Tregg Farmer, President
Qualifying a moderator for foreign country work is not as easy as it seems. If I were to guess, I would say I have worked with over 60 moderators for international work in EMEA, Latin America, South America and APAC. One piece of advice…once you find a great moderator, stick with them. There is nothing more humbling than your reliance on one person when you are thousands of miles away from home.
I’ve come up with a short list of items that have worked for me the last 18 years.
The best moderators aren’t employees of larger research companies: I like to pick a moderator that is not an employee of a larger research firm. For the most part, those that are on their own, are usually on their own because they are good enough not to have to rely on a larger company to feed them work. Also, being on their own means that they take more responsibility, have more flexibility and take much more control of the effort.
Bi-lingual in native language: Yep, as you can guess the best foreign moderators are native to their country. But, just as important is that they are great at English, both verbal and written communication. They make everyone’s life much easier in the project start-up phase with recruiting and discussion guide translation. Best of all, during groups, if you need to make any adjustments you don’t have to tell them several times for them to understand.
Strong consumer behavior background: There are many moderators that understand group dynamics and can run a group well, but the real value comes when they understand consumers from a marketing standpoint. This enables them to anticipate questions and probe more effectively. I love it when I am watching a group and I think of how I would follow-up or probe and next thing you know, the moderator is probing that same way on the other side of the mirror. This brings much more value to the effort and allows us to pass this value onto our clients.
Put the moderator at ease by getting to know them: Having a formal meeting right off the bat is a good way to make a moderator feel uneasy from the beginning. The first thing I do is get to know them on a personal level. Take them to breakfast the first day of the groups…just you and the moderator…have some fun enjoying each other’s company before tackling the research project. Most foreign moderators enjoy making a new research friend and knowing them more on a personal level allows them to feel more at ease during very demanding evenings. All of this helps them to put the participants at ease during the group. Qualitative in another country can be stressful enough; you can make it go much better by reducing any stress from the start.
Pay them for part of the work upfront: It sounds weird, but nothing gets your project more attention than putting money in a moderator’s hands before the groups begin. In today’s economy in many countries, cash is king. Put a big smile on your moderator’s face right away and they will go the extra-mile for you during the groups.
