If you are interested in generating more sales through word of mouth programs, there is a research paper that is a MUST read.

"Firm Generated Word-of-Mouth Communication: Evidence from a Field Test" by David Godes and Dina Mayzlin. Marketing Science, 2009, Vol. 28, No. 4. 19 pages.

I found this paper when I was referred to a peer review on the Web Analytics Association website, written by Jim Novo, who also blogged about this fascinating piece.

Jenni Beatty put me on to this study in a recent post. Fascinating. In summary, friendship influence caused the following changes to purchasing behaviour in user categories that were based on social connectedness and activity in the online Korean community CyWorld;

What's in a name? Well, a lot it seems, if you are setting the scene for an ongoing discussion. Take this blog site for example...  we are talking with marketers, customer activists (eg other bloggers!) and indeed anyone interested in how brands can engage with customers and prospects online to achieve their marketing objectives. And... in a manner that represents a genuine exchange of value! Bit wordy isn't it! A label would be handy...