Three different subjects, all intrinsically linked in a multitude of ways. However, today I wanted to share with you three slideshare presentations covering off each of these subjects in various forms.
If you’re a grade one newbie or a seasoned master in any of the above areas, these slides will be of use to you.
First up, co-creation.
This presentation, from the smart chaps at the Board of Innovation, came my way via Google Plus just over a week ago and it’s taken me that long to truly process all of the data available. It not only introduces the concept of co-creation, but also talks through the guiding principles and then goes onto benchmark TWENTY different examples.
Really, really interesting reading for anyone with even a passing interesting in Co-Creation.
Next up: the Mobile Web. Or, in this case, Selling the Mobile Web.
Hat tip to @CarlMartin for bringing these slides to my attention; this presentation speaks to me for a whole number of reasons. First and foremost, I have mobile in my soul and so therefore anything and everything that helps move the handheld revolution forward is alright in my book.
Second, this presentation is about the mobile WEB. Often forgotten in the today’s world of quick-win ‘let’s make an app’ marketing, the mobile web has been playing second fiddle to mobile applications for some time. If I’m honest, the two should easily be able to co-exist comfortably together. However, that is not always the case
This presentation has great ideas, theories and strategies for attacking your own mobile website. Definitely worth a look.
A truly astounding number. Admittedly, the research was conducted with ‘just’ 9000+ people so it obviously isn’t a complete look at the social networked world we live, however if you’re hungry for the latest stats and figures, this isn’t a bad place to start.
This is, apparently, what word of mouth is on in today’s world of global social media acceptance and growth.
The source of such a huge statement?
This latest video from best-selling author, Erik Qualman. Word of mouth commentary aside, if you need the latest social media stats, figures and growth patterns, then look no further.
As a Senior Strategy Executive here at 1000heads, I’ve worked across countless industries (something I love about working here), been to numerous events and had the opportunity to work with some fabulous clients.
So with that in mind (and following on from Molly’s post yesterday), I wanted to share some insights that I gleaned from last week’s WOMMA UK / IPA event featuring the latest word of mouth research from Keller Fay.
The new research paper (about online and offline word of mouth in the UK) really drove home a few crucial points about what it takes to successfully execute almost any engagement strategy.
What struck me most were a few simple insights into, firstly, what inspires people to talk about brands and, secondly, what effect marketing and advertising has on a levels of recommendation.
Some stand out stats;
50% of consumer WOM in the UK is triggered or influenced by marketing and advertising content
Those conversations that involve media/advertising are more likely to contain a strong recommendation to purchase (39%) than other conversations (31%)
62% of brand references in WOM are mostly positive
Keller Fay’s stats also highlight that being social doesn’t necessarily mean you’re influencing a discussion on or offline. A prime example is Android in the US, the 4th most “social brand” but 397th on the list of most talked about brands offline and online.
Many thanks to @kellerfay for another insightful piece of work. Any questions drop me a line @benjaminwfox.
As President of WOMMA UK, I’m often asked for stats on the state of the UK WOM industry, and it’s frustrating that I have little to point people to. Yes, there’s some good stuff about how companies are using social media or general WOM data (although most studies still focus on the US), but we’re all pretty much in the dark about just how many brands and agencies do word of mouth work and what they do, not to mention their revenues, challenges, ethical issues and future priorities.
We’re creating it now because WOMMA UK have become stakeholders in the industry response to the government’s Bailey Review on child sexualisation and commercialisation, (helmed by the AA).
The survey therefore gives us an opportunity not only to scope the size and issues of the existing industry, but to drill down into activity involving children and therefore help to set the future ethical agenda – something very important to us here at 1000heads too (you can see our policy on engaging with children here).
So please fill in the survey now and pass it on to partners, colleagues and associations working within WOM.
We look forward to much more extensive and rigorous research to come, but this is a much-needed start, which will be of huge benefit to agencies, brands and associations alike.
A couple of interesting pieces of research have surfaced this week: one looking at what we’re talking about online, the other more focused on how and why.
First, Synthesio has analysed around 200 million conversations in 17 countries over the past 3 months to produce:
It reflects that we’re still using social media very much as a consumer space based on specific passions rather than general ‘socialising’. Health scooping the top spot is a no-brainer, but the ‘soft topics’ you’d probably assume our social interactions focus on -love and family – are trumped by our active pastimes, areas saturated by big-brand products and services: games, auto, tech, sports, music, cinema.
This makes total common sense, of course, but it’s worth remembering: we’re broadcasters, not just communicators. We constantly ally ourselves with the things we love and want to discuss products and passions rather than just say hi to dad. It’s what makes the space so valuable for brands.
Secondly, Harbinger have been examining how women’s word of mouth works. Reflecting humankind’s general preference for face to face WOM, they discovered that they’re three times as likely to talk to friends and family about products rather than head online, and 92% prefer offline advice to internet research.
But their study also suggests that women are more likely to seek out others’ opinions about low-entry, impersonal decisions than highly personal ones. 71% will seek out WOM about restaurants, with entertainment and auto decisions rating highly too – but only 41% consult about fashion, and 30% about jewellery. This rather unexpected finding indicates that we’re still pretty sure of our own inner compass when it comes to decisions that broadcast our own unique identity and therefore feel less compelled to trawl for advice.
A final finding suggest this also depends on life stage. 26% of younger women who have just entered a stable relationship are apparently eager to share their ideas and advice, whereas only 4% of over-50s with grown children feel the urge, suggesting that a shift in identity drives a fresh need to express and reinforce it.
It’s real food for thought. When are we seekers, and when are we sharers? When do we prefer to be the recipients of WOM and when the broadcasters? When are we influencers and when are we influenced?
A newly released white paper gives an interesting perspective on how brands are using Twitter – and how it could be done better.
Digital agency 360i’s ‘Twitter and the Consumer-Marketer Dynamic’ confirms that marketers’ use of Twitter is very different to how regular folk use the platform in their daily lives. The stand-out stats include the fact that only 12% of marketers’ tweets are @replies compared to 43% of consumer tweets – it’s still more about broadcast than conversation for brands. And only 12% of consumer tweets mention a brand, suggesting that there’s still much to do for companies wanting to inspire word of mouth with and about them in the microblogging sphere.
Some brands are of course going to the opposite extreme, such as the Wheat Thins campaign which responds to Twitter mentions about the product with real life deliveries.
This kind of dramatic reactivity can be extremely effective, as we’ve found in our ongoing reactive stream for Nokia, which continually identifies potential advocates and issues through daily WOM monitoring and engages with them with trials, solutions or even lovely surprises.
However, it’s also important to simply stay human and conversational on daily brand presences, sharing news and info but also getting involved with the community, picking up on interesting discussions and letting people know you’re listening and participating.
This doesn’t just mean addressing customer service issues via Twitter, which the likes of Dell and Twelpforce do so well – but engaging with consumers because you think they have something interesting to say.
Yes, it takes resource. But it’s more than worth it. It may not be as exciting as the dramatic stuff but it shows consumers you understand the social space and use it like a regular, conversational person they would be comfortable connecting with – not like a dreaded ‘marketer’.
We’re creating it now because WOMMA UK have become stakeholders in the industry response to the government’s 
