Word of mouse. The rising impact of social media on brands.

Key media trendsThree major trends are shaping the media landscape– Search– Open distribution platforms– User generated content (UGC) and social media

• Blog• Video• Photos• Comment• Review• Social Network• Vote• Tags• RSS

Social media defined

Social media use & growth

Source: http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/

In 2007 in North America:Social Media Creators 39% of 18-24 years olds19% on averageParticipants76% of 18-24 year olds 57% on average

New blog posts containing “review” (millions)

Source: http://blogsearch.google.com

Social media & purchase decisions

Online consumers in North America trust the following:

Opinion of a friend or acquaintance, who has used the product or service 83%Traditional media reviews (TV, Magazines, etc) 75%Consumer review on a retailer site 60%Source: http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/

More people are creating mediaMore people are consuming this mediaMore people are being influenced by this media

Examples from our countries

- BILD vs. bildblog.de- Georgia vs. the president- Kenyan bloggers vs. government clampdown- DELL vs. Jeff Jarvis

ImplicationsCompanies need to monitor and identify the users creating content,

specifically the creators, critics, collectors and joiners and spectators (promoters and detractors).

Companies need to pro-actively open dialog with a view to improving the online Net Promoter, by:

• Activating the spectators• Reinforce the promotors• Understand the detractors

Discussion: Skills, tactics and processes to make pro-actively open dialog?