What’s this? It’s an interactive Google Map of the word-of-mouth that happened during the Listerine Whitening Strips campaign. Click the map to zoom in and around.

A = a BzzAgent
B = the person they bzzed about Listerine

The lines connecting them are the word-of-mouth happening. We could only do a few of the actual A’s because otherwise it looked like a rat’s nest of connections!

I like this one — bzz traveling from Boston to Texas and Seattle:

The fine print — where did this come from?

One of the major challenges of our business is that word-of-mouth happens in casual offline conversations, and so it’s hard to track or prove or show it to our clients. That’s usually a bad thing for a business!

Early in our history, we worked with Northeastern University to consider how to track Generations of Word of Mouth, and set up a study whereby we tracked offline word-of-mouth by using an offline “link” like a physical card. As the idea progressed, we realized WOM is a casual conversation, so we need a reason why an agent (and their friend) would want to give/receive a card…?

We know word-of-mouth doesn’t stop with the first person talked to, so…what if, when we send them the product sample (a BzzKit of their own) we also gave them cards they can use to give to their friends? We thus become a facilitator (spectator? bystander?) for each step of generational word-of-mouth as it happens.

For the first time we had a tracking mechanism (a) with natural incentives (getting a sample), and (b) where we can positively identify the recipient of the bzz. In other words, for the first time we can actually show word-of-mouth happening.

[btw: Walter Carl from Northeastern has recently turned this tracking concept into a company, ChatThreads. Check 'em out if you want to align a great tracking mechanism with your Word of Mouth programs!]

We haven’t done a “What are you Bzzing about lately?” post in a while.

The three things I’m talking about most these days:

1. Anything HD. I’m not “one of those guys,” but the difference between high def and standard def is pretty amazing. My sneaking suspicion that opposing linebackers make bad judgments both on the field and in the tattoo parlor? Now confirmed.
2. Crest Whitestrips Renewal. I saw a big difference after just one day. I may wind up blinding drivers and causing car accidents by the time I finish the whole box. Drawback alert, though (besides vehicular homicide): Sometimes the strips don’t stay in place, so I feel like I can’t move my tongue at all while they’re in. Still, goodbye, tea stains!
3. Battlestar Galactica (the new one, on Sci-Fi). Best show on TV. No, really. BzzAgent Cheyanne got me hooked, I got my girlfriend hooked, she got her mom hooked. You don’t need to be a sci-fi dork – it’s basically a really great drama that happens to take place in a sci-fi setting. Very topical, smartly written, great cast and effects. We just started watching season 3, and I can’t wait to watch Season 4 in HD when it starts in a few months. No spoilers, please!

That’s it for me (watch Battlestar Galactica). So, what are you Bzzing about? (Seasons 1 and 2 are already on DVD). Who knows, you just might help someone find their new favorite thing! (Battlestar)

Seth Minkin, our artist-in-residence, will be appearing at our Atlanta “Making Your Agency a WOM Leader” event on Thursday. This is our 5th event [Boston, New York, Toronto, Chicago] and we’re starting to feel the rhythm. Some great speakers at this one including Chris Tuff from Moxie Interactive, Jeff Caporizzo from Ogilvy PR and Virginia Miracle from Brains on Fire. If you’re with an agency, certainly sign on up [sorry, non agency folks won't find the content of value]!

Seth will be painting each attendee their very own randy bee painting to take home with them. And, yes, they are usually quite randy.

Thankfully he won’t be ordering Chinese Food for anyone.

As many of you know, we launched the Frogpond a few months ago. Since then, we’ve learned a lot about what people think about the sites listed there: they love some, hate others, can wait to share this one, think that one’s a scam, etc. It’s given Central Hivers a great new window into the voice of our community.

One thing we’ve noticed is that the percentage of negative opinions in the Frogpond is higher than the percentage of negative BzzReports we receive from our standard BzzCampaigns. For some reason agents are more likely to write a less-than-stellar review of a website in Frogpond than they are to give a thumbs-down to a product in a BzzCampaign.

We could just conclude that the sites in Frogpond aren’t good. Or that the experience of visiting, reviewing, and sharing websites isn’t as good as participating in a BzzCampaign.

But I wonder if there’s something else going on. Does negative WOM spread differently online versus offline? Are we less inclined to spend our face-to-face interactions with other people providing negative WOM on products than we are when online? Does the anonymity of the web make us act differently?

What do you think?

I though this would be useful. Addiction to celebrity gossip magazines is nothing to sneeze at.

The real problem is that when a member of your household buys 2-3 magazines a week [OK, People, Star, etc.] you ultimately find you become equally entranced with the most meaningless information. Did Jude Law sleep with his nanny, and how did Sienna Miller find out? Maybe you used to read a good book before going to bed, but now you lie there looking at pictures of Ashlee lip syncing or Madonna’s purple bag containing a supposed sex toy or even what a b-list celebrity wore to some red carpet event. Did Nicole Kidman get a boob job? When one of these magazines is lying around, it’s too hard to say no [and as far as good bathroom reading material, there's little that's more satisfying].

Forget about crack berries. This stuff is a k-hole of useless information.

Plenty of men find themselves in the grip of this second-hand addiction. I’ve formally introduced this technique and it has had stellar results:

1. Talk to your wife about it. Yes, this is a do as I say, not as I do technique [after all, you ARE reading them]. Explain that you can’t help yourself either, but you’d really rather not be tempted to check out the pics of Kate Hudson shopping in the, “They’re Real People, Too!” section.
2. Don’t go cold Turkey. Cancel weekly subscriptions, but allow for one less magazine a week for a month or two, until you’re significant other has weened off completely.
3. Allow digital alternatives, such as Perez Hilton browsing. Much of the issue with the magazines is that they pervade the real world in places you should be doing other things. A quick online fix can offset the magazine jones.
4. Provide plenty of other simple, more intelligent reading material that provides a sampling of tabloid material, without the whole thing. The Week has a great section called, “I heard it in the Tabloids,” which can really be satisfying.
5. Reality TV shows, like the Biggest Loser or Bret Michael’s Rock of Love can also be a good alternative people-watching fix [stay away from Kid Nation...that can have longer lasting mental anguish impact as your partner may find themselves concerned about this generation's parenting techniques]
6. Don’t allow any programs that Billy Bush is hosting. These deteriorate very quickly into silly hijinks that will be fondly reminiscent of the useless fodder in most of the magazines.
7. Alert close friends to the deprogramming attempt, and the need for them to be supportive during this process. Note that most friends will try to sneak magazines into lunch meetings or some other event, so be cautious here for signs of gathered celebrity knowledge when there shouldn’t be any.

If these tips even help just one or two people, I’ll feel my job has been done. Good luck out there. It’s a tough world. Britney can tell you all about it.

I was 90 minutes early for a NYC meeting with Dave this morning, so I walked up a few blocks to the Apple Store to poach some WiFi and gaze at their gorgeous hardware (heh).

A helpful Apple store employee stopped by and asked if I’d like help. Oh I was just stopping by before a meeting? Oh really, which software company do you work for? “BzzAgent,” I said. “We’re a word-of-mouth company up in Boston.” I took another breath to explain more, but he interrupted –

“Oh sure.” He smiled. “I’m psyched for the Hornitos Tequila Campaign. Really psyched. Can’t wait to go home tonight and see if anything arrived.”

Awesome. I love it when that happens. (And that campaign only launched yesterday afternoon, too!)

PS. I have a hypothesis that businesspeople fall into two broad buckets: “builders” and “transactors.” Transactors include the financiers, consultants, lawyers, and various experts that derive their satisfaction from getting the deal or playing a part in many separate companies. Builders derive their satisfaction from creating something and watching it walk around. This morning was a that’s-why-I-love-building-things moment.

Driving to work can sometimes be a struggle in Boston. Meter maids swarm to my car like flies on you-know-what, like Red Sox fans to skepticism, like the Big Dig to setbacks and failure. Every parking ticket appeal makes me feel like Luke Skywalker trying to drop the bomb down the narrow opening of the Death Star at the End of Star Wars – except I rarely if ever succeed.

The new Star Wars stamps issued by the post office gave me inspiration for my latest appeal. I figured if I had to waste a cool stamp on the Office of the Parking Clerk, I might as well take a shot at the stormtroopers that riddle my car with envelopes.

Ever since I joined BzzAgent I have become more in tuned with the way that brands have handled me as a customer. There are certain brands that I can say appreciate my business and I enjoy giving it to them (British Airways, American Express, Enterprise, Upper Crust Pizza in Beacon Hill), and every time I have had a issue, all of these brands have recognized my value to them and vice versa.

On the flipside, I have have been situations where I clearly noticed that a brand had not paid adequate attention to recognize my concerns nor had the appropriate infrastructure to learn from my experience and protocol to minimize for future dissatisfaction.

Like this one:

I few months back, I was heading to NYC for four days. I called our travel agent who informed me that the city was completely sold out. We both agreed that it would be cheaper to cab it into the city everyday from New Jersey rather than pay the absurd amounts some of the last rooms were going for (I remember seeing 900 dollars a night for the Double Tree in Time Square).

On the day of my arrival, myself and a couple other members of the sales team were in the car making a few phone calls as a last ditch effort for me to stay downtown. After about a half hour of phone calls, I got through to the Hampton Inn in Madison Square Garden who confirmed me for the four days I needed. I was so excited by the very idea that I didn’t have to spend hours driving into the city that I told the woman on the phone I loved her.

She said she loved me, too.

Less than an hour later, I showed up at the hotel where there seemed to be a large amount of upset people. I stood in line for 10 minutes to be informed by the front desk staff that there was no room available for me. I explained my conversation from less than an hour earlier and provided them with the confirmation number. They explained that there is a “lovely boutique hotel” called Hotel Carter that had a room available for me and have already confirmed the room on my behalf. Of course, this being New York, I asked if they could hold on while I looked up Hotel Carter on TripAdvisor from my blackberry. All I have to say is check out the candid photo section…

[Editor's note: worse still, someone was murdered there just a few nights ago - amazingly, this was not the first time this has happened]

I explained that these accommodations were not acceptable based on the reviews and the photos and no where even close to a comparable hotel. The gentleman explained that the only other option was to stay outside the city. I agreed as I prefer car rides to tetanus and rabies shots. He started working on getting me accommodations in New Jersey. Up to this point, I could appreciate what this guy was going through and dealing with a sold out hotel as I used to work for Marriott (granted doing Timeshare sales but still…). There is nothing worse than having a customer who doesn’t understand his position of not having a single room. Unfortunately, the gentleman did something which I had trouble with.

After about 20 minutes, he came back and told me that “he was going to be my best friend” as he had one room available in the hotel that was reserved for a high ranking rewards member that he was going to give to me. I, of course, accepted but then reflected on what just happened.

1) He just lied to me and;

2) made it seem as though he was doing me a favor by giving me the room that I confirmed for less than an hour earlier.

He was kind enough to adjust my room rate when I checked in, but upon check out the discount was not there. He was not there the morning of check out, but was arriving later that afternoon, so I requested that he call me when he arrived. A few hours later, he called denying ever offering the discussed room rate and I explained that his answer was not good enough and to call me back with a better answer. Moments later he called back with the discussed rate.

I will say the room itself was fine and had there not been an issue with check in I would have had a rather pleasurable stay.

Thankfully, the folks at Hampton Inn decided to send me an auto-generated e-mail me asking me to fill out a survey recapping my experience during my stay. While automated, I figured this information was used in some sort of capacity to manage their consumer’s experiences at their hotel. To best ensure they understood the issue, I followed up my survey response with a personal letter to the Hampton Inn customer service department.

The result?

No response.

Two weeks later, I decided to write a letter to the SVP of Hampton Inn whose name was on the online survey and enclosed the original letter and referenced the online survey I have taken. Last week, I realized I still hadn’t gotten a response. So I called him, and left a voicemail. My message was actually friendly as I wanted to chat with him about my experience and my attempts to talk with the brand and more importantly helping him figure out how to avoid and manage these situations in the future.

Still nothing…

The Hampton Inn is always going to be well… the Hampton Inn, but they have always been famous for their 100% Satisfaction Guarantee (which I guess doesn’t apply if you decide not to listen). In a 1999 press release they stated that this program cost them $6,000,000 but has garnered them $41,000,000 in revenue. Great news, for them, and for the folks they respond to. Which I’m apparently not one of.

While I know I’m not the average consumer and probably went through more effort than 99% of the population would, I’m now on something of a mission. I just pray to god someone in their marketing department uses Technorati as I don’t know what else to do.

I’m hoping someone there will answer the ultimate question: Is the Hampton in more interested than the $1,700 from my four night’s stay, or my willingness to recommend the brand to friends?

I’d like to think me, but maybe they’ve already answered the question?

A few weekends ago I went to a gaming convention. These are events held in honor of board, roleplaying, minatures games and even collectible card games. All very “geeky things”, but so am I. However, after working at BzzAgent for a little over a year I suddenly realized just how much WoM drives that industry. I was floored by my realization for three reasons:

1. Most people assume geeks have limited to no social skills, although not true the companies that can advertise help propagate that stereotype.
2. There are a few “Big Names” in the industry and they get their advertising everywhere, so the average gamer forgets about the “little guys”
3. I hadn’t realized it before and I go to several gaming conventions each year.

This got me thinking…

Why does the industry run this way?
A lot of these companies are too small to afford major marketing campaigns. In fact sometimes they can’t even afford to go to the big conventions to demo their product. This means they need alternative methods to teach the market. Additionally many gamers are very passionate about their hobby and want to share it with anyone interested. That means that if a company makes something worth talking about gamers will and then they’ll share it with friends by playing the game with them. The whole thing is very social.

How can BzzAgent help improve the gamers image?
I’m not sure. But I think if a gaming company did work with BzzAgent on a game that could be “popular” in the same way Scrabble or Sorry are/were popular. Especially one that wasn’t seen purile and that didn’t make gamers enthusiasm sound like the ranting of the mad. I think it would show just how social a creature the gamer really is.

What other industries run this way?
The independent film industry is the only one I can really think of. These films often are labors of love just as the games were for their creators. Other than that some hobbies might run in similar ways but often times niche markets have niche publications that aren’t dominated by “big names” the same as the gaming market does.

What can I get out of it?
Apparently little more than a blog post and some chuckles (I hope).

An old co-worker alerted me to a recent news story: Sprint, in what seems at first to be a majorly bad move, has terminated about 1,000 of its customers. Their transgression: calling customer service too frequently. Many people in the comments of the articles and on blogs were deploring this move, making the witty but obvious observation “They’re penalizing people for their own bad service.” Suddenly an intense wave of déjà vu washed over me. I’ve seen this before.

As I was talking to a current co-worker about this story, joking that we should adopt a similar policy, he pointed me to another article that contained an interview with a Sprint insider. In the interview the insider revealed that these customer service calls were coming from customers who were defrauding the company. They would call up demanding account credits, citing poor service and threatening to cancel their accounts (note the irony), sometimes up to 50 times a month. The customer service reps, in an effort to make them happy, would grant the credits. Some of these people hadn’t paid a bill since 2005! Not exactly victims of a cold bureaucracy, as some would have you believe (themselves included).

Apparently these customers were also popping up all over the internet, claiming to have been making legitimate customer service calls, and generally calling foul on Sprint. Then it clicked: the exact same thing happens here! I’m going to let you guys in on a little secret, one that I once held with great import: I read the freebie / coupon hunter message boards.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen someone make a post in a BzzAgent thread on some message board saying “Don’t email BzzAgent, they’ll cancel your account!”, “When you save up enough points, BzzAgent cancels your account. It’s a scam.” Or the ever-popular “Don’t report bad Bzz, or your account will be canceled.” I then try to match these posters to agents in our network. Lo and behold, when I can successfully identify the poster, I find that they’ve blatantly created 10 accounts for themselves, sold some high-value BzzKit on eBay, or something equally vile.

Let me assure you, we do not cancel accounts for any of the reasons above. We do, however, cancel accounts when people try to scam us, and that’s exactly what these Sprint Customers were trying to do. You don’t even need the confirmation of the Sprint insider to tell you that.

Let’s pretend for a second that the customer service calls were legitimate. You are a customer of sprint, and you have a problem with your service. You call 50 times a month trying to resolve your issue, to no avail. 50 calls and a month later, you’d probably decide that sprint was not the carrier for you and wish that you could cancel the contract without paying the termination fee. So you continue to call at this rate over the course of 6 months, telling them you hate the service and hoping that maybe you’ll make some progress on your issue. I’d like to point out that one of the indicators of clinical insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly, expecting a different result. Now you get a letter in the mail saying “You are no longer a customer, and your termination fee is waived.” Wouldn’t you be happy?

I can understand how people who’ve never worked in or around customer service might jump to the conclusion that these customers are victims. But, those of us that have, if we still have enough faith in humanity to get out of bed, can regale you with stories upon stories about the exact type of people that would call a customer service line so frequently and then complain when they got dropped. I call them “serial complainers” and if you go to the grocery store a lot, you’ve probably seen them. This is the person who’s holding up your checkout line, demanding that the store take an expired coupon, until the manager comes and just gives it to them to make them go away. They’ve learned, when it comes to customer service, if you complain enough, you get what you want.

In an act of customer service solidarity, I’d love it if people who’ve had CS jobs would share some of their stories in the comments below. It’s ok, you’re not alone! The scars will heal! Group hug!