For Marketing Leadership Professionals

Lessons From Online Consultation In Australia

Organizations Worldwide Can Learn From Recent Experiments

by Steven Noble, November 6, 2009

Online consultation can range from the government's hosting an online discussion about policy issues to its co-authoring policy documents with its citizens. It's still a minority practice, but Australia has completed more than 100 online consultations . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Case Study: The NHL Uses Tweet-Ups To Energize Its Fan Base And Reach New Audiences

by Nate Elliott, November 4, 2009

To create excitement around the start of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the National Hockey League (NHL) worked with fans to organize a series of tweet-ups that took place simultaneously around the world — energizing more than 1,000 fans directly and . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Targeting Eco-Friendly Consumers

by Emily Riley, October 29, 2009

Eco-friendly consumers are an educated group with higher incomes than most online consumers and a high likelihood of using the Web to research and purchase products. As the green trend rises in Europe, interactive marketers must be keenly aware of how . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Three Steps To Measuring Social Media Marketing

A Measurement Framework Based On Objectives, Not Technologies

by Nate Elliott, October 29, 2009

Interactive marketers know they're not good at measuring the effectiveness of social media: On average, they rate their own efforts to measure social initiatives at only 4.5 out of 10. Marketers fail because they focus on the metrics that are most easily . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Using Twitter As A Customer Service Channel

by Diane Clarkson, October 14, 2009

Twitter has the potential to change its users' expectations for customer service and how companies interact with these customers. Twitter's instantaneous and personal dialogue is proving to be a valuable social engagement tool for many brands. If customers . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Case Study: Social Media Helps Toyota Communicate Complex Attributes Of New iQ

by Rebecca Jennings, September 9, 2009

Faced with the challenge of communicating the complex, advanced features of a new vehicle — the iQ — Toyota supplemented more traditional online and offline marketing with social media activities that focused on an attempt by two drivers from agency iCrossing . . .

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

How Mobile Handsets Will Deliver 24x7 Social Computing

Building The Dominant Device For Media Creation

by Ian Fogg, August 6, 2009

On mobile phones, people's work and personal lives collide 24x7. Mobile phones are ever-present, 24x7, whatever the situation. Therefore, they're the ideal devices to share social content or catch up with friends at any time. Social Computing is a natural . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Insight: Internet Usage And Online Activities Across Asia Pacific Markets  (318 KB PPT)

by Reineke Reitsma, May 18, 2009

This Technographics Insight takes a look at Internet uptake in Asia Pacific markets. It examines Internet adoption across countries, the profile on online consumers, and their activities online.

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

How Twitter Can Influence eBusiness

Assessing The Twitter Opportunity For Retail And Travel eBusiness

by Diane Clarkson, May 14, 2009

Twitter — a social networking and micro-blogging service — is growing at an extraordinary speed. Twitter facilitates an instantaneous and informal conversation between consumers and companies. It may not yet be a game-changer, but now is the time for . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

The Social Tools Consumers Want From Their Favorite Brands

by Josh Bernoff, April 16, 2009

More than half of online tweens and teens and 42% of online adults want to see a social application from their favorite brands. For example, one in four US online adults want to see discussion forums from brands they like, while more than one-third of . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

The Social Technographics® Profile Of European Baby Boomers

Reaching Older Consumers Through Social Media

by Rebecca Jennings, April 10, 2009

Interactive marketers already know that young consumers are very engaged in social media but often fail to appreciate that social tools can be an effective mechanism to reach older users. More than one-third of consumers ages 43 to 63 already read social . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

eBusiness Customer Service And Support Benchmark

Aligning Availability And Accessibility With Customer Needs And Desires

by Zachary McGeary, March 27, 2009

Consumers continue to embrace online customer service and support. According to a November 2008 survey, 48% more consumers claimed that a company Web site was more useful than a physical store for their servicing needs. Yet availability and accessibility . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Using Twitter For Groundswell Objectives

by Jeremiah K. Owyang, March 3, 2009

Nearly 5 million people use Twitter, a service that lets people — and marketers — send frequent, short updates to their followers. Twitter is uniquely valuable to marketers because it's more immediate and interactive than any other digital channel. It's . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Redefining Attribution In The Social Computing Era

Comparing Channels Using The Block-And-Tackle Methodology

by Emily Riley, March 3, 2009

A big theme for today's interactive marketer is attributing credit for a click, engagement, or sale to the right advertisement. Until now, attribution as a technique has been linked mainly to display and search marketing and is where most of the service . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Add Sponsored Conversations To Your Toolbox

Why You Should Pay Bloggers To Talk About Your Brand

by Sean Corcoran, March 2, 2009

Kmart gave some bloggers a free shopping spree in exchange for a blog post about the experience — a practice we call sponsored conversation. With appropriate protections for disclosure and authenticity, this practice will take its place alongside public . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Justifying Social Marketing Spending

by Michael Greene, February 18, 2009

With economic turbulence causing executives to tighten marketing budgets, interactive marketing professionals have to go the extra mile to justify their investments. While only 31% of social marketers plan to increase their social marketing budgets by . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Young US Online Bankers And Social Media

Assessing Opportunities To Connect With Next-Gen Consumers

by Edward Kountz, February 13, 2009

The rise of social media is changing the way consumers communicate online, introducing a two-way dialogue and giving users the ability to more effectively disseminate and share information with other online users. While most of today's usage is centered . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

MarthaStewart.com Builds an Ad Network for Blogs in Its Core Market

by Barry Parr, December 24, 2008

Martha's Circle is a blog network created by MarthaStewart.com using Adify to serve ads and provide back-end services, such as billing and payments. Martha's Circle started with 25 associated blogs and now has about 50.

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

Defending the Magazine

Outflanking Online Competition

by Barry Parr, December 22, 2008

Blogging continues to grow in scope and influence, and more advertisers are including blogs in their media plans. Blogs and online reviews are increasingly competing with magazine publishers, especially those in vertical segments.

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Time To Rethink Your Corporate Blogging Ideas

With Corporate Blog Credibility Low, Blogging Only Makes Sense As Part Of A Plan

by Josh Bernoff, December 9, 2008

Corporate blogs rank at the bottom of the trust scale with only 16% of online consumers who read them saying that they trust them. Furthermore, the consumers who say they trust these blogs are the most likely to trust all other sources of information. . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Insight: 10 Facts Companies Need To Know About European Teens  (250 KB PPT)

by Valerie Batut, December 1, 2008

This Technographics Insight covers 10 facts about European online teens¿ media consumption and online behavior. It specifically aims at helping companies understand how teens¿ behavior differs from adults¿.

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Blogs, Bloggers, and Twitter

Creating Good PR and Customer Conversations Without Breaking the Bank

by Emily Riley, October 21, 2008

While blogs are becoming mainstream media for marketers and consumers, offshoots such as microblogging site Twitter are only starting to gain traction. Marketers are interested in how these new Web 2.0 tools might serve to forge better relationships with . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Interactive Marketing Channels To Watch, 2008

Better Goals Will Unlock New Channel Adoption

by Shar VanBoskirk, August 29, 2008

Consistent with past studies, email, search, and display media are still the most heavily penetrated interactive channels; this year, they reach near ubiquitous adoption. Online video and most social media also continue strong growth. Widgets and mobile . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Survey Highlights: European Technographics Benchmark Survey, Q2 2008  (808 KB PPT)

by Joost van Kruijsdijk, August 13, 2008

This highlight deck summarizes the key findings from Forrester's European Technographics Benchmark Survey, Q2 2008.

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

How To Connect With Bloggers

Understand Motivations To Start Successful Outreach

by Peter Kim, June 20, 2008

More individuals blog today than ever before. As Social Computing has matured, brands recognize the importance of connecting with this small but influential group of content creators. Adults and youth blog for different reasons, which marketers must recognize . . .