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January 5, 2007
Blogs Matter and We Have Data to Prove It
Edelman will release next week the fourth in its series of research reports on the blogosphere. The new report is based on research done by our own Strategy One unit and a different study done in partnership with Technorati. We will have data on the blogosphere in 10 nations, including Belgium, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Poland, the UK and the US. Here is what we have learned:
• Blogs are the new on-ramp for mainstream media. We find that leading political blogs are increasingly quoted in stories in mainstream media. The same is true of technology blogs, where stories such as the Google acquisition of YouTube broke first on Techcrunch.
• Blog readership levels vary significantly by market, but influencers are more likely to read blogs. Influencers are those who actively attempt to impact the public discourse (this survey group is different from our Trust Barometer population of opinion leaders who make over $75,000 and are media attentive). Blog readers are willing to spread the word, both good and bad.
• Blogs do spur readers to take action. For example, 78% of German readers of blogs have attended a public meeting on a local issue covered in a blog.
• The composition of the “short head” of the blogosphere in most markets is technology blogs, followed by politics, personal journals or entertainment.
• Multinational companies such as McDonalds, Microsoft or Samsung (disclosure—last two are Edelman clients) draw more attention from local bloggers than major companies headquartered in a market (VW in Germany)
• The survey respondents in the Asian countries surveyed, China, Japan and South Korea, all read blogs with significantly more frequency than their counterparts in the US or Europe.
We look forward to your reaction to the survey material next week
Technorati Tags:
Blogosphere, Blogs, Blogging, Media
Posted by Edelman at January 5, 2007 4:21 PM |
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Comments
Richard:
I remain curious as to your take on the laptop giveaway your company undertook. My post in your previous entry was, apparently, not approved for public eyes. I sincerely hope that is not because of its inquisitive nature and was merely an oversight.
Kindly share your thoughts on how the laptop giveaway fits or does not fit into your corporate ethics policies.
Best,
Steve Safran
Managing Editor
Lost Remote
Posted by: Steve Safran at January 6, 2007 12:44 AM
Going on the principles you spoke of and the title "blogs matter" I am proud to say that I recently changed my site from being HTML based to being totally, 100% blog-based. I converted my site to a Wordpress blog and made a few changes to the look and feel; I added a customized header and a menu bar. My traffic has increased exponentially and I'm excited about tracking my 2007 stats and comparing them to 2006.
Posted by: Erin Blaskie at January 6, 2007 5:51 AM
What is the reason that the Netherlands is not on the list of participating countries for this research?
Posted by: Marco Derksen at January 7, 2007 3:44 PM
We did these countries as first round
NL is in our Trust Barometer this year
Wait about 2 weeks for those results
Posted by: Richard Edelman at January 8, 2007 11:38 AM
I remain curious as to your take on the laptop giveaway your company undertook. My post in your previous entry was, apparently, not approved for public eyes. I sincerely hope that is not because of its inquisitive nature and was merely an oversight.
Posted by: Rob Muller at January 8, 2007 6:55 PM
I think the laptop giveaway was a great idea. It is the ethical responsibility of those who received the laptops to disclose the nature in which it was given to them. Sites like engadget receive free things all the time. It is the duty of the reporter (blogger) to report on the product without bias. At least Edleman didn't create a flog promoting the product like Sony's wonderful marketing campaign led by Zipatoni.
Posted by: Monique Low at January 8, 2007 7:45 PM
I am a new fan! The journey that my mind takes as you write of your adventures and public relations intellect are simply wonderful. I look forward to learning more as you write.
Posted by: Carla Sue Rickard at January 10, 2007 3:54 PM
Monique:
Were you involved in the Edelman laptop giveaway? Are you an Edelman employee? Curious because your name is not an active link. I agree that those who received the laptops were responsible for disclosure but an expensive laptop - we're talking an Acer Ferrari - is obviously meant to prejudice a review. Perhaps a reconsideration of the policy is in order. Editors at Car & Driver aren't given a Mercedes when they need to review it.
Has Edelman issued a policy on this?
Posted by: Mark Rose at January 11, 2007 2:51 PM
74% of all Japanese people read blogs? This really sounds incredible, especially if you compare it to other active Asian countries like Korea and China. Do you have any explanation for this? If I read the Japan section of the report, I only get features that make one expect the opposite: Japanese are shy, do not post replies and seldom take action after reading a blog. Probably, they are fanatic mobloggers...
Posted by: Jeroen Mirck at January 11, 2007 6:46 PM