January 2006
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In a major re-alignment of the WOM measurement marketplace, BuzzMetrics has announced that it will acquire Intelliseek. VNU, which purchased BuzzMetrics in September 2005 and also owns AC Nielsen and Nielsen Media Research, will be the majority shareholder. The merged entity will operate as Nielsen BuzzMetrics and will be based in New York with offices in Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and Israel.
The move represents another positive sign for the overall growth and health of our industry. As the WOM measurement space matures, the analytics and data tools will also continue to improve. That means better ROI, which helps everyone make the case to their boss or client that WOM works and can be measured with real numbers behind it.
Disclosure: BuzzMetrics and Intelliseek are both founding members of WOMMA.
More info:
http://www.nielsenbuzzmetrics.com
http://buzzmetrics.com/about/Nielsen_BuzzMetrics.htm
http://notetaker.typepad.com/cgm/2006/01/when_im_not_blo.html
Bazaarvoice, a new firm that that provides managed word of mouth technology, services, and analysis, has announced it has hired WOM expert Sam Decker away from computermaker Dell. Decker, who had worked on Dell's word of mouth team, had also managed Dell's consumer web site and developed its customer-segmentation strategies. He also worked for six years at Apple and is widely known in the word of mouth industry for his strong analysis and in-depth expertise.
Launched by Coremetrics founder Brett Hurt, Bazaarvoice also recently announced it has secured $4 million in Series A funding.
More info:
http://www.bazaarvoice.com
http://decker.typepad.com/welcome/2006/01/ive_joined_a_wo.html
Communications firm Conkling, Fiskum & McCormick is launching a new specialized division called me2u Marketing. Aimed at both consumer and business to business, the firm's focus is on providing word of mouth research and marketing services. Although many PR and communications firms have launched WOM programs and services, me2U is still be one of
the relative few that exclusively focuses on word of mouth, having launched WOM programs already for Kettle Foods and Tillamook Cheese.
More info:
http://www.me2umarketing.com
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10873953
For most people, whether or not someone is affiliated with a marketing organization does not matter as long as the affiliation is disclosed. That's the key finding in a study on disclosure and organized word of mouth programs conducted by Walter Carl of Northeastern University. The study concluded that 75% of people engaged in conversations felt it was more important that they trusted the WOM agent and that they knew that person was providing an honest opinion and that their best interests were being looked after.
Other key findings include:
* Disclosure does not generally have a negatively effect on key metrics like credibility, inquiry, use, purchase, and pass along/relay.
* Talking about a brand or service with an agent increased the believability of a complementary print, radio, TV, or Web ad.
* Participation in organized word of mouth marketing programs does not undermine the effectiveness of word of mouth communication.
Disclosure: Walter Carl is a member of WOMMA's Advisory Board.
More info:
Walter Carl's blog post about the report
Download the white paper:
http://www.waltercarl.neu.edu/downloads
Ed Keller, former Roper CEO and co-author of the book "The Influentials", has launched a new research firm called Keller Fay Group. The company will offer syndicated and customized research, with a particular focus on measuring offline conversations and word of mouth. StarcomMediaVest Group will be its first client. Brad Fay, also formerly of Roper, has joined the firm as its Chief Operating Officer.
Keller rose to prominence with the publication of "The Influentials" in 2003. The book, which Keller will discuss with co-author Jon Berry at WOMMA's Word of Mouth Basic Training conference, offered key insights and data on how small groups of people can have a disproportionately high influence on trends and conversations.
More info:
http://www.kellerfay.com
http://www.adage.com/news.cms?newsId=47507
Guy Kawasaki knows evangelism. Not only is he credited with popularizing it as an early word of mouth technique in the mid-80's, but he even spoke about it at the inaugural WOMMA conference last March. When Guy recently started blogging, he posted his top 10 principles of evangelism, or cause marketing:
1. Create a cause
2. Love the cause
3. Look for agnostics, ignore atheists
4. Localize the pain
5. Let people test drive the cause
6. Learn to give a demo
7. Provide a safe first step
8. Ignore pedigrees
9. Never tell a lie
10. Remember your friends
More info:
http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/01/the_art_of_evan.html
View Guy's presentation from WOMMA Summit (PDF download)
http://womma.org/summit/pres/womma_summit_kawasaki.pdf
Volkswagen recently unveiled a new slogan for its Polo car. The slogan -- "built to protect" -- appears to be a direct response to a fake ad that became a minor viral sensation last year. The fake clip juxtaposed the old slogan ("small but tough") against images of a suicide bomber attempting to cause mass destruction using the car.
It's not clear if the new ad was aimed directly at the viral clip and VW is not commenting. The episode does make a strong case for companies to continue to monitor and be mindful of consumer-generated media.
More info:
http://www.lindqvist.com/index.php?ID=1831
http://media.guardian.co.uk/advertising/story/0,7492,1680922,00.html
BzzAgent has announced that it raised $13.75 million in its first round of institutional funding co-led by General Catalyst Partners and IDG Ventures Boston. BzzAgent, a WOMMA founding member, has over 100 clients including Anheuser-Busch, Cadbury Schweppes, Levi's, and Ralph Lauren.
As an endorsement of the industry, the news is definitely a good sign. With two high-profile VC firms investing in a leading word of mouth company like BzzAgent, there is now clear evidence that the field is growing in importance and is now firmly a part of the mainstream marketing mix.
More info:
http://www.bzzagent.com
Social networking is taking off and community sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Tickle are becoming hotspots for younger consumers to learn, talk, and share information about products and entertainment. comScore recently surveyed the social networking landscape as a way of measuring just how big it's become. In October, 2005, MySpace attracted 24.3 million unique visitors, Facebook 9.5 million, and Tickle 5.6 million.
Other key findings include:
* MySpace visitors were 139% more likely to be aged 12-17
and 60% more likely to be 18-24.
* Facebook visitors were 43% more likely to be 12-17 and
283% more likely to be 18-24.
The report also issued an advisory to marketers, recommending that they educate themselves first on the "nuances of marketing" in the space before attempting to tap into it.
More info:
http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/7416.asp
Job: CLICK (San Francisco, CA) is seeking a CEO to help launch the company. CLICK is a vibrant community where individuals will be able to aggregate personal, social, and business networks all in one place. Minimum 5-10 years executive experience, preferably CEO, COO or other senior operating leader, required. For further details, contact MJS Executive Search at mjsearch@gmail.com.
>> Make a new hire? Have an open WOM, viral, or buzz job
opening? E-mail editor@womma.org and let us know!
Word of mouth is the most influential form of media in making a purchase decision. That's the key finding in the Simultaneous Media Usage Survey recently conducted by BIGresearch. The study signals a marked shift in approach as marketers look more toward consumer behavior and less on gross audience estimates.
According to the report, the top 10 most influential media across all ages were:
1. Word of Mouth
2. TV
3. Coupons
4. Newspaper Inserts
5. Read Article
6. Direct Mail
7. Magazines
8. In-store Promotion
9. Cable TV
10. Internet Advertising
More info:
http://www.bigresearch.com/news/big122005.htm
Two of the top independent research analysts on word of mouth have left their positions to work for private research firms. Jupiter Research's Gary Stein recently joined BuzzMetrics and Forrester's Jim Nail has recently joined Cymfony.
For a young sector like word of mouth to already have major analyst coverage is a very good sign. It means that word of mouth is a legitimate arm of the marketing industry. The big question now is who will be the next generation of star analysts?
More info:
http://www.buzzmetrics.com/about/Stein_Joins_BZM.htm
http://www.cymfony.com/nws_pr_story.asp?docid=20051207_28504.html
A new study conducted by Chadwick Martin Bailey revealed some interesting data on the power of advocacy in the travel and hospitality industry.
* 27% of the U.S. population chose to visit restaurants solely based upon the recommendation of an advocate.
* 4% of the population chose a cruise line based upon the recommendation of an advocate.
* Average spend per restaurant visit: $50
* Average spend per cruise: $3000
* Advocacy drove more than $12.8 billion in purchase decisions in these two categories alone.
More info:
http://www.cmbinfo.com/html/traveladvocacy.htm
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