Word of Mouth

“Why and What do Brands Do to Inspire Conversation?”

Janelle Zurek, vice president of innovation at P&G’s Tremor, did a nice job of identifying the keys to effective word-of-mouth messaging. She explained that things that disrupt a set of established mental associations, or “schema,” get us thinking. Then, if a disruptive idea is considered relevant and useful, our social survival instincts will prompt us to share it with others. So in order to create messages that will spread by word of mouth, you need to find the thing that will disrupt people’s established beliefs and make them stop and think.

Janelle proposed that it is the things that do not fit an established mental schema that make people engage their conscious minds.

Excerpts from an article by Nigel Hollis (Millward Brown)

A really cool source for Business Ideas

This website is amazing. It has a huge collection of creative ideas for entrepreneurs and any other people who want to do something great in life! Get ready to pounce on these ideas! :)

http://www.springwise.com/businessideas2010/

Research findings on Indian Kids by IMRB Kidscan

Here are a few findings tweeted by IMRBSpeaks from their research 'Kidscan':

1. GEC viewing among kids is passive. 60% kids would switch to kids channel if they got the remote
2. Good looking cartoon characters find highest favour among Indian kids
3. Kids like ads with reality in them rather than exaggerated fantasy.
4. Chinese food catches the Indian kids’ taste buds - ranked as favourite cuisine.
5. Indian kids exhibit high sensitivity to environment:70% willing to proactively participate environment related activities - (Nickelodeon's campaign that used this insight)
6. Indian kids politically apathetic: One third consider all politicians corrupt.
7. Celeb endorsements work wonders for kids. For favourite celeb, 34% straightaway buy the product.
8. High levels of peer influence among kids: 35% sure to buy a product if their friends have it.
9. Fitting into a group very vital for kids,60% express a strong desire for social acceptance
10. Window window in the mall’ : 68% claim ‘window shopping’ at malls as their favourite time pass.
11. Only 40% feel it's alright for girls to wear short clothes,indicates a highly conventional outlook towards adults & adulthood?
12. Academic performance the ‘Coolest’ thing - More than 80% kids want to be known for getting ‘best marks’ amongst friends
13. Cereal killer: Breakfast cereals are most hated food item for kids. Souce: Kidscan Study by IMRB international
14. 30% Indian kids sure that entertainment is not possible without cool gadgets.
15. Kids like ads with reality in them rather than exaggerated fantasy.

Also, here is a link to a survey summary conducted by ASER on the rural education system:
http://www.voiceofbharat.org/education/aser2009.asp

Interesting links about Advertising

I will be posting interesting links here as and when I come across them.

1) Customers' trust in different forms of advertising - Nielsen

2) Domino's recruits fans to sell its pizza!

3) Visual Targeting - to attract your TG to your communication - case study of Kraft-diamond shreddies