Keller Fay’s TalkTrack™ Reveals Word of Mouth All Stars
June 22, 2006automotive.com
New Brunswick, NJ, June 22/PRNewswire/ — Who’s winning at word-of-mouth? New research from the Keller Fay Group (www.kellerfay.com) has identified the top ten word-of-mouth brands.
Number one on the “Word of Mouth All-Stars” list is Toyota, whose fuel-efficient, reliable vehicles have been making significant in-roads in the U.S. auto market. Next on the list are Wal-Mart, Honda and Apple/iPod.
Following is the complete top ten:
- Toyota
- Wal-Mart
- Honda
- Apple/iPod
- Chevrolet
- Target
- Sony
- Home Depot
- BMW
- Verizon
The findings are a product of TalkTrack™, the Keller Fay Group’s continuous study regarding which brands Americans are talking about, the content of those conversations and where, how, and with whom the conversations take place. The Word of Mouth All-Stars are those brands with the largest number of “net” positive references — that is, positive references less negative ones. The ranking is based on more than 30,000 word-of-mouth brand mentions recorded in April-May 2006, by 3,600 TalkTrack™ survey participants.
The ten most favorably referenced brands represent a variety of domestic and international brands, as well as a diverse mix of industries, including automotive, consumer electronics, high-tech, telecom and retail.
“Word-of-mouth has become a growing focus of business and is increasingly considered a leading indicator of future brand performance,” says Ed Keller, chief executive officer of the Keller Fay Group.
Designed to be a tracking and diagnostic tool for marketers to understand and improve their brands’ word of mouth, TalkTrack™ illustrates certain common traits shared by the “All-Stars.” As can be expected, brands featured on the top ten list boast a share of positive word of mouth that is 10 percentage points higher than the average for all brands. Similarly, their share of negative word of mouth is half the average.
Among the biggest surprises is the central role of marketing in the leading brands’ word-of-mouth results. While iPod’s attention-getting TV ads are frequently mentioned, many consumers also cite the brand’s in-store displays and Web presence.
“Contrary to the dire pronouncements you often read, marketing can be highly relevant,” Keller says. “Almost six in ten conversations about the iPod reference the brand’s marketing. That is almost one-third higher than the average for all brands. Marketers can increase their effectiveness by becoming a part of consumer conversation.”
iPod also stands out as an example of how successful word-of-mouth can expand a brand’s audience. Just over half of those talking about iPods are women — a very different profile than the heavily male skew that technology companies often have.
Toyota’s position as a leader in hybrid engines is a frequent theme in auto-related conversations. In addition, leading word of mouth has a strong foundation is UPS — a brand’s unique selling propositions. “What they teach you in Marketing 101 is true: It’s important to create a strong, clear position,” Keller says. “Quality, reliability and economy are often referenced in conversations regarding Toyota.”
Perhaps most important, leading brands’ word of mouth reflects a clear bottom line. Seven in ten conversations about Toyota include recommendations to at least consider its vehicles, and roughly four in ten include recommendations to buy the brand. Both ratios are double digits above the auto industry average.
TalkTrack™ is the first continuous monitoring system of all marketing-relevant conversations, from e-mail and blogs to phone and face-to-face, providing nationally representative measures on word-of-mouth for every major consumer category and thousands of individual brands.
