sking key questions in imaginative ways can draw out important information. In a
focus group about Oldsmobile, participants were asked, ‘‘If the Oldsmobile were an animal, what kind of animal would it be?’’ Among the answers were ‘‘faithful hound,’’ and ‘‘dinosaur,’’ which reveals something about the challenges Oldsmobile faces as a brand. Participants were also asked, ‘‘What kind of person drives an Oldsmobile?’’ One participant answered ‘‘a middle-aged salesperson,’’ and when asked where the salesman bought his suit, the answer was ‘‘Sears.’’ Again, these answers to indirect questions about brand image may sometimes reveal more information than direct questions.