Market Research Online Communities Blog : CommCulture

The Big Society: Online Communities To Fix A “Broken Britain”

xrichard.southern@perryworld.co.uk (Market Research) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 17:22:57 +0000

The Big Society: Using Online Communities to fix a “Broken Britain”

David Cameron has set himself a mission to create ‘The Big Society’ – a society where the residents are given the power to make their neighbourhoods a great place to live. His goal is to get people to come together, to solve problems and build a better Britain. Part of the Prime Ministers address spoke about social recovery, healing the parts of society that are broken, allowing individuals to “take more responsibility and act more responsible”.

The idea of giving neighbourhoods the autonomy to make decisions on a local scale appears liberating, and on paper seems extremely constructive; however already days after the announcement critics are rearing their heads implying that this is just another way to disguise the public sector cuts by getting the private sector to pick up the slack that is left hanging.

Amid the criticism though there is an element of hope that this approach could draw on the skills and expertise of people across the country and respond to the social, political and economic challenges that Britain faces today.

It would be great to create old fashioned neighborhoods of the past where people interact face to face on a regular basis; however sadly in today’s time poor society this isn’t always possible. A great way to aid interaction in a more convenient way is through the means of technology - namely online communities. With many companies using this form of media to conduct market research and interact with their customers daily, it is a tried and tested way to get people talking openly and freely.

Market research online communities provide a sounding board for ideas to be shared and discussed. It can never be predicted where discussions will go and consequently this can result in unexpected result leading to new opportunities to explore. Features such as discussion forums, bulletin boards, online polls, online surveys, online focus groups and blogs provide an abundance of avenues for people to express their opinions and share their beliefs at any time of the day.

By allowing residents to have a ‘voice’ it presents them with more powers to improve their neighbourhoods. If local facilities or services are threatened with closure, it can give them the ability to appeal and try and save them. If contract opportunities are available in the area to build a new community centre, it gives local business the opportunity to apply. This sort of platform can give a stage to help encourage volunteering and charitable giving – all needed to create a “bigger society”. By taking this online approach it can bring many advantages. It can give more reserved residents, who perhaps would usually shy away from a face to face approach the chance to express their opinions without the risk of being intimidated by more vocal people. Residents also don’t have to contribute to the community until they have thought about their opinions and feel that they are ready to contribute – something that could not be done if a meeting was held in a room. With 24 hour access to such platforms findings and results can be made readily available so that quick action can be taken as and when necessary.

Amongst the negativity around this subject, there does appear to be a glimpse of hope that this could be for the better. If the Prime Minister and his Government want to encourage complete engagement with ‘The Big Society’ then they need to ensure that it is executed in the right manner. For this approach to work and to achieve fairness and opportunity to all, it would be vital for computer access in public areas, such as community centres, libraries and other public places. By giving people a platform to share their ideas and thoughts it enables them to shape the place in which they live, creating a generation that is more proactive than reactive and ultimately creating the “Big Society” that it being talked about.

Government Should Make The Most Out Of Online Communities

xrichard.southern@perryworld.co.uk (Market Research) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 20:22:00 +0000

Should the Government Make More Use Of Online Community Market Research?

If what we read in the newspapers is true, the Government appears to have less money now than ever before to spend on traditional market research. Although the purse strings appear to have been pulled tight with cuts being announced every other day, it would be an inopportune time for the Government to stop conversing with their citizens. In an economical climate that appears unpredictable and a future that seems uncertain people have plenty to say about what is happening and what should be done. The sustained, two-way partnerships that market research online communities offer could help the government communicate better, more openly, and more cheaply. Online communities providers are starting to build partnerships with public sector organisations in order to utilize this relatively unexplored platform.

Online communities such as netmums.com and teachernet.gov.uk bring together people such as students, teachers, mothers and the unemployed to discuss topics, exchange views and provide advice. People in the Government often want to talk to these people about various topics such as services that they can access or regulations that might affect them - market research online communities give a platform for these topics to be discussed. Communities can offer the facility to run bespoke online campaigns and give immediate access to people for market research purposes.

Mumsnet (www.mumsnet.com), an online community run by parents to share their parenting skills with others on the web, has tapped into this collaboration. Ed Miliband, the current leader of the Labour party (however at the time of the chat was the secretary of state for energy and climate change) came to Mumsnet for a live webchat. Mum’s were given a time and date to attend the online chat group where they would be able to ask Mr Miliband questions, with those who couldn’t attend being asked to propose questions in advance that could be posed. One topic that was discussed in detail was around the subject of “real” nappies verses disposable nappies. Unfortunately for Ed his opinion for favouring the “less economical” disposable over non-disposable, citing that this method has little impact on the environment compared to the traditional means, was not shared by all of the mums on the site. With more than 25 million hits a month (Google Analytics October 2010) this ‘chat’ caused a bit of a stir. Communicating with this many people in one sitting is a powerful tool for the Government to utilize.

As online communities evolve and grow, and members become engaged and more active the true value of this online sounding board comes to light. With two-way conversations being conducted via discussion forums and online focus groups, and opinions being expressed via blogs and polls, the use of markwet research online communities could be a valuable tool to support democracy. What’s more with David Cameron backing of Martha Lane Fox’s plan to get everyone of working age online by 2012 (Race Online 2012) the online communities platform could become an imperative communication tool.

References : MumsNet, TeacherNet, NetMums

Starbucks and Lego's Online Communities

xrichard.southern@perryworld.co.uk (Market Research) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 21:23:40 +0000

Is Online community market research a great way to understand what businesses are doing whether right and wrong.

More and more companies of all sizes and in all sectors are reaching out to their customers in this new and exciting way. Companies can use their own online communities to engage with their customers and make them feel part of their business and any future plans. Below are a couple of examples where online community market research has successfully been used to enhance the company brand and build strong relationships with customers.

One example to consider is a well known chain of coffee shops. Starbucks has set up an online community, MyStarbucksIdea (mystarbucksidea.force.com) as a platform to allow their customers to share ideas and thoughts. Users are encouraged to openly express their opinions around current and future products, such as their favorite teas and coffee blends, as well providing feedback about their overall experience, such as the atmosphere and the level of service they received from the staff at checkout.

Starbucks uses this platform as a way to both learn and act on customers suggestions. As part of the market research they have implemented a rating system which enables customers to vote on the ideas that they think are really important. Each month the ideas with the highest ratings are taken to the Starbucks executive team for consideration.
With more than 3 million visitors and over 60,000 ideas generated from customers, the online communities site has been a great success for Starbucks and its brand.

Another brand that has progressed within the market research online communities world is Lego. Whilst other toy manufactures have stepped aside and made way for the e-games industry, Lego has held its own and still remains a firm favorite in homes around the world. Lego Club (http://club.lego.com/en-us/Default.aspx) to its users is a platform in which people can swap ideas and show off their designs; however to Lego itself the platform is a strategic market research tool that allows the company to understand its customer base and segment them in order to implement a successful social media strategy.

Lego has split their market research online communities into three types: lead users (people Lego actively engages with on product designs), 1:1 community users (people whose names and addresses are known to Lego) and connected community users (people who have bought Lego and have also been to either a Lego shop or park). These customers are defined based on the strength and depth of their relationship with the Lego brand. Lego use their online communities to work with these customers and get them involved in developing their product offerings, thus making them an important part of the development process. Customers like these are important to the brand as they are likely to be the brands biggest advocates.

Looking at the two examples above it is clear to see how market research online communities can help a company to develop a brand that is more attractive to the customer. Understanding how each customers needs differ is extremely valuable. Market research online communities allows a business to target and engage more specifically with the customer and understand their needs more closely. Companies of all sizes are turning to market research online communities as a way of communicating with their customers on a one to one level.

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References : MyStarbucksIdea, Lego Club