Training Options

Ready to build your skill set with the intent of offering it to others in the future? This group class is for you!

Group Training Option #1: Moderating Real-Time Text Chats

• Goal: Provide hands-on experiences in the art of moderating text-based real-time (synchronous) focus groups. Focus is on adapting guides, the importance of guidelines, pacing, encouraging interaction, building rapport with participants, and maintaining crowd control.
  
  
• Time Commitment: 4-6 hours each day, for two days
  
  
• Features:
• ▸ Experience real-time chats from three perspectives: participant, observer, and moderator
• ▸ Moderate twice: first with fellow trainees as practice participants (practice), and second with consumers recruited just for you (at least 15 minutes each time)
  
  
• Scheduled Activities (approximate length)
  
  Day 1
  1. Lecture via videoconference – the fundamentals (60 minutes)
  2. Experience real-time text chat as a participant (30 minutes)
  3. Debrief about the participant experience (60 minutes)
  4. Moderating experience #1 (90-120 minutes, shared among all trainees)
  5. Debrief about moderator experience #1 (60 minutes)
  6. 
     Day 2
  1. Moderating experience #2 (120-150 minutes, shared among all trainees)
  2. Debrief about moderator experience #2 (60 minutes)
  3. Final tips + Q&A (30 minutes)
• 
  Non-Scheduled Activities:
• ▸ In addition to the scheduled activities above, trainees will get individual coaching prior to each moderating experience, and trainees will need to do prep work for each moderating experience.
• 
  Fee:
• ▸ $1450 ($100 discount to QRCA members)

Ready to build your skill set with the intent of offering it to others in the future? This group class is for you!

Group Training Option #2: Moderating Online Message Boards

• Goal: Provide hands-on experiences in the art of moderating asynchronous message/bulletin board online discussion groups. Focus is on adapting guides, making the process as engaging as possible for participants, building rapport with participants, and stimulating interaction.
  
  
• Time Commitment: 4-6 hours each day, for three days
  
  
• Features:
• ▸ Trainer warms up consumer group on Day 1
• ▸ Trainees take over moderating on Days 2 and 3
• ▸ Trainees share respondents, asking 2-3 question sets on each of two consecutive days
• ▸ Board discussions run during daytime hours only, to give trainees time to prepare for the next day
  
  
• Scheduled Activities (approximate length)
  
  Day 1
  1. Lecture via videoconference – the fundamentals (60 minutes - morning)
  2. Debrief about observations of trainer warm-up (60 minutes)
     
     
  Day 2
  1. Mid-morning meeting – observations of the message board (60 minutes)
  2. Late afternoon meeting – observations of the message board (60 minutes)
     
     
  Day 3
  1. Mid-morning meeting – observations of the message board (60 minutes)
  2. Late afternoon meeting – observations of the message board (60 minutes)
  3. Final tips + Q&A (30 minutes)
     
• 
  Other Activities:
• ▸ In this course, trainees will meet as a group twice a day – once in the morning and once in the afternoon – to answer questions and share observations about what’s going on in the message board.
  
• ▸ Individual coaching is provided as needed, when it’s most convenient to the trainee.
  
• ▸ Trainees are responsible for moderating on their own time during the day.
  
• 
  Fee:
• ▸ $1950 ($150 discount to QRCA members)

Ready to build your skill set with the intent of offering it to others in the future? This group class is for you!

Group Training Option #3: Moderating Video Chats

• Goal: Provide “hands-on” experiences in the art of moderating real-time (synchronous) online video group discussions. Focus will be on guidelines for managing respondents during the group, creative exercises, showing stimuli, etc.
  
  
• Time Commitment: 5-7 hours in one day
  
  
• Features:
• ▸ Experience video chats from three perspectives: participant, observer, and moderator
• ▸ Moderate twice: first with fellow trainees as practice participants (practice), and second with consumers recruited just for you (at least 15 minutes each time)
  
  
• Scheduled Activities (approximate length)
• ▸ Video conference lecture about video chats (60 minutes)
• ▸ Experience video chat as a participant and debrief (60 minutes)
• ▸ Experience video chat as a moderator and debrief (60-90 minutes)
• ▸ Final tips + Q&A (60 minutes)
• 
  Other Activities:
• ▸ In addition to the scheduled activities above, trainees will get individual coaching prior to each moderating experience, and trainees will need to do prep work for each moderating experience.
• 
  Fee:
• ▸ $850 ($50 discount to QRCA members)

Did you get an online qualitative project and need help NOW? If you can’t wait for one of our scheduled group classes, fast forward to the head of the line for this one-on-one coaching experience.

One-on-One Coaching in Online Moderating

• Goal: Provide immediate assistance in executing an online project – whether it’s a video chat, a real-time text chat, a message board, or any combination of the above. Help is provided with the discussion guide, acclimating you to the selected online platform, and being virtually by your side during the moderating process.
  
  
• Features:
• ▸ The trainer/coach will sign an NDA to protect you and your client
• ▸ Sample discussion guides are provided to kick-start the guide development process.
• ▸ You take the lead in guide development, with oversight by your coach.
• ▸ Coach acclimates you to the platform, helps with uploading the guide, and provides tips for how to moderate.
• ▸ Coach “shadows” you (remaining in the background) while you moderate. You choose whether the coach is visible to your observation team.
  
  
• ▪ For message boards, coach shares observations throughout the day via email, text, and/or phone.
• ▪ Coach also touches base by phone daily for a pulse check and to address any questions you may have.
• ▪ For real-time text chats, coach observes the chat while on the phone and serves as your life-line, offering in-the-moment support and advice.
• ▪ For video chats, coach will observe and text you with any in-the-moment tips or advice.
• 
  Fee:
• ▸ TBD, depending on the scope of the coaching required (Typically starts at $1000)

Do you consider yourself a proficient online moderator but want to confirm your self-assessment? Pause, rewind, and have a seasoned moderator review and critique your moderating in a recent online project.

Peer Review of Past Online Moderation

• Goal: Provide an objective evaluation of a past project that you consider to be representative of your moderator skills. We will annotate the transcript with acknowledgements of where you excel, and highlighting areas of improvement.
  
  
• Features:
• ▸ Focus is exclusively on the moderating (data collection) process.
• ▸ No risk guarantee. A coach will spend at least 20 minutes skimming the transcript to provide a brief report of findings. If you decide that the advice/report it worthwhile, a full analysis and report will be prepared. If you decide that that the feedback is not worthwhile, there is no cost to you.
• ▸ Coach will sign an NDA to protect you and your client. (Otherwise, edit the transcript to remove all client-sensitive info.)
• ▸ Within two weeks, you will receive a fully annotated transcript with the coach’s comments.
• ▸ A 60-minute phone debrief with the coach will complete the process
• 
  Fee:
• ▸ TBD, depending on the scope of the coaching required (Typically starts at $1000)