A new wave in communications is taking hold that is fundamentally transforming communication from providing information to promoting and driving advocacy. At Weber Shandwick, we understand the critical role that advocates play in igniting enthusiasm and building momentum, while influencing the opinions of others in their personal networks. As a result, we are highly focused on creating advocacy for our clients’ issues, products and services, organizations, and brands.
Our global research study, “
New Wave of Advocacy,” underscores the radical shift in consumer decision-making patterns and speed-to-action that is taking place today. Among the findings, nearly two-thirds of consumers around the world and nearly three-quarters of advocates reported that they make decisions faster now than a few years ago. In addition, more than half of consumers worldwide agree that they have more power to influence a company’s success or failure today and have a greater say today in what companies sell than ever before.
In addition to helping our clients identify and cultivate advocates, we also assist them in working with and protecting themselves from Badvocates. This important group, which represents 20 percent of consumers surveyed globally, actively makes its dissatisfaction known in a variety of ways and does so more quickly today than two or three years ago.
Through our Advocacy Ignition
methodology, we move people faster to the highest form of loyalty – advocacy – by mobilizing advocates early on in the decision process. Likewise, through a variety of service offerings and initiatives, we are investing in new ways to sustain and build Advocates as the core foundation of our clients’ ongoing marketing communications programs.
In today’s networked society, individuals take their cues not only from the media, but also from influentials, connectors, bloggers, activists and simply anyone willing to stand on top of a soapbox to voice an opinion, virtually or otherwise, anywhere in the world. That’s why “Advocacy starts here” for Weber Shandwick and our clients, through communications programs that forge emotional bonds and higher levels of involvement with consumers, influencers, organizations and decision-makers worldwide.
Advocacy Ignition Methodology
As a leading global communications firm, Weber Shandwick works with clients to address a broad range of challenges acrossdiverse geographies, product categories and audiences. Our ability to harness this collective experience and knowledge and apply it to each assignment is an important ingredient in our success.
We are continuing to develop new ways of harnessing the power of advocacy for our clients. One way is through recognizing how advocacy – the active support of brands, causes and issues by individuals – has emerged as the most trusted source of information and communication today, as well as the most powerful force in business. We seek to build advocacy creation into our client work from the start.
Our Advocacy Ignition approach is a basis for our strategic planning, and enables our professionals to draw from a shared, collaborative, research-based work process. The goal is to develop communications programs that are designed to move individuals from insight to action, using consistent steps:
- Defining a winnable outcome from the outset, based on the objectives of the client’s business or organization;
- Discovering insights about target audiences, and then going further to identify sources and channels of advocacy;
- Creating a unifying strategic and creative platform, which will enable the communications effort to drive a desired shift or change in attitudes and behaviors;
- Bringing the platform to life through the most effective engagement plan to mobilize audiences and generate advocacy; and
- Ensuring accountability by measuring all activities against the outcome that is identified up front.
Through this approach, our professionals worldwide can provide new ways to sustain and build advocacy as the core foundation of our clients’ marketing communications programs.
Five Fast Facts About Advocacy
A new wave in communications is taking hold that is fundamentally transforming communication from providing information to promoting and driving advocacy. At Weber Shandwick, we understand the critical role that Advocacy now plays in influencing people’s opinions and behavior towards companies, organizations, issues, brands and products. To explore how this New Wave of Advocacy impacts business, we surveyed consumers worldwide with KRC Research to learn how to mobilize Advocates and ignite their enthusiasm early on in the decision process. Among the landmark findings are:
1. Global respondents are quicker to take action on issues and causes, buy products/services, and express dissatisfaction than ever before.
- About six in 10 (63 percent) global respondents have sped up their decision-making from a few years ago.
- It takes global respondents only about two weeks to decide to support issues/causes and express dissatisfaction about brands/products (17 days and 16 days, respectively). It takes longer to make major purchase decisions (37 days or five weeks on average).
- About two-thirds (67 percent) of Europeans have sped up their decision-making in the few years, a faster rate of change than other global respondents. It also takes Europeans less time than their regional counterparts to make decisions about issues/causes and major purchases. U.S. respondents have the slowest speed-to-decision rate vs. a few years ago and generally take the most amount of time to take action of any kind.
2. The democratization of Advocacy is underway with nearly one out of two global respondents (45 Percent) identified as Advocates. Europe and Asia Pacific have the most Advocates and reach more people. Three types of Advocates emerged from the research.
- High Intensity Advocates (9 percent of global respondents) engage in demonstrative activities such as organizing protests or writing blogs in support of causes, issues, brands or products. This select group also has a wide reach of influence when advocating - contacting 110 people on average.
- Low Intensity Advocates (36 percent of global respondents) actively support or detract from issues, causes, brands or products but not as zealously as their High Intensity counterparts. For example, Low Intensity Advocates write letters to organizations or newspaper editors, solicit support for causes or send product information to others. They reach 38 people on average.
- Badvocates are High Intensity or Low Intensity Advocates whose actions detract from brands or products.
3. While traditional media has the greatest influence on attitudes and behavior towards companies, organizations, issues, brands and products, the Internet plays a critical role among Advocates.
- Broadcast and print have the greatest influence on opinions and actions among global respondents overall. This form of media influence should not be ignored.
- Advocates, particularly High Intensity Advocates, are more likely than Non-Advocates to report that the Web influences their opinions.
- European and Asia Pacific respondents are more likely to be influenced by broadcast, print and the Web than U.S. respondents.
4. A positive personal experience or connection is critical in triggering Advocacy.
- Recommendations from friends, family and coworkers drive nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of global Advocates to support issues and causes, by far the most powerful motivator. Charities and environmental organizations have a greater effect on Europeans’ support of issues and causes than other global respondents. Asia Pacific respondents are more affected by celebrities.
- Most global Advocates (87 percent) recommend brands/products based on their personal experience. Europeans are more motivated to recommend brands or products based on value for the money and company contributions to causes than other global respondents, while Asia Pacific respondents are more motivated by reviews from information/news sources and advertising.
5. Advocates are just as likely to be male or female. Although Advocates tend to be younger and live in higher income households than average global respondents, they are found in every age and household income group.
The online survey was conducted by Weber Shandwick with KRC Research in March 2007. The survey included responses from 583 adults (21 and older) sampled across nine countries.
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New Wave of Advocacy
Consumer decision-making patterns and speed-to-action are radically shifting, according to consumer research by Weber Shandwick. The global survey, “New Wave of Advocacy,” provides compelling evidence of the shift, and identifies advocates among consumer groups that actively support and undermine brands, causes and issues.
The Return on Advocacy
Advocacy plays an increasingly critical role influencing people’s opinions and behavior toward companies, organizations, issues, brands and products. Weber Shandwick conducted a survey with KRC Research among adults in nine countries to explore this accelerating global shift and to understand how companies and organizations can identify Advocates and engage them early in the decision-making process.
Weber Shandwick is pleased to announce an initiative called The Thought Leadership Series - short, straightforward and impactful mini-books on relevant topics we believe leaders in all industries will find insightful and useful. Since Advocacy is at the heart of everything Weber Shandwick does, our first book in the series is
“The Good Book of Badvocacy”. It addresses the evolution of Advocacy and how companies can effectively manage their fiercest critics (Badvocates) online and offline. We hope you enjoy “The Good Book of Badvocacy” and welcome the opportunity to further discuss how our strategic Advocacy communications strategies can help your company reach new levels of success.
Please contact
goodbookinfo@webershandwick.com for more information.