The granddaddy of all polls -- the Harris -- has come up with a new method for measuring brand recognition. It's called word-of-network (WON℠), as opposed to word-of-mouth (WOM), and it's a fascinating idea.
WON is WOM on steroids. According to a Harris Interactive press release, WON "offers quantitative categorization of comments about brands based on their positive, negative, or neutral sentiments. WON also controls for volume of conversation around a brand and provides clients with a means to predict brand performance. "
Harris is discussing WON in the context of holiday shopping. Shoppers are increasingly using social media to research products before hitting the stores. No surprise there. But Harris has figured out -- and I happen to agree -- that social media create as much misinformation as they do information. There's a lot of "noise."
For example, every few days a morning talk show will host some poor soul who has posted something on YouTube. There is invariably an outcry about the posting -- people weigh in on whether they think the video is "real" or not. The person who posted the video then goes on national television to explain what really happened in the video. If we're lucky, their 15 minutes of fame is over.
Harris says WON helps filter out the noise. They don't explain how, but they do explain the value of filtering. Any individual that's unhappy with a brand or product can post negative comments. It's not always clear that the experience is a one-time situation or a problem that repeats itself over and over. The Harris release quotes Jeni Lee Chapman, Executive VP, Brand and Communications Consulting at Harris Interactive:
"There is a practical advantage when your 'friends' are members of your panel. We can uncover a wealth of information about the commentators that is largely unavailable from traditional social media monitoring programs, which by their nature can only yield the most superficial information at best—and, at worst, present a distorted picture of what is happening in the real world. Our research indicates that a more comprehensive metric, like WON, can provide an early-warning signal of a brand's real time word-of-mouth."
Take this one step further and you have an application for WON in the supply chain. Take a set of buyers -- say, customers that order 10,000 Brand X DRAMs on a regular basis -- and measure their experience. Do they get what they order on time in the right quantity? Or did something go wrong? If so, where did it go wrong, and how can the company correct it?
The same data is currently compiled through customer surveys, which take a lot of time and effort. Instead of asking people to fill out surveys, the data on social networks is already out there. All you have to do is figure out how to filter it, and you've struck gold.
It's clearly not as simple as that, or Harris would tell us how it is done. But it's an intriguing idea, and I'd like to know if businesses are using similar methods in the supply chain. If so, is the information helpful? Does it aid in forecasting? Let us know.
Readers--it's difficult to see how results could avoid manipulation. Companies have already figured out how to stack SEO in their favor. I'll keep digging--it's a interesting discussion.
There seems to be a lot of gray area and space for manipulating the results. I would also be curious to see the numbers involved in these polls. I very irritated with these polls that politicians or the media use and then you see that it was a segment of a few hundred people in a certain area. Those types of polls don't give a realistic view.
I do not agree with idea of manipulation. Many of vendors are large multinational compnaies. They may not be interested in manipulation. Also, if one gets caught, the cost in court is too high. Sometime your product wins, other time you have to learn from comments and improve your product.
I can see these rating systems getting abused, perhaps by competitors of a specific company or product providing negative reviews and ratings while company insiders, perhaps providing positive reviews.There seems to be too much room for manipulation of the results.
WON offers many advantages. One advantage is one has to make his own judgement. It also offers very candid opinions and many situations are very akin to reader's and he can take quick and known decision.
When I purchase from Costco online, I look for four or five star product and read all reviews. If negative reviews does not effect my requirement, and if it is four to five star, I purchase the product or service. They are generally very reliable.
Bolaji--although I'm LOL I feel your pain. Maybe the solution would be a third-party WON or an outsourced WON (OWON). That way you could protect your identity from the NOL and still benefit from the WON. On a more serious note, been there, done that. If changing your insurance company is an option, there's always that...there's nothing like a competing bid to get a company's attention
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
Archived Dialogues
Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
While no one really can accurately predict the future, we can take guidance from another Drucker saying which is the best way to predict the future is to create it.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
To save this item to your list of favorite EBN content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This