Similar Posts
- Why 75% of Australian business-women use social media for marketing purposes
- Would you like a case of Box Stallion Shiraz, worth $420? We need 10 minutes of your time.
- Survey: Executive expectations reveal no silver lining
- Survey: high-net-worth individuals are looking to invest in private companies
- Australian sales professionals are optimistic about the economy, according to a recent survey.
What’s the good word, Australia? According to a recent survey, it’s “Apple.”
A study of what products people chat about revealed that Australians had about 68 “branded conversations” a week. And that all-pervasive company — the one that has infiltrated our lives with the iPod, iPhone and iPad — had the most positive word-of-mouth.
The survey was commissioned by Soup, a Australian marketing company that uses people (dubbed Soupers) to test products and spread the gospel about them via word of mouth. About 2,800 consumers were surveyed in April and May by U.S. research firm Keller Fay Group.
More than half of the branded conversations included a positive recommendation to try or consider buying a product, Soap says. The majority of advice came from one’s “inner circle” — spouses/partners (29%), friends (25%), or family (24%).
“We know anecdotally that word of mouth is the most effective marketing tool around, and this research backs up what we know instinctively about its power,” said Soup CEO Sharyn Smith.
Following Apple on the list of Australian brands that received positive word of mouth was Coles, Sony, Coca-Cola and Holden. Rounding out the top 10 were Toyota, Nokia, AFL, LG and iPhone.
The survey also offered a ranking for overall word of mouth — positive and negative comments. The top 10: Telstra, Optus, Coles, Apple, Coca-Cola, Sony, AFL, Woolworths, Qantas and Toyota.
In terms of broader categories of products, the most-talked-about subjects were food/dining and media/entertainment.
Katie Rigg Smith, a partner at MindShare, a marketing firm that co-funded the study, said: “Word of mouth is arguably the oldest communication channel that exists, yet our understanding around measuring the impact of word of mouth as a channel is still relatively limited.
“What excited us most about being part of this study is gleaning insights around the impact “real-world buzz” can have for brands, and the relative impact of this on online buzz and how the two combined can drive the best response for our clients.”
