The Biggest Talker

Just about everyone engages in word of mouth marketing whether they know it or not. Either we trust the word of a friend or extend our knowledge out to someone else. However, there is one specific group of people that take part in this practice much more than anyone else. These are today’s kids.

A study done by MTV and Nickelodean called "Circuits of Cool/Digital Playground" proved what many could have guessed. Kids are more accepting of new technological trends and therefore have more opportunities to interact with more people on a global scale. The most intriguing statistic found that supports this is that 100% of respondents in the study said that they communicate every time they go online. This study involved 18,000 participants between ages 16 to 24 from 16 different countries. That is a lot of communicating going on that would happen if they didn’t have the internet.

This makes kids a very valuable target for marketers. In fact the most groundbreaking conclusion drawn from the study is that these people believe friends are more important than brands. On average kids have 94 numbers in their cell phone, 78 people on their instant messenger buddy list, and 53 friends that they communicate with regularly. These kids don’t necessarily love the technology, but the interaction they are getting out of it. Therefore, marketing within this interaction is much more important than marketing within the technology.













http://www.womma.org/research/011170.php
http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/youth-and-digital-tech-viacom-microsoft-global-study-challenges-assumptions-1076/
http://blogs.mediapost.com/spin/?p=1103

Talking Cars

Staring at a screen all day might rot your eyes out, but it could also save you from buying a clunker. As it turns out, individuals classified as “online gamers” are a valuable source for car advice. The evidence comes from a study done by Ziff Davis and a supporting analysis from ConStat. The findings of their 1UP network automotive study show that gamers are a key contributor to the spreading of car advice via word of mouth. A total of two-thirds said that they had given out car tips in the past six months. Seems like these guys aren’t spending all their time playing games.

So what kind of facts are these gamers dealing out? A large portion, 63%, said they tell about choosing car models and what cars would suit an individual best. Other respondents helped people choose dealerships and gave tips about how much should be paid for certain vehicles.

Although they spend a lot of time at the computer these gamers get around. The study showed 73% of the people owned 2 or more vehicles. Many have American made cars, but aspire for foreign and environmentally sound ones in the future. These people also said they wouldn’t mind paying the extra buck for advanced technologies like mp3 outlets, GPS, and surround sound. Before buying a car the top three websites they recommend visiting are the dealerships website, Kelly Blue Book, and Cars.com.

Given the positive insight from this data getting the low down on cars from gamers is probably worth a shot. However, I wouldn’t recommend venturing on the gaming route yourself. Chances are you won’t be able to drive your new car quite as well with your eyes rotted out.

http://www.womma.org/research/011179.php
http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=67120
http://www.ziffdavis.com/press/releases/070830.0.html

No Title=More Talk

1-18-08, Cheese, Clover, Cloverfield, Slusho. These movie titles return a mish mash of mystery relating to the new J.J. Abrams film. A traditional preview makes you want to see the full-length movie. This one was no different, but it gave you no clues as to what it really was. There was no defining dialogue. No clear plot. Then most intriguing of all, no title. The only hint given is a release date. All people could do at this point was talk.

The movie does have a semi-traditional trailer. You can watch it at my buddy Casey’s blog located here. There are also alleged clues throughout the internet that are slowly coming up. One person with a constant insight to clues is Dennis. His blog is the most up to date with the latest hints and insights. He really knows his stuff and can help satisfy 1-18-08 cravings.

One of these clues I found most intriguing was the characters profiles on myspace. These accounts give some possible insight to the movie, but nothing ground moving. They are just people that are seen in the preview and then found on myspace. However, I found this one for Jamie most interesting because she says she is a graduate from Ithaca College, which is where I go. She even graduated out of the same school, Park, as an OCLD major. A lot of the hints relate to Jamie and her boyfriend Teddy. I was trying to keep my excitement low, and keep in mind that this profile is most likely a setup by movie marketers. However, I investigated further by searching her on facebook and I found a pretty promising look alike that I added as a friend. And so my addiction to solving the 1-18-08 mystery begins…

I think 1-18-08 is a brilliant marketing tactic. Word-Of- Mouth at its finest. Everything is a mystery. That is everything but the fact that it looks cool and when you can go actually see it. Not to mention that the first preview came out almost six months before anyone can have any resolution. That’s six months of word spreading, and unresolved mystery festering. That is definitely one way to draw a crowd to opening night.

http://cloverfieldclues.blogspot.com/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1060277/
http://www.1-18-08.com/

WOM Flies to New Heights

Going to the airport is a dilemma. It’s important to give an ample amount of time to get from point A to point B. First there is check-in, followed by security, then finding the gate. It doesn’t stop once you’re on the plane though. At your destination a whole new scenario is created when trying to leave the airport. Will there be a cab available? Does my friend know my flight was delayed? Am I going to be late?

The travel planning site Orbitz, has released a plan that will hopefully allow travelers to plan their trip a bit more accurately. The site is called Orbitz Traveler Update. It gives a lot of the same information other travel sites do such as weather, delays, and airport features. However, this site is the first one to have a user generated feature. Travelers at over 40 U.S. airports can use the Orbitz site or a mobile phone to tell others what the current situation is like at their airport. This relays information long before it would typically become available via the airport postings. The Chief Marketing Officer at Orbitz, Randy Wagner, said, in an article posted by Red Herring, "(the idea) sprang from our customer insight that people value information from others in the same situation and our business insight that, at any point in time, Orbitz has thousands of customers moving through major airports and travel destinations.”

The idea is basically like a peer to peer advice line. Topics that are popular include parking garage congestion, taxi cab availability and where to get a good meal. The date and time are labeled on each comment. Therefore, when an airport is selected by a viewer, a tab will present how many recent comments there have been.

The success of this site depends on user enthusiasm. A review by Duncan Riley written four days after the site launch stated that hotspots like O’Hare already had a fair share of postings on them at that point. The video below also previews all the sites features. It was released on YouTube as a promotional tool.



I personally think it is the perfect environment for word of mouth to flourish. You can think of it like the successful dietary supplement Airborne. Users take this because they know being in a close knit situation leads to a lot of exchange between individuals. This fact can be used to the advantage of Orbitz. Imagine one recently satisfied user stuck in a confined space for 3 hours with 150 other people. If that isn’t breeding grounds for a “virus”, I don’t know what is.

http://www.redherring.com/Home/22758
http://www.orbitz.com/
http://updates.orbitz.com/
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/09/06/orbitz-tlc-traveler-update-offers-use-generated-airport-advice/

A Boo that Buzzed

Although the MTV Video Music Awards were almost a week ago, it seems uncanny to not review what had to be the most viral video of the week. The at first shameless, and ultimately shameful, Britney Spears performance made the top of just about every buzz top ten discussed and viewed lists. The star’s attempted “comeback” was considered an utter failure, but somehow that managed to draw in just about as many people as had it been a flying success. Those who did not care to watch the live show were sure to tune in once they heard of the mockery. There are almost 2 million views of the video on the Viral Video Chart, and it is still at the top of Yahoo’s Buzz searches. This is complemented by plenty of blog posts and discussion boards filled with people’s opinions.

However, some people say any publicity is good publicity. People are watching, discussing and debating, even if you can’t find a nice word about her out there. Being in the news is better than being out, right?

Theoretically it’s not all bad though. After all, the next buzz video that immediately followed the botched Britney act was Chris Crocker in a mass of hysterics fighting for Britney to be left alone. Although I don’t think Britney’s looking for this sort of support, in essence it was support. After three days it is the eighth most discussed video of all time on youtube chart.

Don’t think that the Britney themed videos will end with Chris though. The latest developments are spoofs about a hysterical Chris. “Leave Chris Alone” some plead. However, even in these spin-off videos Spears is at the root of their creation. The sound of her comeback may have sounded like boo, but nobody can say that it wasn't a buzz.

http://youtube.com/browse?s=md&t=a&c=0&l=
http://www.viralvideochart.com/video_search?q=britney
http://buzz.yahoo.com/overall/

Spreading the Word

The focus of many of my blog posts will be word-of-mouth, buzz, or viral marketing, whichever you prefer to call it. Therefore, for my first discussion within this category, who better to talk about than an organization that is dedicated to the subject? I spent some time reading over the Word of Mouth Marketing Association website found at www.womma.com. This venture helped me gain a lot of basic knowledge on the topic. It also explained what the organization does and why an organization is needed for such a topic.

One line I picked out of the whole site that really stuck out was "Word of mouth is a pre-existing phenomenon that marketers are only now learning how to harness, amplify, and improve". I think the concept that it is a pre-existing phenomenon is what pulled me into this style of marketing. People are going to talk no matter what. Then, considering people's tendency to avoid marketing, it is amazing that their everyday conversation and opinions are actually segmented into a style of marketing.

Three men who were all prominent in marketing developed WOMMA. They were at the forefront of word of mouth marketing and realized the vitality of the concept. Today WOMMA is made up of many businesses that are all dedicated to creating a positive buzz amongst consumers. There are some very noteworthy names found on the list including, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide and Coca-Cola. Any organization can become a member. There are different levels of involvement. Some take part in governing, while others simply support the development of WOM. All members have access and are invited to take part in the WOMMA world. The corporation holds many conferences that bring members together physically, as well weekly teleconferences. There is also numerous blogs that are hosted by the company, which members often post the latest "buzz" on.

I think the creation of WOMMA was an innovative idea. The word of mouth still has so much room for development. It really is a very special type of marketing that can learn to "harness" the everyday communications between consumers. I just have one question. Why did it take so long for someone to tell me about WOMMA?



www.womma.com

Target Audience Articles

“Targeting Young Males” by T. Miller

The worry surrounding marketing to young men is that they tend to be glued to the TV only if they are playing a video game and then spending the rest of their time averting marketing tactics. A recent Neilsen Entertainment study returned that 18-34 have actually decreased their television watching habits, but 8-17 year olds have been unaffected by the video game craze. So why not stick to video game marketing? The example in the articles is that you can’t have a character in “Rome: Total War” sipping coke. Males will be insulted at the blatant product placement. However, the market does say that if the product fits the game they enjoy having it added.

In an effort to prove males aren’t unreachable, both Scion and Axe gave case study examples of how they successfully broke out and marketed to this hard to reach market. Scion tried to meet the men where they were and stationed themselves in front of music/game stores in male dominated cities. They gave out merchandise along with no obligation test drives. They combined this will traditional marketing in clubs, television, and with dj sponsors to return an 80% success rate. That is, 80% of people who bought the new scion were males whom did not previously own a Toyota. Similarly, AXE applied grassroots marketing through market research and succeeded in selling the first $100 million faster than any other retail product in history.

“Portrait of a New Media Consumer” by Peter Lauria

What is the new consumer? This article states that it isn’t the consumer that has changed, but only their rate of efficiency. Welcome the media saturated consumer. A study by Communications Industry Forecast from Veronis Suhler Stevenson showed that we now spend more time with media than any other daily activity. In fact, most people age 18-65 are so adjusted to it that they were unaware of their depth of exposure. This never-ending surge of new gadgets is attributed to business needs to mature and meet Wall Street earning demands. In turn, this intense competition births new media at a rate only the finest can keep up with.

As we all know advertising is taking a toll as a result of items such as Digital TV and downloaded programs. The consumer has taken control and can now create their own specialized media world that give only the messages they want, when they want them. However, research done by NBC does suggest one loophole for this media infestation. Although vast amounts of media are available the average person (75%) are overwhelmed by it. To apply this research they suggest that marketers strive to “lead” the consumer, not accost them when they get there. Examples would be the wild success youtube, myspace, and google in the media world.

Marketing Edge Podcast

I recently listened to a podcast by Albert Maruggi, The man is very educated in the subject of marketing and his podcast has gained a lot of recognition. He said he’s been in the business about 25 years and this podcast is celebrating its 4th year anniversary. The site has gained a lot of recognition including acknowledgements as one of the best business podcasts by Small Business Trends Radio.

To celebrate their success, and this particular honor by Small Business Trends Radio, Maruggi went on to summarize the top ten things he believes are important for a small business. The information he provided was basic to a point, but very credible considering his background. He also mentioned a lot about the benefits of podcasts and blogging to businesses. I agree with just about everything he said about these subjects. Podcasts provide an audio appeal. They also help give a company support and relevance as people search for supporting information. Using podcasts along with blogging can provide regularity to an audience. It presents constantly updated information that the consumer can rely on.

The only glitch I see in the path of podcasting and blogging is that there are many smaller, uneducated companies that have yet to make the transition into the online age. It is clear to me, as one who grew up during the rise of online activity, that the podcast, Marketing Edge, is really a cutting edge group. Few businesses have a strong online standing, let alone a four year old, award worthy podcast. Therefore, the information Maruggi is delivering is definitely valuable, interesting, and a great change of pace from traditional methods, but it still is not reaching as many corporate ears as it potentially could.