For B2B Market Research Professionals

What Type Of Market Research Online Community Vendor Should Tech B2B Market Researchers Use?

Three Choices Exist, Dependent On Budget, Usage Pattern, And Support Needs

by Brad Bortner, November 19, 2009

Market research online communities (MROCS) are the next wave in qualitative research, due to their combination of new qualitative research capabilities and ability to provide cheaper faster results. There is, however, buyer confusion about what type of . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Navigating The Twittersphere

How To Market On Twitter

by Nate Elliott, November 19, 2009

Successfully engaging with consumers on Twitter requires both the right overarching strategy and a series of small best practices. Interactive marketers must ensure that consumers can find their brands' accounts, confirm that they are legitimate, and . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Adaptive Brand Marketing: An eBusiness Perspective

by Sucharita Mulpuru, November 13, 2009

Adaptive Brand Marketing is a flexible approach in which marketers respond quickly to their environment to align consumer and brand goals and maximize return on brand equity. We expect marketing professionals to embrace this new approach in order to keep . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

US Interactive Marketing Forecast By Industry, 2009 To 2014

by Shar VanBoskirk, November 11, 2009

Although interactive marketing is poised to grow at a 16% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) overall, not all industries will match this pace. Retail and financial services will own the largest share of all interactive marketing, while brand advertisers . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Case Study: The NHL Uses Tweet-Ups To Energize Its Fan Base And Reach New Audiences

by Nate Elliott, November 4, 2009

To create excitement around the start of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the National Hockey League (NHL) worked with fans to organize a series of tweet-ups that took place simultaneously around the world — energizing more than 1,000 fans directly and . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

2009 Forrester Groundswell Awards Winners Offer B2B Tech Marketers Valuable Social Media Lessons

by Laura Ramos, November 4, 2009

Business-to-business (B2B) marketers approach social strategy with a mix of enthusiasm and skepticism. Most want to know which firms execute social pursuits well and what tangible outcomes occur. The B2B Division winners of the 2009 Forrester Groundswell . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Targeting Eco-Friendly Consumers

by Emily Riley, October 29, 2009

Eco-friendly consumers are an educated group with higher incomes than most online consumers and a high likelihood of using the Web to research and purchase products. As the green trend rises in Europe, interactive marketers must be keenly aware of how . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Three Steps To Measuring Social Media Marketing

A Measurement Framework Based On Objectives, Not Technologies

by Nate Elliott, October 29, 2009

Interactive marketers know they're not good at measuring the effectiveness of social media: On average, they rate their own efforts to measure social initiatives at only 4.5 out of 10. Marketers fail because they focus on the metrics that are most easily . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

How B2B Technology Buyers Use Social Media

Support Forums Rank Highest Among Emerging Tactics

by Laura Ramos, October 26, 2009

Technology buying is a highly considered, collaborative process, one ideally suited for social interactions. To see how emerging digital media affect the process, Forrester surveyed 1,217 technology decision-makers to find out which online sources will . . .

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

Driving A Contactless Network Effect In The US

Supply Is Strong, But Only Marketing And Usage Rewards Will Drive Demand

by Edward Kountz, October 23, 2009

While recent years have seen increased issuance and merchant acceptance of contactless payments in the US, consumer usage remains low. Some institutions are exploring instant issuance and contactless payment stickers as steps to alter this dynamic, but . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

The State Of Retailing Online 2009: Profitability, Economy, And Multichannel

by Sucharita Mulpuru, October 23, 2009

Although 2008 is generally regarded by retail executives to be one of the worst years ever, online retailers as a whole fared well. In "The State of Retailing Online 2009," a Shop.org study conducted by Forrester Research, retailers noted that Web divisions . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Full-Service Market Research Online Community Vendors, Q4 2009

Communispace And Vision Critical Lead In A Space That's Heating Up

by Tamara Barber, October 22, 2009

In Forrester's 46-criteria evaluation of six full-service market research online community (MROC) vendors, we found that Communispace and Vision Critical led the pack because of the former's commitment to high customer service and deliverables and the . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Developing Social Marketing Skills

Draw On Existing Core Marketing Skills To Improve Social Marketing Efforts

by Sean Corcoran, October 21, 2009

With 82% of US online adults active with social technologies, social marketing has become an essential part of any marketing organization. Moreover, social marketing requires new skills from marketers and their organizations, placing pressure on managers . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Survey Highlights: How European Consumers Connect With Companies On Social Networks  (504 KB PPT)

by Olesia Klevchuk, October 21, 2009

This highlight deck summarizes the key findings related to social networking and companies from Forrester's European Technographics Media, Marketing, And Social Computing Online Survey, Q3 2009.

For Consumer Product Strategy Professionals

Reaching Consumers Who Will Help Product Development

Where And Who Are Those Key Social Media Users That Can Help You Deliver New Killer Products And Services?

by Paul Jackson, October 21, 2009

Having established a need or desire to engage with a consumer community to help product and service development, how do you find, target, and engage the appropriate people? Locating the right channels, forums, and communities is not hard, but this should . . .

For Marketing Leadership Professionals

Marketing Leaders: Make Marketing Innovation A Mandate

Seed And Source Innovation From Within, Based On A Plan

by Mary Beth Kemp, October 16, 2009

Consumers, and the marketing strategies to engage with them, change with every technology twist. Although many marketers dabble in new marketing initiatives, most don't approach experimentation and innovation on a consistent basis. CMOs must tie experimentation . . .

For Marketing Leadership Professionals

Adaptive Brand Marketing

Rethinking Your Approach To Brands In The Digital Age

by Lisa Bradner, October 9, 2009

Today's brand marketing organizations are ill equipped to handle the world of "always on" marketing in the digital age. To remain relevant, marketing leaders will embrace Adaptive Brand Marketing — an approach encouraging rapid response to align consumer . . .

For Marketing Leadership Professionals

Coolhunting With Teen Social Networkers

by David Card, October 9, 2009

Two-thirds of online teens surveyed said they tell friends about products — that's almost twice as many as adults — and more than 70% of teens use social networks regularly. So it's critical for marketers to understand how to best use social networks . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Market Research Online Communities Gain Visibility And Uptake

Demand For Flexibility And Quality Opens The Door To New Vendors

by Tamara Barber, October 7, 2009

Market researchers are aware of and interested in using market research online communities (MROCs). However, according to results from Forrester's Q3 2009 Global MROC Online Survey, many don't know exactly how to bring online communities into their research . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

Reach Real Global B2B Tech Audiences With Virtual Events

New Tools And Best Practices For B2B Marketing Beyond Borders

by Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D., October 6, 2009

The downturn is turning out to be a double whammy for tech marketers. Budget cuts and a significant drop in the effectiveness of tried-and-true tools, like trade shows, make calls to reach wider audiences through traditional marketing activities problematic. . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

How Email Marketers Should Capitalize On Youth Communication Patterns

Four Tactics For Relevance In The Youth Inbox

by David Daniels, October 1, 2009

Ninety percent of US online youths surveyed in our recent youth online survey have at least one email account. While just 19% of US online youths report opting in to email newsletters, they are highly engaged in the viral aspects of email. But US youths . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Sidewiki: Dealing With Google's Land Grab

Your Best Defense Is To Build Your Own Social Site Features

by Josh Bernoff, Sean Corcoran, September 30, 2009

Google announced Sidewiki, a product that allows users of Google's Toolbar to share their comments on any Web site. Just as we predicted, this endows all Web sites with social features and commentary. Mass adoption will take years, and Google needs to . . .

For Interactive Marketing Professionals

Selecting An Agency For Social Marketing

The Basic Steps Interactive Marketers Should Follow For Picking The Right Agency In This New Space

by Sean Corcoran, September 30, 2009

Social marketing is a hot topic in the world today, and many interactive marketers have inherited this responsibility on top of existing roles. And while marketers often rely on their agencies for many aspects of their business, the role of agencies with . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

Turning Your B2B Web Site Into A Community Hub

Social Media Marketing That Is Persistent, Consistent, And Scalable

by G. Oliver Young, Peter Burris, September 30, 2009

Social media is becoming a major focus in business-to-business (B2B) marketing. However, many marketers are allowing their community marketing approaches to emerge out of piecemeal technology purchases and community participation. To embrace a customer . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

US Affiliate Marketing Forecast, 2009 To 2014

Affiliate Marketing Will Be A $4 Billion Market By 2014

by Patti Freeman Evans, September 25, 2009

Affiliate marketing is a low-risk, high-return strategy for online marketers. US affiliate marketing spending will thus reach $4 billion by 2014 and will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16% from 2009 through 2014. Payments to affiliate . . .