Marketing Partnerships
Run a focus group with your own customers before you spend on a rebrand, campaign or new product, and hear what they really think.
Focus groups
Rock Solid Marketing runs focus groups for Australian businesses that want to hear from customers before changing a name, logo, offer or ad. You know your business inside out. That's the problem: it's hard to see it the way a first-time customer does.
A small group of your customers, staff or members sits down with behavioural scientist Dr. Damian Collins for a relaxed, guided conversation. You hear what they value, what confuses them and the words they use. Then we turn it into your marketing plan.
These sessions run as part of our partnership plans, from $4,500 + GST a month. Every engagement starts with a free 30-minute discovery call.
9+
Years serving Sunraysia and the Mallee
10+
Years’ minimum experience for every specialist
10
Marketing specialists on your team
6
Core digital channels, one joined-up strategy
Why run one
A survey tells you what people tick. A guided group conversation shows you why, in their own words, with follow-up questions when an answer surprises you.
Customers rarely describe your business the way your brochure does. We note the exact words they use, so your website, ads and signage can speak their language.
Dr. Damian Collins led a large insights and analytics team before co-founding the Sage Collective. He draws people out in an easy-going, conversational style, so quieter voices get heard too.
The group comes from your customers, staff or members. We help you choose who to ask and write the invitation, so you hear from the people who actually buy from you.
Show the group a new name, logo, offer or ad before it goes to print or air. It costs far less to change a draft than to redo a campaign that missed.
You get a plain-English summary of what people said, the patterns behind it and what we recommend you change. No thick report that nobody reads.
Your staff often know what customers ask most. Damian also runs workshops that draw that knowledge out, and the insights feed straight into your marketing strategy.
Your specialists
Dr. Damian CollinsExperienced Behavioural ScientistMelbourne VIC
Ami HeathMarketing LeadWollongong NSW
Janine GowenlockRegional DirectorMildura VICHow it works
Four steps from the question you can't answer to the change you make because of it.
A 30-minute call about what you're planning and what you need to know before you commit money to it.
We agree what the group needs to tell you and who should be in it. We also pick what to show them, such as a draft logo.
Damian moderates a relaxed conversation with your customers, staff or members and draws out honest reactions.
You get the findings in plain English, and on a partnership plan our team makes the changes they point to.
How a session runs
It's a guided conversation, not a sales pitch. Damian opens with easy questions, then works towards the ones you need answered: why people chose you, what nearly stopped them and how they'd describe you to a friend.
Nobody is put on the spot, and nobody gets steered towards the answer you hoped for. That's how you get the real benefits of focus groups: honest reactions you can act on. Afterwards we write up the findings and show you what to change first.
Hear it from your customers before you hear it from your sales figures.
What's included
Participants come from your own customers, staff or members. We don't run a paid participant panel.
Pricing
Every plan includes a dedicated account manager, a monthly meeting and the specialists your findings call for.
Starter
$4,500+ GST a month
For small to medium size business with a need to start with marketing planning and to develop key objectives.
Designed to drive website traffic and understand key learnings for inbound marketing.
Enquire NowStandard
$5,500+ GST a month
Designed for businesses with aggressive growth goals and product and services campaigns with high level content production.
Ideal for medium size businesses looking to increase their marketing ROI.
Enquire NowAdvanced
$7,500+ GST a month
Tailored to businesses pursuing significant growth objectives, with a custom plan focused on the most profitable opportunities.
Includes a one-off 15-second online video or ebook of your goods and services.
Enquire NowBespoke
POA
A choice of customised plans, including a digital subscription for optimisation, automated lead nurturing and other clever marketing “force multipliers”.
Talk to us about your goals.
Enquire TodayOur work
Mildura VICRock Solid Marketing worked as part of the team at Sunraysia Residential Services (SRS), a Mildura aged care, disability and child care provider of almost 50 years, on its brand, website, SEO, email and social media.
One clear, consistent brand across the SRS services and platforms
Mildura VICRock Solid Marketing designed the website and runs the marketing partnership for Princes Court, a community-owned aged care provider in Mildura, with social media, storytelling and community campaigns across its three services.
Strengthened Princes Court’s reputation as a community-first organisation
Loddon Mallee VICRock Solid Marketing supported the launch of GreenConnect’s nature-based dementia respite programs across Mildura, Bendigo, Heathcote and Merbein, for an Australian Government-funded consortium that secured $1.7 million in federal funding.
$1.7M Federal funding secured
Rock Solid Marketing provided marketing strategy and tender writing for Care Villas Australia, which won the 2024 Future of Ageing Award in the Property and Design category for its Smart Care Villa.
Working with Janine and the Rock Solid team was wonderful. No matter the idea I had, Janine and the team brought it to life and always exceeded expectations. It was a joy and pleasure working and I learnt so much along the way too.
Resources
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FAQ
Can’t find what you’re after? Call us on 1800 842 022 or browse every answer on our FAQ page.
All FAQsFocus groups run as part of our partnership plans, which start from $4,500 + GST a month for 28 hours of work. That covers planning the questions, running the session, writing up the findings and acting on them. Unlike many focus group companies, we don't charge for a participant panel, because your own customers take part.
A focus group is a small, guided discussion where people share their views on a product, service, brand or idea. A moderator asks open questions and follows up on interesting answers. The point is to understand why people think what they think, which a survey or a sales report can't tell you.
In market research, a focus group is a qualitative method for exploring how customers see a brand, offer or message. Researchers use it before a launch or rebrand to test ideas and find the right words. It often sits alongside surveys and sales data, which measure how many people feel a certain way.
Focus groups are qualitative: they explore opinions, reasons and feelings rather than counting them. A small group can't tell you what percentage of the market agrees. It can show you why people choose you, what puts them off and how they describe you, which you can then test at scale.
Focus groups are primary research, because you collect fresh information directly from people for your own question. Secondary research uses information someone else gathered, such as industry reports or census data. For a regional business, a group session is often the quickest way to get primary research about its own customers.
Start with the 2 or 3 things you most need to learn, then invite a small mix of real customers. Use a neutral moderator, open questions and a relaxed setting, and record the session with permission. Afterwards, look for patterns across people rather than one loud opinion, and decide what you'll change.
Your own customers, staff or members take part, chosen to match the question you're asking. We help you decide who to invite and write the invitation. Some focus group research companies recruit strangers from a paid panel. We don't, so the people in the room are the ones whose opinions actually affect your sales.
You get a plain-English summary of what people said, the patterns we saw and our recommendations. On a partnership plan, our team then makes the changes, from website wording to ads and signage. If the findings say your current marketing is working, we'll tell you that too, and save you a rebrand.
Let’s start by scheduling a free discovery call so we can get to know each other and see if we’re a good fit for your marketing needs.
