When the heavens opened late afternoon, some of those less optimistic types may have been tempted to think the ‘Summer Sizzle’ may have turned into ‘Summer Drizzle’. But no, with a little help from

the gods – and from our incredibly versatile MD Rhodri Harries – the stage was prepared (and dry) for an evening not to forget…. and it didn’t disappoint.

Kaizo clients mingled with our friends in the media and distinguished colleagues from across the PR world and the occasional celebrity. The drink flowed more freely than Mel Gibson’s local boozer, while the platter laid on was a culinary delight that would have had Heston Blumenthal licking his lips.

Amongst the clinking of glasses, we were all treated to spectacular shows from a world class flairer (think Tom Cruise’s skills in Cocktail) and a magician who seemed like he’d just graduated from Hogwarts. While there was no such Hermione to offer us a magical pole dance, the end of the night drew to a close with guests leaving happy.

We would just like to thank everyone who attended and made it a fantastic night for all to remember. We all very much look forward to seeing you again next year!

Google yesterday announced its latest assault on the world of social and more specifically, Facebook. With Facebook’s massive user base and seemingly relentless desire to bring the entire internet inside Facebook, Google has for some time been looking for a way to address the threat to its bottom line.

The Google+ project, revealed yesterday with little fanfare via a blog post by Vic Gundotra, Senior Vice President, Engineering, is what Google hopes will be the answer to Facebook’s social dominance.

At the centre of Google’s premise is that “not all relationships are created equal” and therefore you might not want to share everything with everyone. As our online social networks have developed and we’ve become more switched on regarding what we’re sharing and with whom, we’ve increasingly become more selective about sharing. With Google+, Google is betting that we’d prefer to be selective within a single social platform rather than managing multiple social networks for different types of people e.g. LinkedIn for business, Facebook for friends and family.

Google is currently limiting who can access Google+ via a ‘closed beta’ so that it can quickly and easily react to user feedback. However, Google is hoping its range of new features will be too compelling to ignore:

+Circles – share different content with different social circles
+Sparks – find the content you (and others) love via an online sharing engine
+Hangouts – ‘hang out’ online, face-to-face with your friends (essentially an instant messaging/video calling application – watch out Skype!)
+Mobile – easily share pictures, experiences, your location etc wherever you are

As this is still day one and limited people have access to it, there’s no way of knowing if Google+ will be a success, let alone make even a small dent in Facebook’s dominant position. One of the key barriers to take up will be prising people away from Facebook and on to a new platform.

As for the impact on brands, well the jury is most certainly out. We’ll definitely be keeping a keen eye on developments though and advising clients as and when opportunities arise.

New research released today reveals major disparities in the online reputation of UK household brands. The Kaizo Advocacy Index, a bi-annual audit of online reputation, has analysed digital news and social media outlets to rank UK household names including supermarkets, mobile operators, airlines, breakfast cereals and computer manufacturers[i].

Waitrose (48%) remains the highest scoring brand, followed by Weetabix (37%), Lenovo (32%) and Virgin Atlantic (31%). Airlines and mobiles performed the worst, with Ryanair (-51%) last followed by BA (-20%), BMI (-16%), Orange (-11%) and T-Mobile (-11%).

Rhodri Harries, managing director, Kaizo, commented: “Waitrose continued to perform well thanks to news of growth and new jobs, by dealing with issues swiftly, and by introducing ways for customers to engage online, for instance its Christmas Facebook app featuring Heston Blumenthal”.

“Virgin’s bounce back is proof that a strong creative can cut through in social media as well as above the line. While the cereal brands scores showed that amid doom and gloom a little creative thinking can go a long way in spreading the word, with Sainsbury’s Valentine’s Day heart shaped cucumber and Kellogg’s branding individual Corn Flakes good examples of this.”

Jon Harding, General Manager, International and Distribution at Virgin Atlantic remarked, “Virgin Atlantic is delighted once again to be the number one airline brand according to the Kaizo Advocacy Index. Kaizo’s index is an important barometer of brand and reputational strength and these results are a credit to the airline, its staff and its customers”.

Waitrose continues to lead the supermarkets whilst Tesco falters as fears are raised over market monopoly

Waitrose won the hotly fought battle for Christmas sales according to lots of reports which, together with news that 3,000 jobs will be created through new store openings in 2011 and its first ever Facebook app featuring celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal, helped the brand retain first place. In February, Waitrose managed to avoid a potential PR disaster after shocking video footage came to light showing one of its duck suppliers treating animals cruelly. Taking all the right steps, Waitrose was quick to suspend all ties with the supplier, thus neutralising the majority of stories.

Consumers concerned about Tesco’s market monopolisation are airing their views on blogs and forums as the brand continues to move into new industries, including spa treatments and car dealerships. Tescopoly.org, which has been set up to educate and raise public awareness on the ‘market-distorting power of the major supermarkets’, is one of the first results shown up in a Google search for Tesco.

For Sainsbury’s a Valentine’s Day cucumber in the shape of a heart provided a light hearted story.

Scores: Waitrose (48%), Sainsbury’s (28%), Morrisons (23%) and Asda (11%), Tesco (-8%).

Launches and exclusivity raise the bar for mobiles while T-Mobile and Orange are plagued with customer service issues

Innovative product launches and exclusive deals were the main source of positive comments in a sector littered with technical information. For sector winner Vodafone, its launch of Webbox, an affordable device that brings the internet to consumers’ existing television sets, coupled with an exclusive launch deal with the Samsung Galaxy Tablet, helped steer conversations away from widely reported accusations of tax dodging.

Meanwhile T Mobile’s score fell from the last report and the brand is now languishing at the bottom of the sector alongside Orange, with whom it recently merged. With customer complaints about poor service, and a number of these blaming the merger, both brands need to address this issue.

Scores: Vodafone (7%), O2 (5%), 3 Mobile (5%), Orange (-11%) and T Mobile (-11%).

Virgin Atlantic flies ahead with a glamorous new image whilst British Airways’ online reputation nose-dives

Virgin Atlantic took the lead once again in a sector mired by delays, strike threats and customer service issues. Having seen its score decline recently, the airline has returned to form thanks to its advertising campaign, ‘You’re airline’s either got it or it hasn’t’. With a dedicated social media team providing videos that are easy to share and promotional spin offs, the airline has generated lots of positive buzz across blogs, Facebook and Twitter.

News that British Airways is still embroiled in disputes with unions and that further strikes may be set for the Easter break have been greeted with dismay. The ease and speed in which frustrated customers can vent online and spread gloomy news means the airline needs to be careful that its image is not damaged for good.

Elsewhere, anger over ‘hidden costs’ continues to rumble for Ryanair. The forced removal of 100 protesting Belgian students from a flight did nothing to help the airline, which seems entrenched at the bottom of the sector.

Scores: Virgin Atlantic (31%), easyJet (4%), BMI (-16%), British Airways (-20%), Ryanair (-51%).

Talking pets and knitting grandmas energise healthy cereal brands

Cereal brands scored highly, with entertaining advertising campaigns helping to create buzz online. Positive chatter about a comical ad featuring talking pets for Chocolate Weetabix helped the brand lead the sector. Elsewhere, an integrated campaign for Shreddies’ Knitting Nanas, which involved recruiting a real life grandma, helped to lift the lowest scoring brand in the sector.

Kellogg’s hi-tech method of branding individual Corn Flakes with the company logo was a popular story, showing the power of bringing to life an innovative, creative idea.

A breakfast cereal that is nutritional and provides the morning’s energy is an important factor for consumers, according to their comments online. Weetabix in particular was championed on social networks for providing the energy for the day ahead. Meanwhile, Shredded Wheat’s fundraising activities with organisations such as the British Heart Foundation helped promote its healthy image.

Scores: Weetabix (31%), Kellogg’s Corn Flakes (29%), Shredded Wheat (26%), Special K (16%) and Shreddies (13%).

PC brands ride the wave of tablet enthusiasm

In a high scoring and closely fought sector, tablet launches generated positive news, reviews and chatter on media sites, blogs and forums. Lenovo’s latest Thinkpad was described as ‘evolutionary’, whilst Dell and Acer both benefited from the launch of Android’s Honeycomb 3.0 operating system.

In the new sector of tablet PCs, people are listening to the advice and experience of others when choosing which tablet to invest in. Whilst good product news and reviews go a long way to help purchasing decisions, it is those brands that are talked about positively by other consumers that will see their bottom line grow.

Scores: Lenovo (32%), HP (27%), Acer (26%), Dell (23%) and Asus (20%).

Ends

New research released today shows that some of the UK’s leading brands are experiencing serious online reputation management issues. The Kaizo Advocacy Index, a bi-annual audit of online reputation, has analysed digital news and social media outlets to rank UK household names including supermarkets, airlines, breakfast cereals and mobile operators.

In the latest report, Waitrose comes out on top as price offers and enticing promotions were shared by consumers across the internet. Elsewhere however, the airlines all suffered, as Virgin Atlantic saw its score fall for the third report in a row as customer service issues led to consumers venting their frustrations online.

Rhodri Harries, Managing Director of Kaizo, said:
“Waitrose’s recent price match campaign is already paying dividends, with consumers talking about it online”.

There have been some great recent initiatives from the supermarkets, showing competitive spirit and demonstrating real value for money. Over the August Bank Holiday weekend for example – Asda cut the cost of their petrol, which started a price war, whilst Sainsbury’s offered free delivery on all non-food orders.”

Children’s cereals also performed well, with Cheerios topping the category thanks to its reputation as a healthy option. Nostalgia provided a welcome boost to the cereals’ scores as teenagers and young adults shared stories of their favourite childhood breakfast choices over blogs and social networks.

For the mobile operators, poor customer service, delayed updates to handsets and corporate changes meant they failed to enhance their reputation despite new handset launches and customer engagement innovation such as O2’s eco mobile rating scheme awarding handsets a ‘green’ rating.

Airlines suffered yet another drop in online reputation with customers venting anything but virtual anger over delays, cancellations, strikes and poor customer service. Virgin Atlantic once again managed to outperform competitors, though its score slipped for the third Index in a row as tales of customer service issues were reported over social networks. RyanAir has plummeted to its lowest online reputation score yet with hate campaigns and negative press about hidden costs and extra charges, including news that a 12 year old girl was made to pay £190 to take her violin on board.

Harries continued: “There was a surprising decrease once again for Virgin, showing that even the best loved brands need to stay on top of the game. Delays, poor service and lack of communication are incredibly annoying for consumers and these frustrations are inevitably played out online as customers communicate anywhere, be it an airport lounge over the other side of the world, or a mobile phone store in Hackney.”

The Kaizo Advocacy Index researched four sectors; supermarkets, children’s cereals, airlines and mobiles. Waitrose, Morrisons and Cheerios performed the best across all sectors researched. Brands with the worst scores include Ryanair, BMI and Orange.

For a copy of the full report please click here

To view additional materials please click here

Ends

Notes to Editors
About Kaizo
Kaizo is an award winning independent PR and digital agency helping business and consumer brands thrive in today’s economy. Our clients include Cisco, Flip Video, Unilever, Serco, Elsevier and Johnson & Johnson.

For further information
Sarah Mayer
020 3043 4163

Ten to fifteen years ago, other than the occasional interruption of radio and possibly TV news, many crises worked across a timeframe of a day or a couple of days. This is a luxury that no longer exists due to the complexity and immediacy of today’s media and, of course, social media.

There are now news cycles within news cycles, media within media, and enthusiastic amateurs that can spread a story faster than Tiger Woods can make an apology!

So how can brands plan to adapt to the ‘Micro news cycle’ so that its own activity does not amplify that which can be controlled or ignore that which will be shared?

There are a few simple rules to apply here:

Know the influence of the audience
Part of the issue some have is that they can’t make the same association in terms of credibility with, for instance, a tweet as they can with an article in a national Newspaper, so a social media audit should be the first step in any crisis planning activity. Brands need to know the authority of their potential promoters and detractors, and what really constitutes influence.

Don’t wait until the crisis to communicate
Apply the same principles of developing relationships with influential social media contributors as you would with the traditional media. Engage, communicate, involve, and if possible meet.

Put processes and protocols in place
Using the knowledge developed through a media and social media audit, ensure that crisis plans developed take into account some basic metrics that relate to social media, so that the team can distinguish between a crisis and basic background noise.

Adapt and take advice
The hard and fast rules are that there are no hard and fast rules, just a changing landscape that requires the brand to be flexible, open, communicative and relevant. In the heat of a social media frenzy, one bad move can spread like wildfire so testing responses internally and with advisers is essential.

Remember one tweet won’t build a brand but it might bring one down…

Contact rhodri.harries@kaizo.net for further information.

On Wednesday Kaizo ran a successful messaging session with 300 top executives from across Europe for a large multinational corporate. The team pulled off the challenging task of capturing all 300 on video as a way of helping them to develop key messages. The activity also demonstrated that new technologies (in this case, Flip Videos) make it easy for everyone to use video to present themselves and the brands/ companies they represent not just in campaigns but every day. And it’s crucial as this is what customers will expect very soon.

Take the example of my 2 year old. She has a weekly video call on Skype with my parents, both in their late seventies, sunning themselves in Cape Town, which far from being confusing for her (or them for that matter), is accepted as being the norm. And when her baby brother was born recently, it was a video of the two of them playing that the Grandparents were asking for.

Accessible technology has enabled brands to turn into everyday broadcasters, and the audience is ready, waiting, willing and able.