Drew Kerr - Strategy & Placement Portfolio

BrandIndex's weekly Brandweek Buzz Report: Verizon Wireless, Merrill Lynch, and Southern Comfort

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:48:00 +0000

Droid Lifts Verizon Wireless Brand Loyalty

Verizon Wireless' relentless iPhone-bashing in Droid ads seems to be making an impact with consumers. According to market research firm YouGov's BrandIndex report, the carrier's brand loyalty has recently surged past AT&T's in the 18-34 demographic.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of 1.5 million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• Verizon Wireless and AT&T
• Merrill Lynch
• Southern Comfort

Droid Stirs Up Competition
Will the Droid introduction be the turning point for AT&T and the iPhone? Despite AT&T filing a lawsuit last week claiming Verizon Wireless’ “There’s a map for that” ads are misleading, the damage may have been done. Verizon Wireless is attempting to exploit the undercurrent of unhappiness users have had with AT&T outages and coverage right on time to drive holiday sales. Since the Droid campaign launched on October 19th, Verizon Wireless' recommend score soared from 8.3 to 24.2 on November 6th. During the same time period, AT&T slipped from 1.4 to -2.4.

Merrill Lynch Still Struggling
Bank of America is on a spending spree to lift two troubled brands out of negative sentiment. BofA debuted a $40 million consumer campaign, and a $20 million fourth quarter relaunch blitz for its Merrill Lynch subsidiary, aimed at affluent consumers and high net worth investors. The company took its famous “bull” symbol out of the barn and brought it front and center again for its “help2” campaign, which features slogans like: “help2 grow, help2 retire, help2 succeed, help2 cherish, and help2 make it last.” Since kicking off on Oct. 1 and through Nov. 9, the campaign has not changed the minds of consumers with an average household income over $100,000. In fact, the buzz scores for the brand have been virtually flat, and still quite negative. The buzz score on Oct. 1 was -21.5, and -20.1 on Nov. 9.

Southern Comfort Underperforms
Arnold Worldwide launched its all-digital “What is Southern Comfort” campaign at the beginning of the month by bringing young adults a sassy taste of New Orleans on sites like Hulu, NBC.com, CBS.com, Break.com, Playboy.com, and FX.com. For the 18-34 demo, the spirits sector’s buzz score has been trending downward the past few weeks, peaking at 11.2 the week before Halloween, and now settled on 5.4. Southern Comfort mirrored this decline, but started its descent a week earlier and has underperformed against its peer group. Southern Comfort's current buzz score sits at 1.6. Leading the sector’s buzz for the demo as of Nov. 9 are Smirnoff (20.75), Jack Daniels (16.82) and Captain Morgan (16.49).

Place Mediaweek story about quadrantONE's new successful lifestyle group

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:19:00 +0000

quadrantONE Scores Top Advertisers for Lifestyle Net

Nov 4, 2009

-By Mike Shields

quadrantONE—the joint venture between Hearst, the New York Times Co., Gannett and the Tribune Co. aimed at bringing more national advertisers to local news Web sites—has recently introduced a lifestyle vertical network that has scored several top advertisers.

The startup company’s new Lifestyle group aggregates ad inventory within the various lifestyle-focused sections housed on the company’s nearly 350 partner sites. According to comScore, the group reached 27 million unique users in October.

As of result of that audience clout, quadrantONE’s been able to sign on a host of top brands, said officials, including Dove, Kraft, IKEA, Wheat Thins, American Family Insurance, Estée Lauder and Bud Select.

According to quadrantONE chief executive officer Andy Ellenthal, the comScore data has proven to be crucial in opening the eyes of several reluctant advertisers. “The prevailing wisdom has always been that online newspaper traffic has been largely driven by sports, hard news and business,” he said. “Our new comScore rankings demonstrate that local audiences also leverage their community sites big or small when they are seeking information useful to their day-to-day lives.”

Apple Insider and eWeek pick up BrandIndex's Verizon Wireless vs. AT&T data

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:12:00 +0000

Verizon's advertising propels brand perception while AT&T sinks

Verizon and Motorola's strong marketing push leading up to the launch of the new Droid handset had a significant impact on brand perception in the 18- to 34-year-old target demographic, pushing it well above AT&T, according to a study released Monday.

Daily tracking from YouGov's BrandIndex shows that scores associated with the Verizon Wireless brand have soared since the Droid advertising campaign launched on Oct. 18, up until the launch of the Droid last Friday. Verizon's score went from 8.3 to 24.2 on the study's scale, which ranges from -100 to 100.

During the same frame, AT&T's brand perception dropped, from 1.4 on Oct. 18 to -2.4 by Nov. 6. The ongoing study surveys 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. More than 1.2 million people are interviewed each year, and the research is said to have a margin of error of +/- 2 percent.

Respondents in the target 18- to 34-year-old demographic were asked the question, "Would you recommend the brand to a friend?" While AT&T and Verizon were comparable in the latter half of October, Verizon pulled well ahead of the second-largest wireless carrier come November, leading up to the debut of the Motorola Droid.

The latest study follows a tough summer for AT&T, when overall consumer perception dropped significantly following the launch of the iPhone 3GS. That change was likely at least partially attributed, BrandIndex said, to AT&T's inability to meet bandwidth needs on its network following the launch of Apple's latest handset.

The Droid launched Friday to positive reviews. Building up to its release, a series of advertisements targeted Apple's iPhone, making claims of shortcomings with the tagline "iDon't."

In addition, Verizon has stepped up its advertising against the AT&T network, lampooning the iPhone "There's an app for that" phrase with the slogan "There's a map for that." Last week, AT&T filed a lawsuit over the advertisements, claiming that Verizon is misrepresenting its coverage areas and misleading consumers.

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Verizon`s ATandT, iPhone Bashing Is Working, Says Study

By: Michelle Maisto
2009-11-10

New Verizon advertisements promote the Motorola Droid smartphone by pointing out the iPhone’s weak spots, as well as tout Verizon’s coverage map as superior to AT&T’s. According to new consumer perception surveys, the public is believing both Verizon claims.

Verizon’s Apple- and AT&T-bashing advertisements appear to be swaying public opinion, at least for now.

According to YouGov’s BrandIndex, which measures consumers’ brand perceptions on a daily basis, attitudes toward Verizon Wireless and AT&T have shifted since Verizon launched its Motorola Droid campaign on Oct. 19.

BrandIndex scores can range from 100 to -100, and on Oct. 19, 18- to 34-year-olds were asked, “Would you recommend the brand to a friend?” Verizon received a rating of 8.3, while AT&T received a 1.4. A few days later, the carriers were approximately tied around a rating of 10, but from there, customer ratings of Verizon began to soar, while those for AT&T dropped.

Around Nov. 5, AT&T’s overall rating was approximately -8, while Verizon hovered near 28. BrandIndex says it interviews 5,000 people each day, and that its margin of error is plus or minus 2 percent.

"We measure a bunch of different metrics, and one is buzz. It really tracks ad campaign activity,” Ted Marzilli, managing director of BrandIndex, told eWEEK. Marzilli said measures of buzz tend to move around quite a bit.

“What’s more surprising is to see things like satisfaction and quality move as well,” Marzilli continued. “Those tend to move more slowly. When you see things like quality [ratings] go up or down, those tend to have staying power.”

Verizon’s Oct. 19 ad touted the Motorola Droid as everything the iPhone isn’t — a device with a physical keyboard, with a flash camera, that can run several applications at once and that can be customized with widgets.

Later ads have taken shots at AT&T’s 3G network by comparing its coverage areas to Verizon’s. A new holiday-timed ad shows the iPhone arriving at the Island of Misfit Toys, where the other toys discover that it’s a good fit since — although it can browse the Web and download apps — its barely there coverage map renders its other features moot, the ad implies.

AT&T has since filed a suit against Verizon, claiming that the coverage maps are misleading.

According to BrandIndex numbers, AT&T has reason to be upset, as the ads are swaying public opinion.

“The challenge for AT&T is that the commercials have already aired, and they’ve made an impact,” said Marzilli. “I don’t know what AT&T is going to get out of this lawsuit, except to get Verizon to pull the ads. … That may at least be their immediate goal.”

Marzilli added that BrandIndex also measures Attention, which he describes as how tuned-in consumers are to what’s going on with a company in the last two weeks. Verizon and AT&T, both heavy advertisers, so garner a lot of attention, he said.

“This is an interesting period, because with the Droid, Verizon is going head to head against AT&T. And when we see scores start to really diverge, it shows these head-on ads can be quite effective,” Marzilli said. “It’ll be interesting to see how AT&T, or Apple, addresses this in the coming weeks.”

Place BrandIndex research in Mediapost about QSR brand loyalty

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:45:00 +0000

Rising Loyalty Scores Good News For QSRs

Adult perceptions of leading QSRs have been improving for the past year -- and the latest BrandIndex data show brand loyalty, in particular, rising dramatically during the past month.

BrandIndex tracks loyalty by asking consumers whether they would recommend a given brand to a friend.

The averaged "recommend" scores for McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, KFC, Subway, Pizza Hut, Domino's, Taco Bell, Long John Silver's, Hardee's, Chipotle and Jack in the Box (the 12 with the most units in the U.S.) jumped from 16.9 on Sept. 16 to 20.6 on Oct. 22. A score can range from -100 to +100, with zero indicating equal positive and negative feedback.

This rapid rise appears to have been driven in part by aggressive, post-Labor Day advertising focused on new menu items, such as Wendy's Bacon Deluxe, Burger King's $1 double cheeseburger, Taco Bell's Black Jack Taco and KFC's grilled chicken, says BrandIndex SVP and Global Managing Director Ted Marzilli.

However, he adds that willingness to recommend is typically indicative of behavior going forward. Furthermore, both the average "satisfaction" score and the average overall brand health scores for the 12 QSRs have risen from 19 on Jan. 1 to 25 as of Monday.

Loyalty and other scores are improving among the highest-income group (household income of $100,000 and over), along with those at lower levels, indicating that consumers who have traded down from casual and higher-end restaurants to QSRs "are finding themselves pleasantly surprised," Marzilli says. The chains' strategy of capitalizing on this trading down by introducing some higher-quality offerings -- such as coffee and premium burgers -- may be paying off, he surmises.

"This is really good news for the QSRs," Marzilli concludes. "Higher-end consumers may need a very compelling reason to trade back up once the economy starts coming back. If QSRs can hold onto some higher-end consumers, and the folks at the opposite end of the scale who have had to drop QSRs altogether return when jobs return, the chains will obviously be in an even stronger position" than before the recession.

BrandIndex surveys 5,000 adults from a sample that is representative of the U.S. population each day. The margin of error is +/- 2%.

BrandIndex's weekly Brandweek Buzz Report: Bank of America, Ford and SyFy

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:56:00 +0000

Bank of America Buzz Shows Negative Balance

Nov 6, 2009

Bank of America had a fairly good year in 2008, despite the economic downturn. But this year has proven to be much more different for the financial firm. According to market research firm YouGov's BrandIndex report, consumer-focused banks are averaging approximately -4 on its buzz score chart, but BofA has dropped from -15.9 on July 1 to -23.1 in Nov.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of 1.5 million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• Bank of America
• Ford
• Syfy

Bank of America Barely Moves the Needle
During the initial stages of the financial crisis in the fall of 2008, Bank of America was viewed as one of the industry’s more responsible players. This image was enhanced when it swooped in to purchase troubled firms Countrywide Financial and Merrill Lynch. But this year, BofA (and its former beleaguered CEO Ken Lewis) has become a preferred target for Congress and the media. The financial firm's troubles have lead to all negative numbers on YouGov's chart. BofA decided to change its image as the poster child for all things wrong, and launched a $40 million campaign devoid of financial lingo on Oct. 26. But it will take a lot more to convince consumers, given that the buzz needle has barely moved since the start of the campaign.

Ford Drives Forward
Unlike Bank of America, Ford is an example of a brand in a very troubled sector that was able to pull itself out of doldrums by doing all the right things. The automaker's quality perception chart stands out compared to the rest of the domestic carmakers from Jan. 1 through Nov. 3. It has indeed been a turnaround year for Ford. The Detroit carmaker refused to take TARP bailout money and rolled out appealing new models. Most recently, Ford tapped Dirty Jobs host Mike Rowe as the star of its “Why Ford, Why Now” integrated campaign. The company topped off its successes last week with a surprise third quarter profit of nearly $1 billion.

Syfy Rebranding Causes Confusion
No matter how you spell it, even though ratings have been solid, Syfy is confusing branding, particularly in the eyes of young men. With the intention of making the cable network more “balanced,” the NBC Universal unit introduced a new brand name that generated a lot of discussion, but seems to have confounded its core audience of young men. For men ages 18-34, the buzz score on July 6 was 29.8, the date the Syfy brand premiered with Warehouse 13. By Sept. 28, that score had taken a very steep drop down to 3.3. And as of Oct. 26, the score rebounded somewhat to 9.8. Despite the name fumble, Syfy is Top 10 across the board in terms of total viewers and demographics.

BrandIndex's coffee wars research in Ad Age article on Dunkin Donuts

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:07:00 +0000

Dunkin' Donuts Looks to New Executives to Keep Up Buzz

Seeking Fresh Perspective, C-Suite Changes Aim to Turn Focus to Operations

By Emily Bryson York
Published: November 02, 2009

[EXCERPT]

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- Dunkin' Donuts is working with a new house blend: It's got a new president, chief marketer and operations manager. Nigel Travis, who has been transitioning into the president-CEO role, has also hired new heads of communication and human resources.

"It sounds to me like they're looking for some fresh perspective and insights from the marketplace and not the just from the coffee and doughnut space," said Technomic's Darren Tristano. "After awhile, getting a fresh perspective on a pretty old brand can't hurt."

Mr. Travis, who previously ran Papa John's, has brought in Paul Twohig as brand operations officer, and John Costello as chief marketer. Mr. Twohig was previously with Starbucks, and has recently settled a lawsuit resulting from his hire, and Mr. Costello has held top marketing positions at Sears, Home Depot and Yahoo.

"The focus is going to be more on operations and the linkage with marketing," Mr. Travis said in an interview, about the changes to his C-suite. "I want to move this to be more of an operations-oriented company, which means several things. We need to provide our franchisees with all of the tools they need to run their business ... and we can ensure all of our operational standards are met."

Despite the sluggish economy, Mr. Travis said privately-held Dunkin' will open more locations than most competitors to grow sales. It's an impressive feat as Starbucks has continued to struggle, and once-surging Burger King has begun to slide. "Dunkin' has a lot going for them," Mr. Tristano said. "Strong brand loyalty, good marketing and advertising, and a good price point within the quick service [industry]. They're very poised to continue to grow through unit expansion and same-store sales."

Caffeinated brand
But competition has gotten much tougher and coffee consumption has been flat, according to Harry Blazer of the NPD Group. McDonald's launched McCafé in May, and even-lower-priced competitors like 7-Eleven have emerged. In terms of overall buzz, Dunkin remains well ahead of McDonald's and Starbucks, as measured by BrandIndex, with an average buzz rating in the 20s to low 30s, compared with a rating in the teens at McDonald's and the high single digits at Starbucks. And Dunkin' may have suffered less than some competitors as consumers cut back. An Experian Simmons survey of 25,000 adults said visits to Starbucks were down 4.5% for the year ended spring 2009, compared to a 1% drop for Dunkin' over the same period.

BrandIndex's weekly Brandweek Buzz Report: Burger King, Barnes & Noble, Northwest Airlines

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:36:00 +0000

Mayday! Northwest's Buzz Score Crashes

Oct 30, 2009

The domestic airline sector had been the subject of low-flying buzz. But consumer perception took a turn for the worse when Northwest Airlines Flight 188 missed its destination due to pilots who had their heads in the clouds. The pilots were grounded along with the airline’s buzz score, which dipped from 3.3 on the date of the incident (Oct. 21) to -0.5 on Oct. 27.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of 1.5 million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• Barnes & Noble
• Burger King
• Northwest Airlines

Barnes & Noble Opens New Chapter With Nook
Talk about a brand that needed a pick-me-up. When Barnes & Noble announced the forthcoming release of its Nook e-reader, it was at the end of a weeklong tailspin of buzz. Then Oct. 20 rolled around with the news (see arrow), and the scores went back up, despite some brief initial confusion regarding the product’s Wi-Fi capabilities. The Nook is now the No. 1 requested item at the store and will be released on Nov. 30, setting the stage for a brand battle with Amazon and Sony.

Burger King Gives McDonald's Double Trouble
Burger King has both barrels firing with Double Cheeseburgers, double marketing blitzes and double action, which has distanced the fast feeder from McDonald’s on the value and quality score fronts. By adding a Double Cheeseburger to its dollar menu and launching two new TV ad spots touting its superiority to rival burgers, BK inched its value score from 30 on Oct. 23 (see arrow) to 31.5 on Oct. 27, while McDonald’s slipped from 23.1 to 22.2. BK's meatier pitch seems to be resonating with consumers. During the same period, BK's quality score rose from 13.9 to 15.2, while McDonald’s went from 4.3 to 3.3.

Northwest Airlines Consumer Perception Loses Ground
Consumers haven't been buzzing about the domestic airline industry since the recession began, flight delays piled up, and baggage, holiday and other small fees were tacked onto invoices. One domestic airline, however, got consumers talking last week when Northwest Flight 188 from San Diego to Minneapolis flew 500 miles without radio contact and overshot its destination by over 110 miles. The mystery unraveled five days later when the pilots confessed they were distracted because they had brought their personal laptops into the cockpit, so one pilot could teach the other Delta Air Lines’ new scheduling system as a result of Northwest’s recent merger. The airline’s buzz score has dropped significantly since the incident.

Arrange in-depth interview between client Free All Music and Digital Music News

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:08:00 +0000

Free All Music: Will This Ad-Supported Model Float?

Remember when ad-supported music was going to save the industry? Spiralfrog was lavished with praise and endless press coverage, and major labels extracted millions in licensing fees before the ship sank. Nowadays, the darling is Spotify, though according to inside sources, US-based major label executives remain leery of the revenue-challenged company. Others, including MySpace Music, Imeem, Grooveshark, and even YouTube face difficult monetization challenges.

Why so rough? The problem comes from bottom-scraping CPMs, affinity concerns among big-name brands, and a reluctance by consumers to upgrade into premium packages. Indeed, many have written this space off as a hopeless pursuit, though Atlanta-based startup 'Free All Music' (freeallmusic.com) begs to differ. The group is focusing its model on free MP3 downloads, and more direct, action-based advertising deals.

So, instead of DRM-protected experiences with impression-based advertising (a-la-Spiralfrog), Free All Music plans to tie major consumer brands into direct downloading, sharing, and other engaged behaviors. "We're confident that we'll be in major [advertiser] budgets in 2010," cofounder and CEO Richard Nailling relayed during a discussion Tuesday evening.

The company first announced themselves to Digital Music News earlier this month, though the more recent meeting included details on upcoming launch dates, as well as status updates on licensing and advertising negotiations. Specifically, Free All Music enters private beta next month, a public beta in December, and a formal launch during the first quarter of 2010, according to the roadmap.

So how does the experience work? Consumers will be able to browse a catalog of songs, but free downloads require the viewing of a brief, 15-second advertising video. The song is obviously chosen by the fan, but so is the advertiser - before downloading, a choice of different brands will be presented. That aims to sidestep sensitive issues that accompany the tying of brands with specifics artists. "Because the users are putting it together and it's a private matter, there's no implied relationship," Nailling described.

After the spot is completed, a DRM-free MP3 is handed to the consumer. But the advertising campaign continues in a novel fashion. First, the username of the downloader is placed alongside the brand and blended into an ad unit. That unit is subsequently distributed across a network constructed by Free All Music.

Sound complicated? Nailling and company believe this experience is better and easier than illegal file-sharing options, and far superior to $1.29 downloads on iTunes. But users are limited to fifteen songs per month, and five per session, a major restriction and a potential deal-breaker for many fans.

Then, the issue of major label licensing emerges. Nailling pointed to "deep conversations with all the majors," though some upfront licensing costs will be involved. "We are not being subject to the advances that have happened to other companies, the labels are really trying to work with us on that front," Nailling disclosed. "But in terms of a pure revenue-share deal, that is not in the cards at this point."

And this is anything but a risk-free bet. The company just raised a $990,000 round, though total investments are already approaching $3 million before the grand opening. At present, the team still needs to assemble the constellation of advertisers and labels to test the hypothesis. Then, the serious work of attracting, retaining, and growing a critical mass of users begins, itself a monstrous hurdle. Indeed, this is not a challenge for weak-stomached entrepreneurs, though anyone able to solve the ad-supported riddle gets serious the bragging rights.

Paul Resnikoff, Publisher.

Place BrandIndex research in Mediapost & QSRWeb stories about QSR brand loyalty

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:02:00 +0000

Rising Loyalty Scores Good News For QSRs

Adult perceptions of leading QSRs have been improving for the past year -- and the latest BrandIndex data show brand loyalty, in particular, rising dramatically during the past month.

BrandIndex tracks loyalty by asking consumers whether they would recommend a given brand to a friend.

BrandIndex surveys 5,000 adults from a sample that is representative of the U.S. population each day. The margin of error is +/- 2%.

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Consumer perception boosted by QSR marketing

29 Oct 2009

Brand loyalty for the top quick-service restaurant chains has leaped dramatically over the past 30 days, giving them their highest consumer perception scores of the year for adults aged 18 and over, according to YouGov's BrandIndex, a daily consumer perception research service of brands.

Driven by aggressive post-Labor Day advertising focused on new menu items such as Wendy's Bacon Deluxe, Taco Bell's Black Jack taco, Burger King's double cheeseburger for $1 and KFC's grilled chicken, consumers are recommending QSR restaurants more than at any other time this year.

For this research, BrandIndex averaged the Recommend scores of Subway, Wendy's, Pizza Hut, KFC, Burger King, Taco Bell, Chipotle, McDonald's, Domino's, Long John Silvers, Hardee's and Jack In The Box -- the chains with the most units in the US.

The Recommend score question asked to respondents is: "Would you recommend the brand to a friend?"

On Sept. 10, the sector's average recommend score was 16.9. On Oct. 22, the score was 20.6. A score can range from 100 to 100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

YouGov's BrandIndex interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than 1.5 million individuals. The margin of error is +/- 2%.

BrandIndex's weekly Brandweek Buzz Report: Motorola, Yahoo and VW

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:52:00 +0000

Droid Powers Up Motorola

Oct 23, 2009

Battered wireless phone manufacturer Motorola finally has a reason to be cheerful. The announcement this week of its iPhone rival, Droid, has consumers buzzing already. According to market research firm YouGov's BrandIndex report, the phone maker's score has jumped from 10.9 to 15.6 since August.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of 1.5 million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• Motorola
• Yahoo
• Volkswagen

Motorola Gets Consumers Talking
Motorola's new futuristic campaign for the first Android phone—which will become available on the Verizon Wireless network—is registering on consumers’ radar. The new Droid, rumored to launch next week, is being directly positioned as superior to the iPhone, given its abilities to take photos at night, have a workable keyboard and open multiple apps at the same time. The cell phone maker's buzz score is up significantly.

Yahoo on the Rebound
Yahoo's $100 million global ad campaign on “owning the Internet” got off to a sputtering start, with its buzz score dropping from 35.4 on September 22 to 24.2 on October 13. Since then, the numbers have modestly rebounded to 28.4. Yahoo has already called in the cavalry: It hired Goodby Silverstein & Partners to handle strategic planning, advertising, digital marketing and campaign tracking, joining agency of record Ogilvy, and strategic branding firm Landor and Associates.

Volkswagen Rolls Off the Buzz Chart
The German automaker’s buzz scores have stumbled since August for a few reasons: 1) The recall of 13,500 (mostly) 2009 model year vehicles due to problems involving a temperature sensor in the Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) transmission. 2) The Tiguan, which is VW's new entry into the small SUV category, is on the verge of a much-needed facelift. 3) The U.S. market has not taken to the recently introduced Routan mini van—a category people do not normally associate with Volkswagen. The automaker is currently in the middle of a search for a new agency to handle its $220 million U.S. creative account.

BrandIndex's Brandweek Buzz Report: October 16, 2009

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:17:00 +0000

Wendy's Gets Real Buzz From Bacon Deluxe Launch

Oct 16, 2009

Only a week after unleashing its Bacon Deluxe burger and a new campaign with the slogan, “You know when it’s real,” Wendy's is generating serious buzz among consumers. According to market research firm YouGov's BrandIndex report, the fast feeder's buzz score rose from 30.8 on October 6 to 33.4 on October 13.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than one million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• Wendy's
• Microsoft Windows
• T-Mobile

Wendy's Continues to Move the Needle
The fast feeder is appearing high on the buzz chart for the second week in a row. After a big run-up last month in value perception, Wendy’s switched to the next gear in October with both a new campaign and a new menu item. Representing the first work from the Kaplan Thaler Group, the new “You know when it’s real” campaign with its freshness and quality themes, and the new Bacon Deluxe burger, already seem to be connecting. Both developments have caused a spike in Wendy’s buzz score.

Anticipation for Windows 7 Drives Buzz
Early positive buzz and anticipation for Microsoft’s new Windows 7 software has pushed the product’s buzz score up as it heads for release next week. With ammunition like a thumbs-up review from the influential Walt Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal and a set of national in-home Microsoft-sponsored “house party” events, Windows’ buzz score has risen from 13.8 on September 14 to 20 on October 13.

T-Mobile Loses Steam
T-Mobile is just beginning to recover from its Sidekick data loss debacle last week, and just in time. After building positive buzz for most of the year, a lot of it generated by its “Mobile Makeover” campaign promising consumers to find the best wireless plan regardless of carrier, T-Mobile began sliding downwards from the last week of September through October. Once the campaign faded, T-Mobile’s Android line couldn’t match the charisma of its rivals, sending the carrier’s buzz score from 40.7 on September 23 to 32.1 on October 13.

BrandIndex's Yahoo perception data broken in Mediapost and Silicon Alley Insider

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:50:00 +0000

Survey: Yahoo Campaign Dampens Perception

The $100 million marketing blitz Yahoo launched two weeks ago to revitalize its brand may be having the opposite effect, according to early consumer feedback.

Perception of Yahoo among U.S. adults has fallen steeply since the company kicked off its global campaign centered on the tag line "It's You" on Sept. 28, based on YouGov's BrandIndex, which tracks daily consumer perception of brands. It found Yahoo's buzz score had tumbled from 35.4 on Sept. 22 to 25.5 as of Monday.

Regarding Yahoo, people were asked if they had "heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?" YouGov said the 10-point drop follows a steady climb in the Web portal's index score from mid-May through most of September, and marks the biggest plunge Yahoo has had all year.

BrandIndex scores are based on interviews of 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample of 1 million. A score can range from 100 to -100, and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

"There's been a lot of buzz leading up to the campaign, and when it finally broke, maybe a bit of a letdown," said Ted Marzilli, senior vice president of BrandIndex, offering a possible explanation for the sudden drop in Yahoo's score.

The company's global "It's You!" campaign, spanning TV, online, outdoor and other media, is intended to emphasize the increased personalization Yahoo offers following its home page redesign and addition of features giving users greater ability to customize the site.

Yahoo's "Anthem" TV spot features a series of eye-catching images, from a woman shooting rose petals out of a gun to kids kicking a soccer ball across world capitals to people gyrating on a crowded dance floor.

Marzilli said he himself found the initial spot visually impressive, but not necessarily effective in communicating how Yahoo is different now than six months or a year ago. "There just seems to be a bit of disconnect between consumers and the campaign," he said.

The rebranding effort developed by Ogilvy & Mather and Landor Associates has drawn similar reaction around the Web. A dozen comments posted on AdAge.com asking about the TV ad when it launched were mostly negative.

"Yes it is a lot of glitz and glamour, and I am aware that 'something" is coming that is all about "Y!ou' but I have a hard time believing Yahoo! will be able to live up to the hype they are creating in this ad,'" read one post.

The campaign also includes online and outdoor ads featuring a diverse range of actual Yahoo users and lines such as: "The Internet is under new management, yours," "This time it's personal," and "Totally, you."

To help reinforce the focus on personalization, Yahoo Tuesday announced a competition allowing people to submit their own versions of its signature "yodel" audio tag to a specially created site through Nov. 8 for a chance to be included in the global ad effort and featured on the Yahoo home page.

Yahoo Tuesday also set up one-day temporary recording studios in Times Square in New York, London and Mumbai with celebrity hosts to encourage people to enter the yodel contest. While Yahoo's brand perception score may have dropped sharply, Marzilli noted that it's still higher than rival portals such as AOL (-7) and MSN (3), but lower than Google (42).

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CHART OF THE DAY: Yahoo's "It's Y!ou" Campaign Turns Off Consumers (YHOO)

There's evidence that Yahoo's $100 million "It's Y!ou" ad campaign might actually be hurting the company's brand.

A company called YouGov interviews 5,000 people a day and asks them about brands. For Yahoo, they asked "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?"

YouGov then gives the company a score between -100 and 100, compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive.

Here's the bad news for Yahoo (YHOO). Since the launch of "It's Y!ou" campaign on September 28th, Yahoo's buzz score dropped from a 35.4 to a score of 25.5 as of yesterday, Monday, October 12th.

(See pictures of the ads plastered all over New York →)

A YouGov spokesperson tells us, "The score's drop comes after Yahoo steadily built its buzz score from mid-May through most of September. On May 13th, Yahoo was at 25.4, which is where it is right now. This is definitely the biggest buzz score drop Yahoo has taken all year."

Arrange and kick off Brandweek magazine's weekly BrandIndex feature

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 21:01:00 +0000

GM, Chrysler Show Signs of Improvement

Oct 9, 2009

- Brandweek Staff

Are recent marketing efforts by GM and Chrysler working? It appears so. According to statistics from market research firm YouGov, the automakers' scores are up since July. Since bottoming at an Index score of 5 at the end of 2008, Ford has dramatically grown its overall brand health scores. As of October 7, Ford has improved consumer perception 21 points to a two-year high of 27.

The Brandweek Buzz Report by YouGov is a weekly consumer perception report that analyzes the most talked about brands based on:

• Buzz: If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?
• Willingness to Recommend: Would you recommend the brand to friends, family or co-workers or tell them to avoid the brand?
• Index: Overall brand health score, average of six underlying indicators of brand health (Impression, Quality, Value, Reputation, Satisfaction and Willingness to Recommend)

YouGov interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than one million individuals. A score can range from 100 to -100 and is compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

This week, the report spotlights:

• KFC
• Wendy's
• McDonald's
• Burger King
• Starbucks
• GM
• Chrysler
• Ford
• Michelin

KFC Benefits from Grilled Chicken Launch and Oprah Coupon Giveaway
KFC’s Buzz score averaged 15 in April, the month before the Oprah coupon giveaway and Grilled chicken product launch. Scores surged to a high of 30 in the weeks following the promotion and subsequent brand activities. Almost four months later, KFC is still reaping the rewards, and is elevated 9 points from mid 2009 Buzz levels. Scores began to improve again during the first week of October.

Starbucks Generates More Positive Buzz
From mid-March through mid-April Starbucks pulled their Buzz scores out of negative territory, increasing 10 points from -3 to 7. After holding relatively steady through July, Starbucks again improved Buzz ratings. Starbucks Buzz scores remained elevated through the first week of October, but have flattened out and dropped since September. It still remains to be seen what type of buzz Starbucks' newly launched Via instant coffee line will generate in the coming weeks.

Wendy’s Moves Needle on Value
Wendy’s—which recently tapped The Kaplan Thaler Group as its lead agency—had a great month. The fast-food chain celebrated 40 years in existence, and this week, introduced a fresh ad campaign with a new slogan: “You know when it’s real.” Wendy's also successfully improved its Willingness to Recommend scores with consumers. Wendy’s 99-cent deals on a variety of menu items and focus on differentiating from other QSRs on quality has resulted in a 10 point increase in its Willingness to Recommend score. As a comparison, competitors McDonald’s and Burger King increased only 1 point and 2 points, respectively.

McDonald’s Closes the Gap With Burger King
During the first week of October, it appears BK has begun to accelerate growth, while McDonalds has dropped down a point. As of October 7, BK's Index score was 19, while McDonald's was 13. Since launching the Angus Third Pounder in July, McDonald's has been fairly quiet on the marketing front, while BK has been generating buzz with several efforts including a beefed up BK.com, a product launch at Walmart, several celebrity endorsements, and a tie-in with the upcoming New Moon movie.

GM, Chrysler Improve, While Ford Continues to Outperform
Though Ford continues to do well, GM brands were not hit as hard as Chrysler, with each showing modest signs of improvement recently. In September, General Motors started offering a 60-day "Satisfaction Guarantee" to eligible buyers of new Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles, and has kicked off an effort touting its "Reinvention"—factors that have contributed to its rising scores. Index scores for GM and Chrysler bottomed out at 6 and -10, respectively, in July 2009, and have since improved. As of October 7, GM’s growth has slowed with scores dropping very slightly. Chrysler has continued its steady climb out of negative territory, improving 1 point since last week.

Michelin’s New Campaign Gets Consumers Talking
Michelin’s Buzz scores have improved 3 points during the first week of its new campaign. The global effort kicked off on October 7, featuring the Michelin Man as the superhero in ads that carry the tagline: "The right tire changes everything." YouGov will continue to monitor the brand's success over the next several weeks.

Tubefilter.TV covers the launch of "Web Zeroes" series

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:45:00 +0000

Revision3 Nabs Its First Scripted Comedy, ‘Web Zeroes’

Most people equate San Francisco based Revision3 with unscripted, net-friendly hosted web series—Diggnation, TekZilla, Film Riot. Some of the series clock in over the hour mark, firmly rooted in the vein of freeform tech video podcasts. And it’s around that techie niche that the company has built out an online network of dedicated fans, and incidentally, loyal sponsors like Netflix and GoDaddy looking to make waves in that scene.

But with the launch of its latest series, Web Zeroes, Revision3 is taking the leap into scripted comedy with what it calls its first “sitcom.” Truthfully, its closer to an Office-style single-camera comedy, than a multi-camera TV sitcom. The geek comedy was a pickup from indie creators Eddy Rivas, Nick Comardo and Daniel Miller, who together make up Houston-based Smooth Few Films. Their previous series, The Leet World, was a machinima series shot in Counter-Strike: Source.

The trio of web series creators in fact play themselves, or, as they see it, “amp-ed up versions of themselves”—the control freak Alex (Eddy Rivas), the jaded filmmaker Ray (Daniel Miller), and the nerdy fanboy, Nate (Nick Comardo).” In true modern geek fashion—a blend of online dependency tweaked with a relentless desire to be internet famous—the three are pining to become the next great web stars in hope of “making the big bucks” (and meeting Diggnation host Kevin Rose). First stop: making their own podcast.

Alex: I think we all know too much about too much to really narrow it down to any one thing. Or at least I do, and I’ll be in the driver’s seat anyway.

Nate: Shotgun!

Ray: You can’t call shotgun on podcast!

Nate: You’re just mad that I called it first.

The series had been previously released on the Smooth Few Films site, though as part of the Revision3 deal, episodes have been removed and re-cut with sponsor shout outs to Netflix. Just the pilot episode, “Cast Aways” (above) has been released. New episodes of Web Zeroes come out every Wednesday (the same day as Diggnation), with a total of 13 planned for this season.

Launch "Web Zeroes" net TV series with front page Houston Chronicle story

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 21:27:00 +0000

Going for Zeroes on the Internet

This is the story of three dudes with big dreams of getting famous on the Internet.

They tried once by creating a Web TV series inspired by a video game.

They tried a second time with a short film.

Still, megawatt Web stardom -- and that phone call from Hollywood - eluded them.

So they created an Internet sitcom about themselves -- three dudes with big dreams of getting famous on the Internet.

Web Zeroes, a comedy written, directed and produced by high school buddies and Texas natives Eddy Rivas, Nick Comardo and Daniel Miller, premieres today on the Web TV network Revision3.com.

Munching on deep-dish pizza during lunch break from day jobs, the trio explained that just when they were about to give up -- they got lucky.

"We had pretty much finished," Rivas said.

"We were going to go our separate ways," Comardo added.

The three of them started collaborating during their teen years, when they used to make homemade horror flicks such as Spoonfed -- about homicidal flatware -- and Revenge of the Shopping Carts --about grocery carts with a murderous bent.

In 2007, they formed their Web production company, Smooth Few Films. In between work commitments, they produced short films and the Web series The Leet World, based on the video game, Counter-Strike. While using video game technology to create movies and TV shows was cool among fellow Web and gaming geeks, it was a bit too nerdy and niche for the masses.

Plus, there was no money or glory.

Last summer, Miller came up with the idea of making a show that told their story. Comardo and Rivas were an easy sell, and in short order, the trio filmed four episodes of Web Zeroes.

"We wanted something live action with us in it," Comardo said, "where we weren't just sitting around computers all day."

"We wanted to make something that was ours," Miller added. "It was very meta. It was a show about us trying to do what we're doing."

"Caricatures of ourselves," Comardo said.

"Hopefully, people will think we're cool," said Miller with a deadpan face as the others laughed.

But by December, the show was hardly the breakthrough hit they'd anticipated.
"Not a lot of people seemed to watch it," Rivas said.

Miller planned to decamp for Los Angeles.

Smooth Few Films seemed destined for the scrap heap.

Then they got an e-mail from a fan who happened to be a production intern at Revision3, a Web broadcasting site.

In August, they signed a deal to produce 12 episodes of Web Zeroes, the Web broadcaster's first scripted sitcom.

"They're a credible and perfect fit for our audience," said Ryan Vance, Revision3's vice president of programming and production. "While the characters and situations are fictional and amplified for laughs, their writing comes from their real experiences and expertise online."

Today Rivas, Comardo and Miller spend weekends and evenings filming and fine-tuning Web Zeroes.

Rivas writes the scripts, Miller directs and Comardo edits. Even Rivas' wife helps out, making cameo appearances and sometimes holding the microphone.
Revision3 will air the shows, and the trio will pocket a portion of the advertising proceeds.

"The cool thing about the Internet is that it gives you the chance to show a bunch of people something you've done," said Rivas.

"To get your movie in a theater, forget about it," added Miller. "If you don't have millions of dollars and a suit behind you, no one cares."

Rivas, Comardo and Miller haven't quit their day jobs yet.

That will take, said Comardo, "a unique set of circumstances."

Everyone, after all, is trying to figure out how to make big money on the Web.

"It involves a lot of zeroes at the end of a check," said Miller, as he finished up his pizza.

Then all three burst out laughing.

Break out Free All Music's seed capital funding all over the viral web

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:21:00 +0000

Free All Music to offer free MP3s, new ad model

Free All Media, an Atlanta-based start-up, is the latest company to propose an ad-supported music downloading service. The company, which just announced its first seed round of funding Wednesday and expects to begin public beta testing by December, hopes to differentiate itself from flameouts like SpiralFrog with a unique advertising model that asks users to participate more directly in choosing the ads they'll see.

The company's CEO, Richard Nailling, explained how the company's Web site, Free All Music, will work. Users will select an MP3 they want to download and a sponsor they'd like to "buy" that MP3 for them. They will then watch a video advertisement, between 15 and 18 seconds in length, from that advertiser. Once the ad is completed, they'll be free to download the file, a 256kbps MP3 with no copy restrictions. No further advertisements will be served for that download.

But here's the unique part--Free All Music will then use the downloader's handle in other banner ads for that sponsor, which Free All Music will place around the Web using an (as yet undisclosed) third-party ad network, as well as through its own ad network, which will focus on music-oriented sites. In other words, you might be visiting CNET and see "MattR just downloaded 'Angry Chair' by Alice in Chains...sponsored by Converse." In this way, Free All Music will be able to sell multiple ads per download and perhaps earn enough money to cover the license fee for each song.

There's a catch, of course: users will only be able to download as many songs as Free All Music can sell sponsorships for. At launch, the company is aiming for what Nailling calls "typical iTunes behavior," which is 15 songs per month, spread over three sessions. If the site takes off and advertisers buy more space, the song allowance will increase.

The key to success will be whether the company can get all four major labels and enough indies on board to make for a competitive selection of music. So far, the company claims it's signed up one major label (unnamed), and is aiming for the "full digital catalog" from each label, giving it full parity with iTunes and sites like Amazon MP3.

Would you be willing to sit through an 18-second video ad in exchange for a perfectly legal and guaranteed legitimate MP3? Or will you stick with file-trading networks?

Correction at 7:13 a.m. PDT October 1: This post incorrectly stated the number of free songs that Free All Music aims to offer at launch. The site plans to offer 15 free downloads per month, spread over three sessions.

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New Ad Supported Music Downoad Site FreeAllMusic.com Gets Seed Funding

PLUS A Q & A With CEO Richard Nailling

Free All Media has secured seed funding to launch its FreeAllMusic.com ad supported free digital music service in late 2009. The initial round includes founding investor, Scott Barber, CEO of Reform Records, and Free All Media’s CEO Richard Nailling. FreeAllMusic.com will offer ad supported songs without DRM for free download.

The FreeAllMusic pitch is that all previous ad-supported download services have been too cumbersome, too restrictive, or too limited in content. No one to this point has offered DRM-free music downloads with an easy, no- gimmicks process.

The fact that neither of the top execs come from the music industry could offer fresh perspective. CEO Nailling worked in Hollywood in TV and interactive and #2 Brian McCourt helped fund the original "Blair Witch Project" and is a long-time brand sales veteran and consultant.

In an exclusive interview, CEO Richard Nailling explained how FreeAllMusic.com differs from other free music sites:

Q: Are the downloads ad supported?

NAILLING: Yes, each individual download is sponsored (purchased for the user) by a brand. The chosen sponsor owns 100% of the download sequence on our site.

Q: How are the ads positioned or added?

NAILLING: One (required) video Ad (15-30 sec.) will be shown on our site to the user before the song is downloaded. No more ad viewing is required or contained in the song file itself. While the song is downloading the user will also be exposed (exclusively) to other clickable display ad units from that brand sponsor. User-informed promotional ads outside FAM are also part of the display ad package for advertisers, but our FAM user does not see those ads.

Q: Have any major labels signed on?

NAILLING: We have one major label signed and intend to have all four majors signed by our launch date.

Q: How have publishers reacted?

NAILLING: We are not a streaming site. Downloads only. Publishing is covered in our label deals.

Q: Do you see Spotify and other streaming services as competition?

NAILLING: We are building a free site that works for both advertisers and consumers. In the major streaming models advertising is looked upon as the ‘necessary solution’ for funding the free model while they try to convince users to pay. In addition, streaming audio sites are not a truly effective medium for digital advertisers. People don’t watch banner ads while they stream music.

Downloaders are much more willing to watch and be engaged with advertising in return for the content.

We’re a site that people will visit to get (permanent unrestricted ownership) of the hits for free, and they’ll trade a little of their attention as part of the deal. We will make it easy for our users to get a weekly dose of the top 20 hits (in their favorite genre) and get free, legal ownership of those tunes in an easy and entertaining way.

Digg This! • Email this • Stumble It! • Save to del.icio.us (2 saves)

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Free All Media Raises Nearly $1 Million For Ad-Supported Digital Music Downloads

Free All Music is a new digital music startup that plans to make money by getting people to watch ads in exchange for track downloads. If it sounds familiar, that’s because it’s the business model that startups like SpiralFrog tried and failed at—all while blowing through tens of millions of dollars. But Free All Media managed to get some investors to buy in to its business model; the startup has raised a seed round of funding that an SEC filing shows was worth at least $990,000.

CEO Richard Nailing said he and co-founder Brian McCourt invested nearly $1.5 million of their own money since the Atlanta-based startup was founded in mid-2008, but wouldn’t comment on the amount of this new round, which was led by private investors. The team thinks its music site will succeed because it’s monetized on a cost-per-action (CPA) vs. cost-per-impression (CPM) basis; users have to watch a 15-second online video ad for every DRM-free track they want to download. Nice premise—but there are a few reasons why the site has a steep uphill battle.

—Interaction vs. Scale: Any site that wants to attract advertisers needs to prove it can build a large user base first, but Nailing’s sales pitch was about user interaction vs. scale. Free All Media will charge advertisers on a cost-per-download basis and users get to pick which ads they watch. AdPerk, a startup launched in 2007, tried the same model, but gave ad viewers mini-subscriptions to various magazines instead of music. (It seemingly hasn’t gained much traction since then).

—Some display: Free All Media will also promote the site through search and social media ads, and Nailing said the company will supplement brands’ CPA buys with impressions. After a user downloads a track, the company will promote that download in a banner ad somewhere else on the web.

—Privacy: But that sounds like Beacon, the ad platform Facebook tried and got lambasted by users for. To avoid a backlash, Nailing said users need to give the site permission to publicize their downloads when they first sign up. “You agree that you’ll be cookied, we can store your preferences and that we can use your registered user name in the banners,” he said. “It’s part of the fair trade.”

—Licensing : Nailing said the company had just closed its first deal with a “major” label, and was in late-stage negotiations with “three others;” some of the funding was used for up-front payments for the licensing deals. This is one of the biggest hurdles that a music startup has to face—cutting licensing deals that don’t wind up bleeding it dry. Free All Media seems to have come up with a patchwork of solutions that it hopes will be able to solve the problems that have plagued other digital music startups.

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Co-write, edit and place quadrantONE CEO Andy Ellenthal's op-ed in Adweek/Mediaweek/Brandweek

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:01:00 +0000

Local Target Practice

Sept 27, 2009

-By Andy Ellenthal

If you’ve ever bought or sold cable advertising, you know that local cable is more expensive—albeit much more targeted—than national cable. In a previous life, working with television media marketers, I routinely fielded the question: “Can I buy run of network nationally but target my creative locally?” And my answer was always the same: “Not yet.”

Fortunately, buyers don’t have to put up with that response anymore—thanks to online display advertising. With it, you can buy what you wish: a market, an audience, a context, etc. Generally, we can tell where a user is coming from via their IP, their registration data, their preferences or the site’s geographic footprint.

This has left me wondering, with all this data just waiting to be used, why aren’t more marketers buying nationally and targeting locally? Can anyone argue that a relevant message would be any less effective?

According to an Oct. 2008 study by Sterling Market Intelligence, zeroing in on local customers is more appealing than ever. The firm’s research shows that nearly half of the national advertisers surveyed were pursuing online local advertising, and more than 40 percent were dedicating at least a quarter of their online marketing budget to local targeting.

Geotargeting online is a simple way for advertisers to take advantage of the efficiency that comes with a large footprint buy, while increasing the creative power of being able to reach an audience directly with your message. The campaigns that work best are ones that promote geographic-appropriate products: lawn chairs in Phoenix, say, or snow blowers in Boston.

For those who fear that local targeting means fragmenting the message, remember that an ad can maintain overall brand consistency even as it promotes specific, relevant merchandise. Some of the more inspired creative ideas I’ve seen involve the use of automated tools to serve up perfectly targeted messaging. For example, a geographically relevant campaign serves one message to an urban user and another to a suburban one.
The latter may prefer a lawn mower where the former needs a storage unit. Different needs, tailored messaging, same brand.

Car advertisers are adept at creating ads that keep a real-time count of a local seller’s inventory, which works as a beautiful psychological come-on. Then there’s what I like to call “barometer ads”—retail ads that link up weather systems to sell umbrellas on rainy days, sunscreen on bright days, bathing suits on hot days and chicken soup when the temperature drops.

Some of these tactics are so obvious, you wonder why you never thought of them before. Take, for instance, strategic mapping to a user’s location; think a cruise company buying nationally, but driving traffic to the closest ports of call. How sharp is it when an area insurance agent uses mapping to send users to the nearest event or location to increase foot traffic?

It’s been my experience that direct-response advertisers have been the best early adopters of the Web’s targeting capabilities. The true experts have been the dating sites. They have managed to take the local-targeting technique to the next level by buying wide yet keeping the message granular. One no longer needs to worry that a “local single” will turn out to live in New Jersey when your ad clearly specifies “singles with the 212 area code.” (Talk about geographically desirable!)

While the possibilities are infinite, there is always an opportunity cost. However, new automation tools and technologies can help streamline the creative process. I am continuously impressed at the level of relevancy and engagement that ad units are able to provide when they combine a strong database and breakthrough creative with the right media.

The result is greater efficiency for advertisers to produce more relevant messages—a win for consumers and brands alike.

Andy Ellenthal is CEO of quadrantOne, which offers exclusive ad inventory of premium local news and information sites on a national scale.

QSRWeb profiles how BrandIndex tracks consumer perception data for dining chains

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 19:37:00 +0000

>Branding & Franchising

BrandIndex offers insight into consumer perception
Christa Hoyland

23 Sep 2009

Regional chains Carl's Jr. and Hardee's and their 3,100 stores wouldn't seem like much of a threat to McDonald's prominence in the burger category. But the chains chose to bring out the heavy artillery after McDonald's launch of its Angus premium burger line.

To draw consumer focus to their longevity in the premium-at-a-value category, the sister brands pulled out their versions of McDonald's Big Mac from their research and development stockpile. They supported the launch with snarky comparison ads, promoting the Big Carl's and Big Hardee's bigger size, better quality and lower price.

According to data from YouGov's BrandIndex daily consumer perception research, the ads hit home. The data shows over a period of less than a week, from Sept. 11 – Sept. 16, Carl's Jr. value perception shot up nearly 5 points from 4.6 to 9.4 with adults 18 and older. Hardee's value perception grew more modestly, from 8.8 to a 9.4.

At the same time, McDonald's value perception scores took a nosedive, falling from 25.1 on Sept. 11 to 10.9 on Sept. 16.

Ted Marzilli, global managing director of BrandIndex, a service of YouGov, said the survey results indicate that the Carl's Jr. and Hardee's campaigns seemed to be hitting their mark.

"The short-term data shows that the ad campaigns for both Carl's Jr. and Hardee's have been impactful and that they've improved the value and quality scores for those two brands" while having a negative impact on McDonald's scores, he said. "To some level, that's not surprising because the ad campaigns are very much head to head comparisons with McDonald's on price and quality, so I'd say that the campaigns are having the intended effect to a certain degree."

But those scores don't tell the whole story. During that time and into this week, McDonald's satisfaction and "likely to recommend" scores went up, from 35.6 on Sept. 9 to 41.7 on Sept. 21 for satisfaction. Likely to recommend scores went from 2.7 points on Sept. 9 up to 17.5 percent on Sept. 21.

With those scores improving over that period, it demonstrates that consumers are having a good experience at McDonald's and that advocates of the brand are continuing to recommend it, Marzilli said.

Choosing how to respond

Watching a competitor's results can help a brand choose whether to respond or to wait a few weeks to see if the consumer perception returns to prior levels.

So should McDonald's be worried? Probably not, especially since a look at BrandIndex's data for McDonald's over the last year shows that the brand's quality and value scores have actually improved, he said. But it would be worth it to the brand to keep an eye on the short-term results to determine if the campaign would be having any reaching effect. (By yesterday, McDonald's value scores were up to 28.9.)

And McDonald's is not too concerned about the blip in value scores but remains focused on overall value as well as quality food and convenience, said the company’s spokeswoman Danya Proud.

"Today, we're serving more customers than we ever have. And, according to research from NPD Crest, despite QSR traffic declining among 18-34 males, our share among this group continues to grow," she said. "Additionally, our research shows that we consistently rank among the best in the industry, in consumers' perceptions of value.

"We continue to be focused on long-term growth vs. short-term gains. And business results speak for themselves. As previously reported, the Angus Burger contributed to positive comparable sales growth in both July and August."

Self-service tools, periodic analysis

For BrandIndex clients, which don't include Carl's Jr. or McDonald's, the consumer perception survey service provides brands with data that can be used in a variety of ways, including as a campaign planning tool, a barometer of that campaign's impact, a measurement of brand health and a glimpse at how a brand is standing up to its competitors.

BrandIndex interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than 1 million individuals. Results have a margin of error is of +/- 2 percent.

Participants answer questions such as "Is the brand high quality or low quality?" or "Does it give good value for what you pay?"

Marzilli said the service provides breadth of coverage by measuring top brands as well as two years of historical data. The data also can be broken done demographically, allowing brands to determine how it is doing in target segments.

The daily data also can help companies going through a public relations crisis by allowing them to compare their results to other brands that have had similar crises. "They can use it as benchmark so see how serious a crisis they're going through to help decide them decide whether they want to lay low few weeks or act now," he said.

Clients use the service for their daily data mining as well as for receiving periodic reporting and analysis. Subscribers can access the BrandIndex database and can use online tools to create charts as well as note significant and meaningful movements. That service is particularly helpful with campaigns like Carl's Jr.'s to determine their effectiveness.

"You get a very early read on if you're making an impact with consumers," Marzilli said. "The real test is, over the next week or two or three, does that campaign bring more people into the restaurants purchasing the new products or making any purchases? Because ultimately the advertising is made not only to drive awareness but to drive sales."

IMG joint project with Cesar Millan hits nationally on the Associated Press

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 20:07:00 +0000

Cesar Millan Dog-Based Empire Adds Slick Magazine

Dog whisperer Cesar Millan adds Cesar's Way magazine to television, book and education empire

By SUE MANNING Associated Press Writer
LOS ANGELES September 21, 2009 (AP)

In Cesar Millan's world, two groups most influence America: politicians and their dogs and Hollywood celebrities and their dogs.

This photo taken Sept. 8, 2009 shows Cesar Millan celebrating his 40th birthday at the East Valley...

(AP)

"The rest of the population wants to do what they do," he said. So where does that leave Millan? Just about everywhere.

His National Geographic show "Dog Whisperer" is seen in more than 80 countries. He has three best-sellers and another book due out next month. He's a frequent guest star on talk shows. You'd think that would be enough. Not for the leader of the pack.

Millan has added a magazine, Cesar's Way, to his dog-driven empire. The first issue came out last week, with one more planned this year and six more next year. Millan dominates the cover, the stories — even many of the ads, but the 120-page debut issue is also chock full of information.

There's food that can kill your dog, including chocolate, onions, garlic, grapes, raisins, sugarless candy, gum, raw salmon, mushrooms and turkey skin. And types of people medicine you can give your dog, and tips for traveling, eating and playing.

Future issues will include why homeless people can walk dogs off leashes and why blind people have such well-behaved dogs.

The magazine is focused on how you and your dog can grow, leaning on Millan's philosophy that incorporates instinct with emotion, the spirit and the intellect.

"I think it's quicker to achieve connection with a dog than a human because humans think too much," he said. "Balance is happiness, harmony, peace, love. There are endless opportunities to create whatever you want with whatever you have. Some people have lost that."

Photos of celebrities and their pets are featured in a section called "L.A. Paw," billed as a "K-9 court, where Cesar's dogs unleash their catty side." Four of Millan's many dogs are judges who comment in photo captions.

"That's one media-savvy teacup!" observes Daddy, Millan's 15-year-old pit bull, on a photo of Paris Hilton with Chihuahua in hand.

In a section called Tips & Whispers, the magazine offers the yappiest apps for your iPhone and debunks some dog myths like this one: A wagging tail is a sign of a happy dog. Fact: Not necessarily. A wagging tail can be a sign of affection. But it can also be a sign of competitive dominance."

There are two-page color spreads of doggie portraits, and a "True Tails" section featuring a corporate attorney turned animal talent scout and a police officer who married his dog trainer.

Jada Pinkett Smith gushes in another article about how Millan helped her — pre-Will — to boost her self-confidence through the training of her dogs more than a dozen years ago.

"We spent a lot of time together in the mountains," she said of her friend, in the magazine. "He helped me balance."

Millan, who offers a lengthy explanation of the pack theory, usually has 30 to 50 dogs around his Los Angeles home. At the moment, his pack is down to 15, among them the ever-present Daddy. He won't call Daddy his favorite "because it's all about the pack with me." But this man and this dog have been together for 15 years, since before stardom.

"He's pretty much helped me raise my two boys," Millan said. "He's kept me wise in my marriage." If there's a problem, Millan will ask: "What I am doing wrong Daddy?"

Pit bulls clearly hold a special place in Millan's heart — and in his magazine with a spread on some celebs who own one — Adam Brody, Jessica Alba, Jamie Foxx and Jessica Biel.

The last page of the debut issue is a tribute to Daddy. Millan describes making him breakfast, kneading chopped beef with fresh herbs and boiled green beans chopped into thirds.

"Daddy is an old, old man now. He can't do stairs anymore and he'll pretty much only eat his food if I prepare it," Millan wrote. "I have never had a dog like Daddy. ... I've been astounded by his intuition, consoled by his affection and awed by his silent empathy."

———

On the Net:

http://www.cesarmillaninc.com

BrandIndex shows Mediapost that impact of Carl's Jr./Hardee's ads vs. McDonald's came and went

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 21:52:00 +0000

Do Latest Carl's/Hardee's Efforts Hit The Mark?

The latest campaigns from Carl's Jr. and Hardee's -- in response to McDonald's July introduction of its Angus Third Pounder burger -- seem to have gotten the chains' value message across to consumers, based on BrandIndex scores between Sept. 11 and 16. But the impact may now be wearing off.

The McDonald's premium Angus burger directly competes with Carl's Six Dollar Burger and Hardee's Thickburger, both of which use Angus burger and sell for $3.99.

In response, the chains' parent, CKE Restaurants, last month launched the Big Carl, a competitor to the Big Mac that's billed as having more meat and cheese and being priced at $2.49 or less, versus the Mac's average price of $3. In addition, on Sept. 14, Hardee's officially launched the Big Hardee, another head-on competitor to the Big Mac. This one's priced at $2.29 and also boasts more meat (three beef patties vs. Mac's two patties, three buns).

Both launches are being supported by commercials on both chains' Facebook pages and on YouTube, featuring comedian J. B. Smoove. The videos, described by CKE as "inspirational rants" against "the oppression of over-priced, under-whelming products," make direct comparisons between Big Macs and CKE's new competing burgers.

In addition, both chains are now airing TV ads featuring CKE CEO Andrew F. Puzder that directly compare the Angus Third Pounder against the Six Dollar Burger and Thickburger, called the "Nothing" campaign.

BrandIndex, which gathers consumer opinions across seven brand-health indicators on a daily basis from 5,000 U.S. adults, shows the key "value" perception scores for Hardee's and Carl's taking noticeable upturns in recent days. Between Sept. 11 and 16, Carl's rose from 4.6 to 9.4, and Hardee's went from 8.8 to 9.4. The chains' quality and "buzz" scores also rose during the period.

McDonald's value score, meanwhile, declined from 25.1% to 10.9% during the same period, and its quality score declined from 3.6 to 0.3, although its satisfaction and "willingness to recommend" scores remained stable during the period.

Further, as of Sept. 17, the value score for Carl's was back at 4.6, and Hardee's' was down to 7.4.

What's one to make of all this? The simultaneous rise in value scores for Carl's and Hardee's and dip in value score for McDonald's do seem to indicate impact from the Carl's/Hardee's campaigns, at least initially, says BrandIndex SVP and global managing director Ted Marzilli.

However, overall, the positive impact for Carl's/Hardee's was more significant than the negative impact on McDonald's, Marzilli adds. And judging from those latest scores, possibly also short-lived.

More consumer press coverage for my IMG project with Cesar "Dog Whisperer" Millan

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:14:00 +0000

Famous People And Dogs: A Super Team

Celebrities and pets: The last two subjects that Americans care to read about.

Here we have America's newest magazine Cesar's Way, combining a popular television personality, dogs, and celebrities talking about their dogs. Every other magazine in America is worried about folding, but this invincible trifecta of American interests makes Cesar's Way the surest media bet until Jill Abramson's god damn 'Puppy Diaries' book comes along.

"Can your dog fix your marriage? Just ask Jada Pinkett Smith." That seems like a bizarre conversation.

Dogs and famous people, together at last!

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Dog Whisperer is starting magazine 'Cesa r's Way'

Cesar Millan cuts a cake depicting himself hugging Scooby-Doo while celebrating his 40th birthday at the East Valley Animal Shelter in Los Angeles on Sept. 8.

CAPTION

By Richard Vogel, AP

Can't get enough of the Dog Whisperer's advice?

Cesar Millan is launching a new magazine Sept. 15 that has two publication dates in 2009 and goes bi-monthly in 2010.

While it is tough times for many in the publishing industry, pet fans seem to be hanging onto to their publications. Both Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy have seen their circulation hold steady, according to Mediadailynews.com. Cesar's Way will cover various aspects of dog ownership.

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The Dog Whisperer In Print

Last year, as our economy was beginning to crumble, I was walking by a doggie boutique with my friend Randall. As we peered in at the couture collars and tutus for Shitzus, he predicted that the pet industry would be among the first victims of the recession. But I knew Randall was wrong. Certainly our country's deep bond with the canine species would help us get through these troubled economic times. We co-evolved with these beasts, they've stuck by our side through wars and famines, and they will see us through to a healthy stock portfolio, I just know it.

Cesar Millan seems to see things my way. The "Dog Whisperer" is launching a new magazine called Cesar's Way, and it hits newsstands tomorrow. The Wall Street Journal had a peek at the publication, and says it is:

filled with slick photos of celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Jennifer Aniston with pets in tow. Articles include "Can Your Dog Fix Your Marriage? Just Ask Jada Pinkett Smith" and "7-Day Doggie Detox."

Okay, so it sounds like utter schlock. All the more reason to think the mag will be a big hit. Wouldn't you rather look at pictures of puppies than read the Economist?

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'Dog Whisperer' Cesar Millan Launches New Magazine

Categories: Dogs, Pets in the News, Celebrity Pets

On newsstands now! The debut issue of Cesar Millan's new magazine. Photo: IMG Publishing/Cesar Millan

Known by millions as the "Dog Whisperer," Cesar Millan has been helping problem canines and their owners for the last twenty years -- and has become a media sensation in the process. There's his wildly popular show "The Dog Whisperer" -- about to launch its sixth season on the National Geographic channel on October 9 -- multiple best-selling books, and a foundation that Cesar and his wife of 15½ years, Ilusion Wilson Millan, created to rescue dogs across the country.

Now, the Millans can add a magazine to their list of achievements.

Entitled Cesar's Way, the magazine is a joint venture between IMG Publishing and the Millans. The glossy bi-monthly publication, which debuted its first issue yesterday, features training articles penned by Cesar, health tips, real life tales, and celebrity profiles.

Recently, Paw Nation spoke with Ilusion Millan, the magazine's editor-a t-large, about Cesar's Way.

How did the magazine come about?
It's a labor of love. Once we published our books, we decided we needed something to reflect our worldview of what we do, that people can subscri be to, and get up-to-date information about our lives.

How would you describe the magazine?
It's a lifestyle and pet magazine. We wanted to really engage the reader with information and just make it a fun thing for everybody to read. It's not purely educational.

What do you hope to achieve with Cesar's Way?
We hope readers can see a little of themselves and their dogs in this magazine. We want to enhance people's knowledge about their dog, so they have better, more bonded, loving relationships that are fulfilling both for the person and the dog.

Will Cesar be on the magazine's cover every month, as Oprah Winfrey is on O, The Oprah Magazine?
We're still determining that. We wanted to launch the magazine with Cesar being the face because there are people who may not know who he is. [Editor's note: Over 10 million viewers tuned in each week to watch The Dog Whisperer last season.]

What will you be doing as editor-at-large?
I'll be approving and overseein g the content, putting in my two cents creatively, and ensuring the Cesar Millan brand and philosophy are represented accurate ly. I'll also be writing a column for each issue where I get to share a little bit about myself and how my life works around Cesar, our children [sons Andre, 15, and Calvin, 10], our businesses and our dogs.

Like sharing how you met Cesar at an ice-skating rink when you were 17 years old?
Yes! [Laughing.] My friend called him for a ride and he and I just looked at each other and smiled. I heard, "He's the one." I looked behind me, but there was no one there. It was so crisp and clear. Right the next morning, he called to ask me if I wanted to go out for tacos. Now, normally you don't ask a girl to go out for tacos for breakfast -- that doesn't work. But I knew exactly what he was up to. I agreed. And we hit it off from there.

You have famous fashion photographer, Gilles Bensimon, doing the photography for Cesar's Way.
I was very excited about that and proud that Gilles was going to take the pictures. We love him very much.

Are you amazed at all that you and Cesar have created?
I'm just really grateful that God has put us in this place and given us the opportunity to grow in an immense way. Dogs are so amazing; they have taught us so much. An d I'm really grateful to our fans as well. They have given us the opportunity to help them and learn from them, too. People say, "Oh, the teacher is going to come and teach us," but we forget that the teacher is also learning.

What types of articles can readers look forward to in the magazine?
Stories about people who've made their dogs a part of their family and been inspired by these amazing relationships that exist between people and their dogs. We want to give you the information to be a better pack leader not only with your dog, but in your life, as well.

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Is the 'Dog Whisperer' leaving behind his pack for a new venture?

The “Dog Whisperer,” Cesar Millan is unleashing a new venture in his media enterprise with the launch of his magazine – Cesar’s Way. The dog behavior expert is already credited with a television show, DVDs and books in his empire.

Surprisingly the magazine will not focus solely on dogs and dog behavior. It is being called a “lifestyle” magazine by publishing company IMG Worldwide. It features glossy pictures of celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Jennifer Aniston along with their pets. And the magazine features stories like, “What’s Sandra Lee Cooking for Her Secret Love?”

Lee Rosenbaum, vice president of IMG says, “We show (people’s) lifestyles and how dogs fit within their lifestyle. It’s a bit of a mixed breed.”

Cesar’s Way was created to compete with successful pet magazines such as The Bark, Modern Dog and the online magazine PEOPLE Pets and cash in on the pet craze. It is also trying to gain readers and advertisers from other publications such as Martha Stewart Living and Country Living which have expanded their pet coverage.

But do we really need another “lifestyle” magazine? Perhaps Cesar Millan should stay in his area of expertise of correcting dog behavior and educating people to be responsible pet owners. This is especially important in-light of stories like the one coming from Maple Valley, WA where an irresponsible owner allowed his five dogs to attack and kill two rescued horses at an equine sanctuary last week.

Instead of trying to become a household name through his relationship with celebrities, perhaps Millan could stay in the public eye by continuing his worthwhile projects that have saved the lives of many animals.

For instance, earlier this year Millan worked with Last Chance for Animals to uncover abuses at a puppy mill. He also spoke in support of a pet shop called Pet’s Delight that promoted the concept of “humane adoptions” by selling dogs that have been rescued from city shelters.

And he could further his public image by speaking about the accomplishments of his non-profit organization called the Cesar and Illusion Millan Foundation that rescues, rehabilitates and adopts abused and neglected dogs.

IMG sees a lot of potential for Cesar’s Way which will hit the streets on September 15th. They want to make Millan a recognizable name in every home. Let’s hope this new venture doesn’t make Cesar Millan forget about his roots and leave behind all of the good work he has accomplished on behalf of dogs and abused animals.

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Dog Whisperer launching magazine

Shh. What's that? It's either the rustling of money or Cesar Millan whispering about a new venture...maybe both.

The canine trainer famously known as The Dog Whisperer is launching a new magazine called Cesar's Way. This is in addition to his book, products and TV show about helping dogs with behavior issues.

The Wall Street Journal reports: Cesar's Way, which hits newsstands next week, is filled with slick photos of celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Jennifer Aniston with pets in tow.

Articles include "Can Your Dog Fix Your Marriage? Just Ask Jada Pinkett Smith" and "7-Day Doggie Detox." IMG says it plans to publish two issues this year and six in 2010.

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Look what Cesar’s stepping into now

TV’s “Dog Whisperer” has sniffed out some new turf: He’s launching a

magazine that will hit newstands next week.

The magazine — dubbed Cesar’s Way – will be a joint venture between Cesar Millan and the New York sports management and entertainment firm IMG, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The Journal reports that the premier issue is heavy on celebrities, with Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton, Jennifer Aniston and their pets filling many of its pages. Articles seem to have a celebrity bent as well, including “Can Your Dog Fix Your Marriage? Just Ask Jada Pinkett Smith” and “7-Day Doggie Detox.”

IMG says it plans to publish two issues this year and six in 2010.

Millan, following in the footsteps of Opray Winfrey and Rachel Ray, will see if his fame parlays into newsstand sales. He’s listed as editorial director of the magazine.

The new magazine joins about 60 other dog-related titles in the U.S., including Dog Fancy, Doggie Aficionado and Urban Dog, according to the National Directory of Magazines.

The Journal says Cesar’s Way faces the worst ad climate in decades — one that has forced the closure of such magazines as CosmoGirl, House & Garden and Domino. In the first half of 2009, magazine ad revenue plunged 21% from a year earlier, according to the Publishers Information Bureau.

Nevertheless, IMG and Millan think they can profit from the 75 million dog owners in the U.S. and the “recession-resistance” of the pet industry. “People have continue d to spend on their pets,” Millan said. “You always want to make sure your family is taken care of, and Americans believe the dog is part of the family.”

IMG isn’t the only company to see dollar signs in the pet market. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia added a pet destination to its Web site this year. People Magazine introduced PeoplePets, and Honda is touting its pet-friendly Element with features such as a cushioned pet bed in the cargo area and a pet-restraint system.

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Pet Pro Profile:
Ilusion Millan

As Cesar Millan has become a household name thanks to his National Geographic Channel series "Dog Whisperer" and his bestselling books, a powerful force behind the scenes has been wife Ilusion Millan. Serving as president of Cesar Millan, Inc. and Editor-at-Large of the newly-launched Cesar's Way magazine, Ilusion Millan is at work on a variety of projects from developing a school curriculum to foundation work to help homeless dogs. Recently DogTipper.com interviewed Ilusion Millan about her work and the new magazine.

In an economic climate when sadly many magazines are folding, "Cesar's Way" has launched. What is it about dogs that you believe is helping the pet industry go against the odds and succeed during this downturn?

In households all across the country, family has really become the focal point. The state of the economy doesn't change the fact that you take care of your family as best you can, no matter what. You do what you can with what you have, even in a downturn. Dogs are a part of that family unit, and I think more and more people are recognizing that. That's why the dog industry is still going strong.

As a mother, you've been able to introduce your sons to all types of dogs

and made sure they understand the proper way to safely meet a strange dog. For parents new to the dog world, do you have a tip as to where they can begin to introduce their children to dogs even if their situation doesn't permit them to have a dog at home at the present time?

No touch, no talk, no eye contact! That's a rule that my husband teaches to adults when they meet dogs for the first time, and it's something that is important - maybe even more important - for kids to follow.

Many parents teach their kids that it is okay to be excited when they see a dog, so the child will run up, give the dog a big hug, and look him straight in the eye. Dogs can see this unstable energy as a threat. Imagine if a complete stranger ran up to you and did those things.

So I would recommend that you treat every encounter with a dog as an opportunity to teach how to properly interact with an animal, and I would recommend taking time to talk to your child about compassion towards animals. If you can touch the heart of a child, that message will stick with them forever, so this is an issue that Cesar and I feel very passionately about. Our non-profit organization, the Cesar and Ilusion Millan Foundation, is currently working on a curriculum to teach kids the safe way to interact with dogs.

The goal of the program is to teach kids social and emotional skills, so they grow up to become more respectful, compassionate, and confident - skills they to become pack leaders in both the human and the animal world!

As a former preschool teacher

and a mother, you've been working with North Shore Animal League and Yale University developing the "Mutt-i-grees" Curriculum to teach preschool and primary age children empathy and care for homeless animals. Can you tell us more about your work with the program and your goals for the project?

The Mutt-i-grees® Curriculum teaches empathy and caring for homeless pets. It is a unique approach to humane education. But it is so much more. It teaches empathy and caring within the broader context of social and emotional learning, which is the classroom application of emotional intelligence.

It will teach a generation of children to be aware of their emotions and of other people and animals, to be able to think about people's actions, and our reactions - as well as make informed and socially-aware decisions. The message is take care of yourself, take care of other people and animals, take care of your community and the environment.

I am very excited about The Mutt-i-grees Curriculum and its potential for children to grow up humane in the broad sense - toward animals as well as each other.

What is remarkable is that when children learn about emotional intelligence - when they acquire social and emotional skills - they become better learners. There are so many studies that have shown the link between social and emotional learning and academic achievement.

As a former teacher and mother, I know that these skills are so essential in today's global environment. And knowing how important this will be in saving animals is especially gratifying to me.

The Curriculum starts with preschool and the primary grades, but we hope to have follow up with versions for older students in the upper elementary grades, middle school, and high school.

What's the most rewarding part of your job as president of the Cesar Millan, Inc.?

I am so proud of the work we do through the non-profit Foundation; of our efforts to help in the rescue, rehabilitation, and re-homing of abused and abandoned dogs. I love knowing that we're helping people to experience the growth and self discovery that come from realizing their potential for pack leadership. The relationship between humans and dogs gives us insight into who we really are, and I think that makes us all better people. Being a part of that transformation of human beings by way of this relationship is very exciting.

What would you like the readers of DogTipper.com to know about "Cesar's Way" and your goals for the coming months?

Our chief goal is to produce a magazine that helps you better manage the relationship between you and your dog. We hear inspiring stories every day from owners all over the country describing how their dogs have enriched their lives and given them a better sense of themselves. The magazine is about sharing those stories with a wider audience, because we think that the personal lessons those people have learned can be applied to anyone. That's very important to us. And, of course, there will be plenty of tips to help you develop your inner pack leader.

For More Information:

visit www.cesarmillaninc.com

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BLOG MAGAZINE: "Cesar's Way Latest in Pet Lifestyle Genre"

POP HANGOVER: "Dog Whisperer Getting His Own Magazine"

I break BrandIndex's research on AT&T losing consumer favor in Adweek, Mediapost, ZDNet, AppleInsider, MacDailyNews

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:46:00 +0000

AT&T consumer perception drops during summ er '09

Despite rumors that Apple may be looking into extending its contract with AT&T, consumer perception for the carrier has dropped lower than it has all year.

In a comparison of Verizon Wireless and AT&T consumer perception among adults 18 and older, goodwill toward AT&T has dropped precipitously compared to rival Verizon, according to daily YouGov BrandIndex data.

Urban iPhone overload and data outages during the summer season may be to blame.

BrandIndex measures “consumer perception” by averaging scores in response to questions about the quality, value, satisfaction, recommendation, reputation and impression of a brand.

AT&T has always lagged behind Verizon Wireless, but the gap began widening noticeably in mid-June, according to the data. Between June 16 and Sept. 10, AT&T’s Index score dropped from 18.3 to 14.6, “a substantial drop for this kind of score,” a BrandIndex spokesman said.

Verizon’s score dropped less than two points’ worth in the same time period.

Drops in quality (”Is it high quality or low quality?”) and recommend (”Would you recommend the brand to a friend?”) scores contributed to the overall drop, according to the spokesman.

YouGov’s BrandIndex interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative U.S. population sample. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than 1 million individuals. Margin of error is +/- 2 percent.

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AT&T IPhone Data Woes Depress Perception

For AT&T, the benefit of success that comes as the exclusive carrier of the iPhone may very well also be a burden.

Amid press reports that AT&T's network is having trouble keeping up with its customers' data usage (directly related to the iPhone adoption), company perception among adults has dropped steadily over the summer, according to YouGovPolimetrix's BrandIndex, which measures daily consumer perception of brands.

"There's been a significant amount of high-profile press in the past couple of weeks about AT&T's data problems," Ted Marzilli, CEO of YouGovPolimetrix, tells Marketing Daily. "There's no question it implies that there are some serious concerns for AT&T and Apple as they consider [extending the exclusivity of] the iPhone."

According to the company, AT&T's "Index" score (which is the average of its Quality, Value, Satisfaction, Recommendation, Reputation and Impression scores) has been dropping since mid-June. On June 16, the company's Index score was 18.3. By Sept. 10, it had dropped to 14.6. (By comparison, Verizon Wireless' score on Sept. 10 was 21.2, about the same as it was at the beginning of the year.) The company's biggest score drops were on the Quality and Recommend scales, suggesting that stories addressing data outages were having an effect on company perception.

"I think there's still only a small number of people who've given up the iPhone and AT&T," Marzilli says. "I think there's a larger number of people who want to buy an iPhone, but are hesitating because of these problems with AT&T's data coverage."

In the meantime, some damage control may be in order for AT&T [such as] putting together a plan to tell the public how they're going to address the problem and a timeline for putting it into place, Marzilli says. "AT&T has to work very, very hard to make sure those [iPhone] subscribers are profitable and happy, particularly before the exclusivity agreement runs out. Because once they leave, it's going to be very hard to get them back."

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Study shows steady decline in AT&T brand perception

Since the launch of the iPhone 3GS, public perception of AT&T has progressively decreased, while opinions about competitor Verizon Wireless remained relatively unchanged, a new study shows.

In a daily survey of 5,000 people 18 and older, YouGov's BrandIndex tracks companies based on factors of quality, value, satisfaction, recommendation, reputation and impression. When combining those categories, AT&T's index score of 18.3 on June 16 had eroded to a 14.6 on Thursday -- a change company senior vice president Ted Marzilli told AppleInsider is "statistically significant."

He said the survey could indicate that some people may pause before they buy an iPhone because they don't want to be locked into an AT&T contract. Though he believes the contract between AT&T and Apple has likely been beneficial to both parties for the last two years, the timing of AT&T's public perception decline suggests the

issue can be traced to the launch of the iPhone 3GS -- or, more specifically, the network's inability to meet the bandwidth needs of users with the device.

"It may be hindering iPhone adoption at this point," Marzilli said, "and I think Apple is going to take a hard look at what they will do next."

AT&T has always been perceived as an inferior brand to Verizon Wireless in the index rankings. However, it was in mid-June that the gap between the two companies began to widen. Though AT&T's 14.6 score in overall feedback remains relatively positive, it still lags behind well behind Verizon in consumer perception. In the last three months, AT&T's biggest hits came in the quality and recommendation rankings.

"AT&T can come out with its initiatves and its announcements, but the problem is people on the Web are starting to blog about their problems with the AT&T network," Marzilli said. "It's a bit of a snowball effect."

While the study found AT&T's score to consistently drop over the last three months, Verizon has stayed much the same as it was in January. Its Sept. 10 score was 21.2. Scores can range from 100 to -100. A score of zero would mean equal positive and negative feedback.

The BrandIndex rankings sample a representative portion of the U.S. population. The company said it conducts more than 1.2 million interviews

per year from an online panel of more than one million individuals. The company said its survey's margin of error is +/- 2 percent.

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Report: iPhone Adoption Uncovers AT&T's Flaws

NEW YORK While it was certainly a coup for AT&T to get the exclusive rights to the Apple iPhone, the agreement hasn't been entirely positive for the wireless giant. Consumers who flocked to AT&T to use the device were disappointed with the quality of the service, according to new findings from YouGov's BrandIndex.

AT&T's perception among adults over the age of 18 has steadily eroded throughout the summer, while Verizon Wireless has retained its standing, per an online poll of 5,000 consumers.

Consumers were asked to rate quality, value, satisfaction, recommendation, reputation and impression to generate an overall index score. Thanks to drops in the quality ("Is it high quality or low quality?") and recommendation ("Would you recommend the brand to a friend?") rankings, AT&T's index score fell to 14.6 as of Sept. 10. That was down from 18.3 on June 16 and is considered a substantial drop for this type of index, per YouGov.

"For AT&T, it's beginning to look like a case of 'be careful what you wish for' with its overloaded network and dropped calls," said YouGov svp Ted Marzilli. "While there are no other options for iPhone users, BlackBerry's new ultra-competitive products and two-for-one deals at Verizon Wireless may make both Apple and AT&T vulnerable to 'iPhone flown.'"

Verizon Wireless' index score on Sept. 10 was 21.2, which is consistent with its rankings throughout the year.

AT&T rep Jenny Bridges said the survey is off base. "We continue to have low churn rates, which can be attributed to the fact that our customers are pleased with the services we're providing them," she said. "We care about the experience customers have with AT&T. That's why we continue to invest billions of dollars a year in making network improvements, including the continued launch of our 3G wireless services in markets across the U.S. and the launch of HSPA 7.2 in six major markets by the end of this year."

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AT&T brand perception steadily declines as Apple iPhone taxes network capabilities

"Since the launch of the iPhone 3GS, public perception of AT&T has progressively decreased, while opinions about competitor Verizon Wireless remained relatively unchanged, a new study shows," Neil Hughes reports for AppleInsider.

MacDailyNews Take: For the umpteenth time: Take those 10+ million U.S. iPhones off AT&T and plop them on Verizon and watch AT&T satisfaction soar (especially in metro areas) and Verizon come to a grinding halt. No carrier, including Verizon's, is ready for 10+ million devices that are actually used for serious data consumption. Verizon's network accommodates inferior devices that only sip data in comparison to iPhone due to their unusable web browsers (if they even have them) and generally indecipherable user interfaces which, only benefits the carrier as they get to sell phones on features that most people will never use. The iPhone's ease-of-use (snap a photo or even shoot a video and send it over AT&T's network to wherever; robust, real Web Browsing; data-consuming apps which include streaming video over 3G, etc.) combined with the vast, rapidly-growing number of iPhones would cripple any carrier. If AT&T can't get a handle on it, Apple would do well to reconsider their exclusive U.S. arrangement and spread the wealth - and the data consumption - to other carriers, as soon as (technically and legally) possible.

Hughes continues, "In a daily survey of 5,000 people 18 and older, YouGov's BrandIndex tracks companies based on factors of quality, value, satisfaction, recommendation, reputation and impression. When combining those categories, AT&T's index score of 18.3 on June 16 had eroded to a 14.6 on Thursday... [YouGov's senior vice president Ted Marzilli] "suggests the issue can be traced to the launch of the iPhone 3GS -- or, more specifically, the network's inability to meet the bandwidth needs of users with the device."

"While the study found AT&T's score to consistently drop over the last three months, Verizon has stayed much the same as it was in January," Hughes reports. "Its Sept. 10 score was 21.2. Scores can range from 100 to -100. A score of zero would mean equal positive and negative feedback."

More info in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: No wireless network was ready for Apple's revolution which brought 10+ million of devices that actually use copious amounts of data coming online within a few short years. Of course, AT&T is struggling with it. Any network would. Especially in the U.S. where the land mass is huge and the terrain varied. Suffice to say, it's much easier to properly cover Belgium*, for just one example (hold the emails, we love Belgium, send beer instead!), than the entire United States of America. AT&T is somewhat unfairly paying the price in perception when any wireless carriers' network would show similar strains. As usual, Apple is pushing forward, disrupting the status quo. It's not pretty, for AT&T especially, but Apple has caused a paradigm shift in mobile computing and more rapid mobile network improvements will come from it.

All that said, the market will take care of this by either forcing overwhelmed AT&T to keep the pedal to the metal and press even harder if they want to keep U.S. iPhone exclusivity or, if AT&T's can't or won't rapidly improve their network capacity/coverage, causing Apple to pursue a non-exclusive U.S. carrier strategy lest iPhone sales and brand perception begin to suffer.

* Belgium is about about the size of the state of Maryland.

Land IMG's new "Dog Whisperer" joint venture on front of The Wall Street Journal, followed by Mediaweek & Mediapost

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:39:00 +0000

'Dog Whisperer' Hopes to Lead Pack at Newsstand

With New Magazine, IMG and Cesar Millan Join Chase for Ad Dollars From Recession-Resistant Pet-Care Industry

IMG Worldwide and TV's "Dog Whisperer," Cesar Millan, are looking to take a bite out of the growing pet-care market.

In the face of a harsh advertising climate, the New York sports management and entertainment firm is launching a magazine dedicated to dog owners and their pets. The new publication, Cesar's Way, is a joint venture between IMG and Mr. Millan, a dog trainer used by celebrities like Oprah Winfrey. The partners declined to discuss the project's finances.

Inaugural issue of Cesar's Way. A second issue is planned this year and six in 2010.

Cesar's Way, which hits newsstands next week, is filled with slick photos of celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton and Jennifer Aniston with pets in tow. Articles include "Can Your Dog Fix Your Marriage? Just Ask Jada Pinkett Smith" and "7-Day Doggie Detox." IMG says it plans to publish two issues this year and six in 2010.

The magazine is the latest example of TV personalities trying to parlay their popularity into newsstand sales. Mr. Millan, who will be editorial director of the magazine, has starred in National Geographic's popular canine reality series -- think "Super Nanny" for dogs -- since 2004.

Some of the magazine industry's biggest hits have been celebrity-edited, says Lee Rosenbaum, vice president of IMG's publishing arm. "Just look at Oprah and Rachael Ray," he says.

But it's a you-know-what world out there. The new magazine joins about 60 other dog-related titles in the U.S., including Dog Fancy, Doggie Aficionado and Urban Dog, according to the National Directory of Magazines.

"Like all publications, it's been a little slow for the past two years," says Norman Ridker, founder and president of BowTie, a privately held publisher of dozens of pet magazines, including Dog Fancy and Dog World.

In addition to its many rivals, Cesar's Way faces the worst ad climate in decades -- one that has forced the closure of such magazines as CosmoGirl, House & Garden and Domino. In the first half of 2009, magazine ad revenue plunged 21% from a year earlier to $9 billion, according to the Publishers Information Bureau.

Celebrity-edited magazines, too, have been stung by the downturn. Ad pages in Every Day With Rachael Ray fell 14% for the first six months of the year, while ad pages in O, The Oprah Magazine, slid 29%.

IMG knows firsthand how tough the recession has been. Earlier this year it closed down Tennis Week, which had been around for decades.

Still, IMG and Mr. Millan think they can profit from the 75 million dog owners in the U.S. and the pet industry, which has proved to be somewhat resistant to the recession. Sales of pet food and supplies are expected to increase 2.9% to $27.5 billion in 2009, according to research group Mintel International.

"People have continued to spend on their pets," Mr. Millan says. "You always want to make sure your family is taken care of, and Americans believe the dog is part of the family."

IMG isn't the only company to see dollar signs in the pet market. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia added a pet destination to its Web site this year. Honda Motor introduced an Element with features such as a cushioned pet bed in the cargo area and a pet-restraint system.

Media buyers says it's a tough time to start a new title, but some of them say having a narrow audience can be appealing to advertisers.

"Niche magazines today are more important, because marketers are trying to be more efficient with their ad dollars, and this would be a way for pet food and pet services companies to reach their target audience," says Robin Steinberg, director of print investment at Mediavest, a media-buying firm owned by Publicis Groupe.

The first issue of Cesar's Way includes ads for pet-supplier retailer Petco, Del Monte Foods' dog treats and Halo pet food.

While ad spending on pet food has fallen, it has fared better than other sectors. Ad outlays by pet-food companies slid 5% to $299.2 million in 2008, less than the declines of 15% and 5.7% seen among auto makers and telecom companies, respectively, according to TNS Media Intelligence. For the first three months of this year, spending on pet food ads rose 24%.

The magazine is part of a marketing effort to turn Mr. Millan into a household name. IMG has represented him since 2007, during which time he has written several books, created a popular Web site and produced several dog-training videos.

Almost half of America's consumers already know who he is, and consumers' awareness of Mr. Millan has grown 12% since May 2008, according to Davie-Brown, an Omnicom Group company that tracks the appeal of celebrities.

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Nat Geo's 'Dog Whisperer' Adds Magazine to Portfolio

One area that seems to defy the down market is the money people spend on their pets. And marketers have taken notice, as a growing genre of slick, pet-lifestyle magazines suggests.

The latest to be unleashed is Cesar’s Way, a spinoff of the popular National Geographic Channel’s The Dog Whisperer starring dog behavior expert Cesar Millan. Launching Sept. 15, Cesar’s Way is the first regularly published consumer magazine from IMG, the sports, media and entertainment marketing company behind such events as Fashion Week and its related publication The Daily (and Millan’s rep).

It’s also the latest in Millan’s growing media empire, wh ich includes the show going into its sixth season in October, a line of products at Petco, books and a one-hour strip on Twentieth Television starting in fall 2010.

Cesar’s Way will publish twice in 2009 with a guaranteed circulation of 150,000 and six times in 2010, when the rate base will rise to 250,000. Stories will feature celebrities and their dogs, human-interest tales and dog-training tips.

But don’t call it a dog magazine, said Lee Rosenbaum, vp, publishing at IMG and ex-publisher of the erstwhile music magazine Blender. “We show [people’s] lifestyles and how dogs fit within their lifestyle,” he said, adding, “It’s a bit of a mixed breed.”

Indeed, this new breed of pet magazines considers itself a different animal from the older, less-glitzy pet titles like Dog Fancy and American Kennel Club publications. (That top fashion photog Gilles Bensimon shot the cover of the first issue of Cesar’s Way is bu t one indication.)

“I think we try to transcend that Best in Show stereotype,” Rosenbaum quipped. Other such “dog culture” magazines include The Bark, a six-times-a-year magazine and Modern Dog, a quarterly.

“Dog Fancy, the old, traditional take on dogs, was just basically about service, how to show [and] breed dogs,” said Cameron Woo, publisher of 120,000-circ The Bark, adding that his title “launched a whole wave of pet coverage.”

Such titles are making inroads with not just pet food marketers but blue-chip auto, travel and packaged goods advertisers. The Bark is on track to car ry about 200 ad pages this year including Bissell, Jeep and Subaru with its irreverent coverage (recent topics included the South Korean practice of dining on dog and canine representation in Renaissance painting).

“It has broadened from the traditional advertisers—dog food, accessories, toys and leashes—[from] companies that…carry those things as part of their business to car companies who want to reach out to this demographic,” Woo said.

Similarly, Cesar’s Way is carrying Sketchers, JetBlue and Best Western in its launch issue in addition to Frontline and Del Monte pet food. “The dog is really part of the family, and a caregiver is a caregiver,” explained Rosenbaum. “So if you can engage that caregiver, it’s easy to engage them in talking about the other members of the family.”

Established print media also have taken note of the pet craze.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia this year launched a new pet channel on its Web site and added related content to its TV and radio show and in its magazines Martha Stewart Living, Everyday Food and Body + Soul. Nestlé Purina PetCare was the sponsor.

Also, Hearst’s Country Living has expanded its pet coverage this year under editor Sarah Gray Miller and has seen an uptick in pet advertising. People.com started a pets channel in December to tap into reader interest in celebrities’ pets.

Betsy Baltzer, media acquisition director for Kansas City-based agency Bernstein-Rein, sees a lot of growth in the pet media category, reflecting consumers’ continued spending on their pets.

Yet Baltzer said national publications’ efforts to add pet content don’t a lways succeed. “Some just want to do advertorial sections,” she said. “It’s not as committed. The advantage of the pet enthusiast [title] is you know someone is reading the publication because they truly are a pet enthusiast.”

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Mag Bag: Dog Whisperer Debuts Pub

Cesar Millan, who has built a media and merchandise empire by getting neurotic dogs to behave, is adding another medium to his media portfolio: print. In partnership with IMG, a sports and entertainment marketing company, Millan is launching Cesar's Way Sept. 15, which will have a guaranteed circulation of 150,000 with two publication dates in 2009.

If all goes according to plan, Cesar's Way will increase its rate base to 250,000 in 2010, when it will publish bimonthly. The launch issue includes natural endemic advertisers like Del Monte's pet food brands, but also human-focused brands like Skechers, JetBlue, and Best Western.

The magazine will cover various subjects pertaining to human-canine relations, including stories about celebrities and their dogs, regular people and their dogs, and dog-training tips. Cesar's Way will also feature lifestyle content focused on how people adapt (or fail to adapt) to dog ownership. The magazine will probably feature the information that makes Millan's show on the National Geographic Channel, "The Dog Whisperer," so fascinating: His almost supernatural understanding and faculty for communicating with dogs.

While it's launching in a difficult environment for consumer magazines, Cesar's Way is banking on Americans' enthusiasm about pet ownership. Indeed, established titles about pets have held up better than other consumer magazines in recent years. From June 2004-June 2009, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy have both seen their total circulation hold steady at about 240,000.

Nation's Restaurant News focuses on BrandIndex's burger QSR research

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:22:00 +0000

Study: Perceptions of burger chains improve

NEW YORK (Sept. 4, 2009) Whether it’s because consumers are “trading down” from casual dining or due to aggressive value promotions and advertising, quick-service burger restaurants have improved their standing in the eyes of customers in the past 12 months, according to a new study by BrandIndex.

The New York-based consumer perception research firm tracked several indicators of brand health from August 2008 to August 2009 for McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s. All five chains logged steady improvements in their overall brand health scores, as determined by BrandIndex’s method of surveying 5,000 consumers every weekday from an online panel of more than 1 million people who have opted to participate.

Ted Marzilli, senior vice president and global managing director for BrandIndex, said the chains studied not only benefited from value-seeking consumers trading down to quick service, but also through their value- and quality-focused marketing.

“It’s actually a little bit of both,” Marzilli said. “A lot of casual customers are now open to eating at a quick-service restaurant. I also think [the brands] have been doing heavy advertising on the value side, and folks like McDonald’s are promoting McCafé and targeting Starbucks, trying to improve their quality.”

The best-perceived brand overall remains Wendy’s, the data revealed. Its brand health score was consistently in the mid-30s for the 12 months ended in August, compared with averages in the high teens for Burger King, a range from low single digits to a high around 10 for McDonald’s, and scores that went from slightly negative to slightly positive for Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s.

Scores can range from 100 to negative 100 and are compiled by subtracting negative ratings from positive, meaning that more positive feedback from consumers surveyed yields higher scores for the brands.

Wendy’s also had a commanding lead in consumer perception scores on several factors, including its “quality” scores in the mid-30s, “value” scores trending flat around 40, and scores in the mid-40s for “satisfaction.” It also was the only chain with a positive score for “reputation,” which measures whether respondents would be proud or embarrassed to work for the brand.

Marzilli said Wendy’s scores reflect not only good branding and execution, but also the tendency for its larger rivals to take most of the heat for quick service’s negative perceptions.

“McDonald’s and Burger King have taken the brunt of the backlash at times among different government groups or consumer groups saying fast food contributes to obesity,” he said. “Wendy’s, being the No. 3 player, escapes that spotlight, and it also has a history of differentiating itself from QSR.”

Wendy’s restructured its brand strategy following its September 2008 merger with Arby’s parent Triarc Cos., and its subsequent “Waaaay Better” ad campaign focused on food quality. Its latest round of commercials, featuring its boneless wings, encourages customers to pay for flavor, not flair, in a jab at casual-dining brands.

McDonald’s made significant improvements in overall brand perception, distancing itself from Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s in the rankings and narrowing its gap with No. 2 brand Burger King.

McDonald’s widening the gap in overall scores from Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s — its August 2009 scores hovered around a value of 10, while scores for both CKE-owned chains were just above a neutral score of zero — comes as the two regional chains have escalated a premium-burger war with the segment’s sales leader.

Carl’s Jr. unveiled in August the Big Carl, a burger with twice the beef and cheese as a Big Mac but meant to be sold for less than McDonald’s iconic sandwich. CKE Restaurants also unveiled an ad campaign urging consumers not to believe the “McHype” surrounding McDonald’s July rollout of its Angus Third Pounder line of burgers. The marketing efforts include a money-back guarantee, beginning this month, where CKE will give consumers refunds if they don’t think the Six Dollar Burger at Carl’s Jr. or the Thickburger at Hardee’s tastes better than McDonald’s new premium burger.

Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s lag behind the three main burger brands in overall brand health in part because they’re regionally focused, Marzilli said, with Carl’s Jr. primarily in the West and Hardee’s in the Midwest and Southeast.

“Even if Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. make an impact, on a national scale it’s hard for them to gain ground,” Marzilli said. “There’s an advantage of scale in this industry. There are lots of folks driven by their stomachs and time of day when they decide they’re going to eat, and they’re more likely to be in the proximity of a Burger King or McDonald’s.”

Burger King benefits from its branding advertising, Marzilli added, as its commercials starring mascot The King, developed by agency of record Crispin Porter + Bogusky, keep the brand top of mind.

“Burger King takes a different path, working with Crispin Porter, which is known to be a more creative shop,” Marzilli said. “But when you look at the BrandIndex numbers, Burger King’s made improvements steadily and they’ve been generating really positive buzz. ‘Whopper Virgins’ rubbed some people the wrong way and got some negative press, and that’s one of the dangers of a creative shop, but in general that approach is working for Burger King. It’s a little more risky, but over time it reinforces this message that Burger King is cool.”

The effect of the Whole Foods boycott -- BrandIndex featured in Mashable

drew@four-corners.com (Drew Kerr) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 09:19:00 +0000

As Whole Foods Boycott Grows on Facebook, Brand Perception Drops

As the Whole Foods Boycott on Facebook continues to swell — the group now has over 27,000

members — we’re finding out that CEO John Mackey’s statements in The Wall Street Journal are affecting more than just angry Facebookers, but consumers in general.

According to YouGov’s BrandIndex, which tracks the daily consumer

perception of brands, consumer opinion towards Whole Foods has been falling fast on the Web since the editorial

appeared.

YouGov scores brands from 100 to -100, with zero being neutral, based

daily interviews from respondents, and they track the change in the score to show a rise or decline in overall brand perception.

Their buzz chart is a reflection of how buzz perception changes over time. They ask consumers, “If you’ve heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, was it positive or negative?” Their results indicate that Whole Foods had a buzz score of 22.8 on August 12th, and that score fell to 13.6 by August 20th. That’s almost a 10 point drop in just over a week.

The reputation chart is scored in the same manner, but asks respondents, “Would you be proud or embarrassed to work for this brand?” According to their research, the reputation score is suffering even more. On August 12th Whole Foods had a 33.3 score, but by the 20th they were down to 20.3.

Can the results be trusted? Well, according to the firm, “YouGov’s BrandIndex interviews 5,000 people each weekday from a representative US population sample, more than 1.2 million interviews per year. Respondents are drawn from an online panel of more than 1MM individuals. Margin of error is a very accurate +/- 2%.”

While we take no sides on the issue, it’s hard not to attribute at least some of the drop in consumer perception to the vocal Facebook group that has emerged in the aftermath of the CEO’s Wall Street Journal op-ed. Should YouGov’s research be as accurate as it claims to be, then Whole Foods definitely needs to be concerned about this social media backlash that’s negatively impacting consumer opinion.