How British Word of Mouth Compares to Other Markets Around the World

LONDON, March 11, 2011 - — Newly released research by Keller Fay Group show similarities outweigh
differences on macro dimensions of WOM –

— However, important differences shine through at the category and brand
level –

— UK leads other markets in terms of WOM volume –

— Higher WOM levels in UK than other markets for 9 of 15 categories –

— Tesco is #1 WOM brand in UK –

Word of mouth marketing is a global phenomenon now. Which raises an
important question: How similar, or different, are people's WOM behavior
across markets? How does word of mouth in the UK compare to other markets
such as the US?

Answers to these questions were revealed recently by word of mouth expert
Brad Fay, COO of the Keller Fay Group, to an invitation-only audience of
advertising agencies, media, and word of mouth marketers hosted by the IPA
and WOMMA UK. The presentation was based on a multinational study of word of
mouth about products services and brands in the UK, US, and Australia
conducted by Keller Fay.

UK a WOM leader

    -- The UK leads in terms of WOM volume, with 70 brand-related
       conversations per week versus 68 in Australia and 65 in the US.
    -- The UK has the largest percentage of people who talk daily about 9 of
       15 consumer categories studied including media/entertainment,
       beverages, technology, travel, financial services, home products,
       household products, and personal care/beauty.
    -- Despite the growth in global brands, Coke and Apple are the only two
       brands that are among the top 10 most talked about in the UK, US, and
       Australia.
       -- The UK "most talked about brands" include primarily local brands,
          led by Tesco, with BT, ASDA, Boots, Sky and Sainsbury's also among
          the top 10

More similarities in WOM behaviour around the world than differences

In commenting on the results, Fay noted, "differences in the word of
mouth performance of individual brands around the world is a key reason that
marketers must depend on research to guide marketing strategies and tactics
in global markets. But when it comes to the larger question of the role of
social influence in consumer marketing, we find there's much more that unites
our planet than divides it."

    -- Food/dining and media/entertainment are the most frequently talked
       about categories in all three countries.
    -- Positive WOM about brands far outweighs negative. In all three
       countries, over 6 in 10 conversations about brands are positive; fewer
       than 10% are negative.
    -- Conversations about brands occur offline far more often than online.
       In all three countries, online represented exactly 7% of conversations
       about products and brands, while close to 80+% happens offline
       (primarily face-to-face) in all three countries.
    -- Marketing and advertising play big roles in stimulating word of mouth.
       About half of all conversations in the three countries involve a
       reference to some form of media or marketing-i.e., an advertisement,
       coupon, website, or a display at retail.

The Keller Fay Group (www.kellerfay.com) is the first full-service
market research company focused exclusively on word of mouth (WOM) marketing.
The research is based on nationally representative word of mouth research
studies conducted by Keller Fay in Britain, the US and Australia using its
TalkTrack(R) methodology which measures both offline as well as online word
of mouth among representative samples of consumers.

Brad Fay, +1-732-846.6800, bfay at kellerfay.com