messages and preferred fewer messages in the concept.

Concept C Key Findings
The key messages or ideas conveyed in Concept C related to the perception that the government had a plan, was funding training and that the economic outlook was good/stable.
•	Positive in tone, the use of a class-room setting was generally well received and authentic.
•	Participants also suggested that supers (text tags on the screens) could help to make the key message or takeaway more understandable.
•	The focus of manufacturing in the opening segment gave a signal to a number of participants that the concept was not about them but about sectors needing support.
•	A number of comments were made about job sharing both positive and negative but that job sharing might be considered inconsistent with a growth message.
•	Participants wanted more concrete details on the key messages and preferred fewer messages in the concept.

Methodology
Recruiting criteria - A two tracked focus groups methodology was implemented by Nanos.  One track targeted higher-income individuals ($75K+ household income) and the other track targeted mid- to lower-income level individuals (less than $75K household income).  The groups included a diversity of men and women.
Number of participants, duration and incentive – A total of 56 individuals participated in six focus groups. Two hours of time were allotted to conduct each of the focus group sessions. Each participant who attended the focus group was paid an incentive of $75 at the end of the group discussion.
Dates and locations – Two focus groups were held in Montreal on Monday December 12th, two groups in Toronto on Monday December 12th and two groups in Winnipeg on Tuesday December 13th.  A total of six groups were conducted as part of this study.
Discussion guide – Discussions primarily entailed impressions of each of the three ad concepts. Concepts were introduced in a rotation to avoid any possible order bias.