July 2007
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Most people are used to a "broadcast" model of disseminating media, where one or a handful of appointed, professional people generate the content that is consumed by the masses. WOMMA has championed the use of consumer-generated media, the growth of which demonstrates the popularity of average Americans' contributions to media. Now, a new report from WOMMA member company eMarketer shows not only the extraordinary growth of CGM consumption, but also the power and potency of CGM as demonstrated by the number of Americans who are creating content.
This extreme growth, the report implies, is partly due to the fact that the tools needed to contribute content like video, audio, photos, podcasts, and blog, wiki, and online message board posts to CGM sites are becoming more affordable and easier to use.
Other findings:
* eMarketer estimates that there will be 81.4 million CGM content consumers in 2008, 88.0 million in 2009, 94.9 million in 2010, and 101.4 million in 2011.
* eMarketer projects that there will be 75.6 million CGM content creators in 2008, 82.7 million in 2009, 88.7 million in 2010, and 95.1 million 2011.
Learn more (Media Post)
Learn more (eMarketer)
In spite of the pervasive -- though unsubstantiated -- claim that women utter a whopping 20,000 words per day to men's measly 7,000, new research from the University of Arizona finds that the gap between men's and women's speaking patterns is "statistically insignificant."
According to the research, women speak 16,215 words per day, while men speak 15,669, on average. It's also interesting to note that of the 396 study participants, the least talkative individual (speaking just over 500 words per day) and the most talkative (with 45,000 words per day) were both men.
>> Now that you know who's talking (everyone), the next step is to give them something to say about you.
Learn more (MarketingVOX)
Learn more (Discovery.com)
Marketers' fear of surrendering control to consumers and their lack of understanding of new media is keeping them from fully embracing consumer-generated media, according to the fifth annual Marketing Management Survey, conducted by PRWeek and WOMMA member company Manning Selvage & Lee. Marketers' reported reliance on traditional online tactics says more about marketers than it does about the validity of CGM, according to Mark Hass, global CEO of MS&L. "This raises the issue of whether or not marketers really understand the concept of new media and CGM," he said. "Marketers who think that using a website or asking for consumer feedback on a website represent cutting-edge new media tactics are missing tremendous opportunities to build their brands."
Only 12% of senior marketers say CGM has a place within their marketing mix, according to the data. The survey also showed that while marketers acknowledge the power consumers wield, only 22% are "very willing" to let consumers shape their marketing initiatives.
When asked what marketing tactics they are currently using or will be using in the next year, 82% of marketers said "traditional online activities" like building websites, 70% said "targeting influentials," and 65% said "media relations." Only 43% of marketers indicated they were using or planned to use CGM.
Other findings:
* 71% of marketers say their company has produced a website, 50% have used consumer feedback to inform marketing/product strategies, 14% have used consumer-generated advertising, 10% have used text messaging, and 8% have used video blogs.
* 36% of marketers who use new media do so to stay ahead of the competition, 32% because of the cost-efficiency of CGM versus traditional advertising, and 31% because of the declining credibility of traditional advertising.
* 32% of marketers whose companies do not use CGM say it's because there's no clear ROI, 6% because they don't want consumers that close to their business, and 33% due to other reasons, including: "management doesn't embrace it yet," "we simply haven't given it enough priority to consider it at this point," and "we've had difficulty in getting the establishment to understand it."
Learn more (Press Release)
Learn more (DavidBinkowski.com)
When it comes to customer trust, peer reviews come out ahead of all other sources, including newspapers and magazines, according to a recent study by the JC Williams Group. The study, which was sponsored by Visa and Yahoo! Canada, investigated the shopping habits of Canadian online shoppers and found that Canadian shoppers take advantage of customer reviews on the web when making purchase decisions.
Other findings:
* 38% of Canadian online shoppers comparison shop, a 4% increase from last year.
* 60% named reviews by other customers as their most trusted source for product information.
* 31% named newspapers and magazines as their most trusted source.
Learn more
In 2006, 23.7 million U.S. adult internet users were identified as opinion leaders, and in 2007 that number rose to 26.8 million, according to the June 2007 report, "Word-of-Mouth Marketing: Winning Friends and Influencing Customers," from WOMMA member company eMarketer. eMarketer predicts that by 2011 the number of U.S. adult influencers will rise to 34.4 million and will include 20% of all U.S. adults.
Other findings:
* A study from WOMMA member company BIGresearch found that 91% of U.S. adults regularly or occasionally seek advice about products or services.
* The same study showed that 94.1% of U.S. adults regularly or occasionally give advice about products or services to others.
* A study from WOMMA member company DoubleClick found 57.7% of U.S. adults rank recommendations from friends as the most worthwhile promotion they consider when purchasing a product.
Learn more (eMarketer)
Nearly 100% of influencers aged 10 to 18 claim they sway their friends' decisions about clothes and music, according to a survey released in June by WOMMA member company Burson-Marsteller. More than 80% of these "Youth-fluentials" say they influence their parents' purchase decisions, especially about key product areas such as electronics and food. Aside from their influencing abilities, this group is also highly susceptible to influence; 89% say their friends influence their day-to-day decisions compared to just 61% of youth outside the influencer category.
Other findings:
* 73% of youth-fluentials spend time hanging out with their friends.
* 58% of youth-fluentials spend time interacting on social networking sites.
* 81% of all youth spend time with friends.
* 39% of all youth spend time on social networking websites.
Learn more (PRWeek)
Learn more (Press Release)
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