Having a great brand is something most businesses aspire to. A business or product with a better brand can command a higher price for comparable products. Organisations spend a lot of resources trying to shape their overall brand, products and services. The stakes are very high because of the sheer size of the investments necessary to develop the right brand.
To improve their ability to manage their brand initiatives and thereby secure a greater ROI on these initiatives, most organisations conduct surveys to understand how customers feel about their brands. These surveys are often conducted every six-12 months. However, in today’s fast moving world this is clearly too infrequent to support an increasing number of tactical decisions.
Being able to quickly understand the effects of an organisation’s marketing communications (and those of their competitors) is essential. By having a constant feedback loop from the market place marketers can constantly understand which initiatives they might want to amplify and which they might want to adjust or scale back.
At Onalytica we are putting enterprise listening and analytics solutions in place for an increasing number of organisations. Several of these solutions include the ability to constantly measure the brand profile of the organisations as well as understand what is driving the brand in the right direction.
One of the models we use to analyse brands describes the brand in relation to a number of different personality traits. These traits are defined as “pillars”.
These pillars form part of “The Davies Model”, which can be found in the great book on corporate reputation; “Corporate Reputation and Competitiveness” by Professor G. Davies et al. (Rudledge, 2003).
The pillars of the standard Davies model are shown below:
Naturally, the pillars and the traits can vary according to the brand and our solution allows full flexibility on how many pillars can be used and the descriptive words that go into each pillar.
I had a look at some brands and how they are discussed in the context of mobile phones, below, is what the brand profiles look like.
First up is Blackberry. For this example, the original pillars taken from the Davies model, shown above, have been used. Notice how the brand changed slightly from Q1 to Q2 of 2011: Chic, Enterprise and Informality were down – Machismo was up:
Then I took Motorola. Motorola’s brand also changed during the first half of 2011:
Enterprise and Chic were also down, but Machismo and Competence in particular were up.
The general model of using pillars and traits can be configured to compare brands according to the dimensions that are deemed important to those brands.
The next graph shows how three mobile phones compare on a number of features such as camera, design and security:
Notice the substantial differences between the three phones that largely target the same consumer segment. Also notice how the Motorola Pro scores so much higher than its competitors on “security”. The Motorola Pro has extra strong encryption and a number of new security features that mean the phone can be controlled and wiped clean, should the need arise. These are features that Blackberry used to be more associated with, but the current positive differentiators for Blackberry Bold 9900 seem to be apps/applications and design.
Battery life and camera are key differentiators for the Nokia E6. Talk time for this particular model is said to be 14.8 hours, with 31 days standby. The phone has an 8-megapixel camera with full-focus and support for HD video recording.
It is clear to see how maintaining an up-to-date understanding of a brand’s profile can help in the management of that profile. Combining this with our solution’s ability to interactively run root-cause-analysis on changes, marketers can quickly see what is driving their brands in the direction they want and thus which of their marcomms initiatives they might consider increasing.
Following on from our analysis of the global English debate of Mobile World Congress, we have distilled the four key aspects which proved successful in drawing attention in the debate:
1. Timing
- Interest peaked on the first day of the event and quickly tailed off in subsequent days proving that timing is essential: too early and the message becomes old news by the time the event arrives; too late and it could be side-lined as other messages have taken hold. HTC, LG and Nokia timed their announcements well, allowing them to capitalise on interest during the event.
2. Differentiation
- New technology and points of differentiation attract attention. LG demonstrated this point with the 3D technology incorporated in the Optimus 3D and Optimus Tab. HTC also benefitted from differentiation in driving interest in the Flyer, which was the only tablet to feature note-taking functionality.
3. Mystery
- Some handsets maintained interest over a sustained period of time; namely through creating a mysterious aura about the product. Samsung did this effectively with the Galaxy S II. Samsung spread outline images and sneaky hints of the product, but refused to reveal all until the event, which kept people wanting more.
4. Leaks
- MWC 2011 proved that the marketing efforts of the largest scale don’t necessarily guarantee a proportional slice of attention. Sony Ericsson suffered from this; its Xperia Play had a larger share of attention before its advert was aired at prime time during the Super Bowl.
- Low-key, seemingly unofficial leaks sparked discussion and spread quickly as the audience was interested in being the first to relay the news. This technique was particularly effective in the lead up to the event.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 1st Oct 2010 – 28th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the debate of Mobile World Congress is now available - here is a summary of the findings:
- Google was the most-discussed company and held a sizeable share of the debate in relation to MWC throughout the timeframe.
- Samsung was the most-discussed company among influential stakeholders. The Galaxy S II and Galaxy Tab were the main drivers of attention.
- HTC, LG, Sony Ericsson and Nokia all benefitted from increased attention among influential stakeholders.
- Apple’s products fared well within the handset and tablet debate as they generated the highest volumes of coverage. That said, they appeared in a high proportion of collateral mentions as they were referred to as benchmark products.
- Android dominated the phone operating system (OS) debate.
- Discussion of MWC began to build in Jan, coming to a peak on the first day of the event. There was a small dip in interest on the second day and by the third day influential stakeholders had lost a significant amount of interest in the event.
- Engadget (engadget.com) was the most influential stakeholder and held the number one spot throughout the period, while other stakeholders moved around in the ranking. The debate was dominated by technology media sites during the end of 2010 as technology and gadget enthusiasts drove the debate. Into Jan and Feb the debate became much more mainstream as official announcements drew wider appeal.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 1st Oct 2010 – 28th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the debate of Mobile World Congress is now available - here is a summary of the findings:
- Google was the most prominent brand on the final day of MWC. Praise for Android, along with the sheer number of devices running on the OS unveiled at the show fuelled the debate. Drawing added attention, however, was Sanjay Jha’s announcement that the Motorola Xoom would launch with Google Music; reigniting discussion of Google’s iTunes rival.
- HTC continued to feature in the debate, boosted by winning the award for Device Manufacturer of the Year.
- Apple, which has largely appeared in collateral mentions in the discussion so far, came into the spotlight on the 17th Feb after winning the Best Mobile Device award for its iPhone 4.
- Discussion of RIM increased, driven by interest in new apps developed by The Astonishing Tribe (TAT) for the BlackBerry PlayBook. News that future BlackBerry handsets would come equipped with near field communication (NFC) technology continued to feature in RIM’s discussion.
- The volume of MWC debate remained on a downward trend into the fourth, and final, day of the event.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 17th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the debate of Mobile World Congress is now available - here is a summary of the findings:
- HTC drew attention away from Microsoft on the 15th Feb with its Flyer tablet and range of handsets including the Salsa and ChaCha with Facebook buttons.
- Apprehension that the price tag may price the Flyer out of the market along with criticism of the lack of palm rejection technology for the tablet’s note-taking functionality drove negative comments.
- Google followed HTC in prominence driven by mentions of Android and Eric Schmidt.
- Key for Android was Movie Studio, but there was a strong feeling that this was not a ‘killer’ tablet app and too similar to Apple’s iMovie.
- Eric Schmidt’s announcement that Google ‘certainly tried’ to encourage Nokia to adopt Android over Windows Phone was widely discussed online.
- Nokia continued to feature strongly in the debate on the back of interest in its decision to partner with Microsoft. Peter Chou was surprisingly upbeat about the move. Commentators felt he would soon change his tune once Nokia’s sales began to eat into HTC’s market share.
- The volume of MWC debate dropped by 14% on the second day of the event.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 15th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the debate of Mobile World Congress is now available - here is a summary of the findings:
- Microsoft took the spotlight on 14th Feb as Steve Ballmer’s opening keynote had commentators talking about the new features and functionalities of WP7, with a focus on multitasking, Twitter integration and IE9.
- 3D technology returned to the fore, driven by LG’s Optimus Pad and Optimus 3D. The tablet elicited some negative feedback as consumers were unimpressed with the tablet’s anaglyph display and need for stereoscopic glasses.
- The Xperia Play remained prominent for Sony Ericsson as the handset was reviewed online. It’s main shortcoming came in the form of news that it would not be compatible with the PlayStation Store. This drove consumers to question why they would have to re-purchase their games in order to play them on the handset.
- MeeGo garnered attention following Intel’s demo of the new user interface for tablets and Fujitsu’s launch of its MeeGo-based netbook. Not all the attention was positive, however, as some commentators remarked they were left unsurprised that Nokia had moved over to WP7.
- Elsewhere, discussion of RIM and BlackBerry was boosted by interest in the BlackBerry Travel app and news that there would be two new PlayBook models launched later in the year. Commentators were particularly interested in rumours that the new models would have Android app integration.
- The first day of MWC marked the highest volume of discussion since tracking began.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 14th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the debate of Mobile World Congress is now available - here is a summary of the findings:
- Despite sizeable announcements from Nokia over the past three days, Samsung drove the debate. Attention was focused on the Galaxy Tab 2 as its specs were officially announced and it was deemed “a serious iPad contender”. It was revealed it would be exclusively available from Vodafone in the UK.
- Nokia followed Samsung in terms of prominence and Windows Phone was a key driver of the debate for the company.
- News that Nokia would make WP7 its primary OS for future handsets spread online as commentators questioned what Nokia’s input into the development of the OS would mean for other WP7 handset providers.
- A statement from Stephen Elop that Nokia would be receiving billions from Microsoft encouraged rumours that he was sent by Microsoft as a Trojan horse to infiltrate Nokia. He was quick to defend his name during Nokia’s MWC press conferences when questions of conspiracy arose.
- Sony Ericsson ranked third among the brands for discussion over the past three days. The Xperia Play was the key driver of debate but was overshadowed by other devices on its launch day. This was surprising given the overwhelming interest in the handset in the lead up to the event and the company’s previous dominance in the discussion.
- Discussion of MWC hit its highest point since tracking began as the MWC press conference got underway; drawing unprecedented interest for a Sunday.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 13th Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the talk of Mobile World Congress is now available - this week's report focuses on 3D capability for mobile devices:
- The debate on MWC was relatively elevated on the Monday and Tuesday this week (1st and 2nd Feb), when compared to the previous week, however, debate began to decline on the Wednesday. Discussion hit its highest point during the period on Tuesday.
- Overall, Samsung remained the most-discussed brand. Online commentators were excited by the release of a teaser video for the Galaxy S2, but after studying the clip, amusement at an oversight in the retouching of the video spread quickly online.
- LG is becoming an increasingly dominant player within the debate and showed the most dramatic increase compared to last week. 3D capability was a key topic for LG with a number of innovative devices sporting the new types of display:
- The Optimus 3D, complete with glasses-free display, was the main focus of discussion as it was first confirmed to appear at MWC and later announced to become available on T-Mobile.
- Yesterday LG’s G-Slate tablet entered the spotlight alongside the Optimus 3D as another device to be available on T-Mobile.
- 3D displays have overtaken HD display by a considerable margin in the online debate on MWC. NVIDIA, LG and HTC have been some of the most prominent companies linked to the new technologies.
- The two types of 3D displays – stereoscopic and glasses-free – are competing for attention within the debate and as the newest and more practical of the two; glasses-free is gaining a lead in terms of attention.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact me; Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*This report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 2nd Feb 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the talk of Mobile World Congress is now available - this week's report focuses on handsets:
- The Global English debate on MWC experienced a slight dip in volume the w/c 24th Jan.
- Samsung gained on its lead over the other tracked brands in terms of volume and attention. Samsung’s Galaxy family (including Galaxy S range) remained a key driver of the debate.
- The announcement of four new handsets to Samsung’s Galaxy family sparked discussion.
- A leaked document outlining the appearance of the Galaxy Tab successor at this year’s MWC ignited discussion of customer expectations for the tablet.
- The number of news media sites among the top 10 Influential Stakeholders increased this week as City A.M. (www.cityam.com) and Reuters (www.reuters.com) entered the list. There were three new entrants into the top 10 Stakeholders with high relative influence scores. These included a forum and technology news media site.
- HTC experienced the most significant gains in attention week-on-week, boosted by rumours it would be teaming up with Facebook to create the first ‘Facebook Phone’.
- Glasses-free 3D displays are becoming increasingly important in the debate. The LG Optimus experienced the largest gain among the top handsets this week, driven by rumours that a 3D version of the handset will be launched at MWC.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*this report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 30th Jan 2011.
Our latest report covering analysis on the talk of Mobile World Congress is now available!
In summary, during the last week of debate the following details have come to light:
The Global English debate on MWC continued to increase week-on-week. In terms of absolute volume, the debate increased by just over 50%.
- Samsung contributed significantly to this increase. Official communication from Samsung announcing the launch of the Galaxy S successor at MWC was a key driver of discussion.
Influential Stakeholders continued to consist predominantly of technology media sites. There were four new entrants and three re-entrants into the top 10 Stakeholders with high relative influence scores. These included a blog and a community. These sites are becoming increasingly referenced in the debate on MWC.
Samsung retained its position as the most mentioned brand and moved ahead of Sony Ericsson to draw more interest among influential Stakeholders.
Tablets are of significant interest. Their presence in the debate has fluctuated from 10% to just over 50% of the debate during any particular week since tracking began.
- The iPad is, unsurprisingly, the most prominent tablet, however, its share of the debate has significantly declined over the past two months as other tablets have begun to move into the spotlight.
- In regard to tablets, online commentators are particularly interested in operating systems, processors and release dates as they race to report on these before anyone else.
As before, if you would like to receive a copy of this report, please contact Sophie Hill [sophie.hill@onalytica.com]. If you have a general interest in the event and analysis relating to it, or want to know how we help companies interpret and understand the discussion around industries, brands, themes and issues then please contact us on 0207 407 7642. You can also subscribe to this RSS feed where we will be posting some of the findings.
*this report was produced using data analysed from the period 27th Sep 2010 – 23rd Jan 2011.