Virtual Brand Answers: A Starter Kit for Marketers
Between us, we've talked to dozens of organizations who are looking for answers to "the big six" questions about virtual worlds: who, what, when, where, how and why.
We've seen that organizations are looking for a way they can get a smart and clear start with a virtual world initiative. So my company, MarCom:Interactive teamed up with marketing research company, Market Truths. We put our heads together, took a hard look at our experience in the marketplace and came up with a kind of virtual world “starter kit.”
We dubbed it Virtual Brand Answers. It’s a simple services “kit” that provides qualitative research and some expert advice to get to the answers to those "big six" questions pretty quickly. Here's our take:
Who: Determines if the target market(s) is in the virtual world to a degree that makes sense for the brand.
Why: Articulates clear goals that lead to great strategies that work. Clear goals also set up a way to measure virtual world success down the road.
What: A “go/no go” recommendation, based on the results of qualitative marketing research with real avatars. Strategic and tactical recommendations for the brand’s virtual world presence.
How: Concept generation if there isn’t one - or qualitative research with real avatars to test a virtual world concept, if there is one. (Concept generation is not a “build” vision, but the type of presence that makes sense for the brand.)
Where: Which virtual world(s) make sense for the brand: Second Life or Habbo Hotel? Buy an island or a plot on the mainland? Create a tribe or join an existing one? Product placement or immersive Brand Land?
When: Realistic time frame to create the virtual world program and other vital factors we think are vital to know related to timing of the virtual project or promotion.
Our goal with VBA is not to replace the visioning or in-world strategies that virtual world developers provide, but rather to set up that development process for the greatest success.
This is what Virtual Brand Answers currently includes. I’m sure we’ll be refining it, and we’d appreciate your input on what you’d like to see included:
- Virtual Brand Answers Q&A Session
- Target Market Evaluation
- Goal Shaping
- Qualitative Research based on the target market (virtual world research evaluation of the brand presence concept): Research includes:
- Four avatar-to-avatar focus groups (selected from Market Truth’s panels); or
- Ten avatar-to-avatar interviews (selected from Market Truth’s panels)
- Concept Testing (qualitative research) ; or Concept Generation (if the“big idea” isn’t quite there yet)
- Qualitative Research Results
- Virtual Brand Answers Report
- A Go or No-Go recommendation
- The virtual world target that is right for the brand
- Recommended or refined concept for the virtual world presence
- Strategic suggestions
- Timing & implementation implications
- Measuring the virtual presence effectiveness suggestions
- Other relevant recommendations
- Virtual World Expert Consulting
Based on our experience, this represents the “FAQ” organizations are presenting us with as they are getting started or evaluating internally whether to move forward on a virtual world initiative.
Our hope is Virtual Brand Answers will provide everyone involved in the process of developing a virtual world presence some key components for a successful marketing initiative - and will save organizations some time and money as well. By the way, it isn't just for virtual worlds, it can be applied to social media of any kind.
If you’d like a PDF of the Virtual Brand Answers description, you can find it here or here.
Your comments on it would be most welcome!
July 4, 2007
To be or not to be in Second Life ? marketing team from all Brands responded : We have to be ! armand rousso
Posted by: Armand rousso | Jul 05, 2007 at 01:05 AM