I have also already used many of the skills and techniques learnt in meetings and workshops. The blob tree in particular helped me understand how the Unilever shopper marketing team felt about evaluating the ROI of their shopper marketing activities!
Acting as a respondent was also useful: although I have viewed hundreds of groups over the years, to experience one from this perspective was enlightening. The learnings that I gained will allow me to be the voice of the respondent when working with my colleagues internally, ensuring that we create the perfect brief to generate the most actionable insights.
My personal highlight was definitely moderating a group. It gave me a real insight into how skilled a quallie needs to be to manage the dynamics of the group, ask the right questions and also to listen and observe respondents most effectively. I can only apologise to any moderators that I have said “what a great group of respondents” to. I now realise that it is the moderator who is responsible for the greatness of the group!
