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Spring Edition 2004
Welcome Letter of Introduction from eBrain's President & CEO, Todd Thibodeaux Trends in the CE Marketplace DVD Players Remain Fastest Growing Market Segment Women and Technology - a $50 Billion Market: Does Pink Really Sell? News You Can Use Case Study: Holiday Shopping Trends Revealed Using Imprint - Online Focus Groups What Does the CAN-SPAM Law Mean to Your Business? Tip of the Month: Brand Perception Studies Help Build Profitable Customer Relationships eBrain Events and Announcements Recent and Upcoming Speaking Engagements

Welcome
Letter of Introduction from eBrain's President & CEO, Todd Thibodeaux: I would like to welcome you to the first edition of eBrain Solutions, our new quarterly e-newsletter. For those unfamiliar with eBrain, we are a leading provider of custom research products and services to the consumer technology market. A subsidiary of CEA, our mission is to help our clients more effectively and efficiently gather and interpret the information they need to make better business decisions. Through these e-newsletters we hope to share with you important information on trends and developments that influence how effectively your company engages customers in the marketplace. In each edition, we intend to provide helpful articles designed to identify and highlight practical solutions to help you capitalize on emerging market opportunities, manage market threats, and provide your company a competitive advantage. Finally, through case studies, client engagement announcements, and product highlights, we will demonstrate how a variety of innovative eBrain tools and services can help you acquire the specific market information you need to make your company's products and services more successful. I look forward to expanding our dialogue with you through eBrain Solutions. Best Regards, Todd Thibodeaux President & CEO eBrain Market Research
Trends in the CE Marketplace
DVD Players Remain Fastest Growing Segment According to survey data compiled by eBrain Market Research, the DVD player is expected to remain one of the fastest growing market segments in 2004. In a survey of 2,000 U.S. adults conducted in February 2004, 70% of survey respondents indicated that their household owned one, up from 57% in 2003. The DVD player market is expected to remain hot, with 20% of all households planning to make a DVD player purchase within the next year, and 62% of households eventually planning to do so (includes both current owners and non-owner households. Of course, purchase patterns for CE products can vary tremendously depending upon demographics. Knowing which segments are expected to show the most rapid growth, and in what time-frame, can help companies focus their marketing strategies more effectively to enhance profitability throughout a given product's lifecycle. In the case of DVD players, while 20% of households plan to purchase one within the next year, 26% of adults ages 18-24 plan to do so, compared to only 18% of adults ages 45-54 who plan to do so in the same time period. Other CE categories expected to show substantial growth in the future are digital cameras and digital camcorders, with 20% of households expecting to purchase one within the next year. High-definition TVs continue to show strong growth with 58% of households indicating that they expected to purchase one eventually, almost equal to last year's response (includes current owners and non-owner households). eBrain has conducted over 160 consumer studies in the technology sector. Learn how we can help you get inside your customers minds to increase sales and expand into new markets. Women and Technology: Does Pink Really Sell? Many people believe that the women's market is just another niche category. In fact, women control over $50 billion worth of annual CE product purchases. And while some may think that women and men have similar CE buying and decision-making behaviors, an ongoing longitudinal tracking study by eBrain indicates otherwise. In fact, the study shows that a failure to recognize the differences could be a costly mistake. One area of difference between women and men is the distinct way in which they perceive technology products. In a preliminary, online study conducted in November 2003, from a representative sample of 1,000 adult U.S. consumers, only 49% of women indicated that they could generally figure out new high-tech products without the help of others; a figure noticeably less than the 68% of men who indicated that they could do so on their own. Following on this, looking at the current shopping experience of women, the survey indicates that 41% of women felt confused when shopping for consumer electronics, while 39% experienced sensory overload. Fully 41% of women take along a male friend when they go shopping for consumer electronics. The buying process is also another important area of difference between the genders. For example, while 51% of men rely in part on product reviews in making their purchase decisions, only 39% of women do so. By contrast, 53% of women rely on discussions with friends and family in making their purchase decisions, compared to only 43% of men. When it comes to evaluating technology product purchases, again women exhibit marked differences from men. While 91% of women considered product reliability and durability as the most important factor - similar to the 89% of men who feel likewise - 68% believe a product "not taking up a lot of space" is an important criteria factor in their purchase decisions, compared to only 55% of men. Similarly, 55% of women believe technology products should be "as portable as possible," compared to only 43% of men. While these figures represent only a fraction of the differences uncovered in the survey, it is clear that there are important differences in how women and men perceive and interact with technology products. Knowing what and where these differences are can help companies focus better on the distinct needs of women, enhancing the effectiveness of marketing efforts, and providing a competitive edge in the marketplace. So, does the color pink really help sell consumer electronics products to women? Actually, the survey shows that 32% of women think that using "female" styles and colors are a bad idea, while only 11% loved the idea and/or had already purchased such products. Interested in finding out more about the buying patterns of women when it comes to consumer electronics products? Learn more
News You Can Use
Case Study: Holiday Shopping Trends Revealed Using Imprint - Online Focus Groups A client was seeking to enhance their understanding of how customers shop for and buy gifts during the holiday season. eBrain recommended its innovative online focus group tool, Imprint, to get the highest quality answers in a quick and cost effective manner. With busy holiday schedules, a desire to recruit a nationally diverse group of people, and a need to show participants various marketing graphics and copy concepts, the online focus group methodology was the optimal choice for qualitative evaluations. To conduct the online focus groups, eBrain utilized the Imprint tool in two sessions, each of which consisted of 8 participants, screened for age, gender, and likelihood to purchase a gift during the holiday season. Each moderator-led session lasted approximately 75 minutes. Using the Imprint driven focus groups, the moderator probed deep into the underlying reasons for and emotions experienced in buying gifts for friends and family during the holiday season. In addition to the qualitative, online focus group evaluations, eBrain conducted an online survey, fielded to a nationally representative sample of 1,000 U.S. adults, to obtain quantitative data on expected gift purchases. Secondarily, the survey provided a means to gauge overall expenditures on gifts - a proxy for assessing the strength or weakness of the retail holiday season. At the conclusion of the study, the client received a final report that integrated the findings of the qualitative and quantitative research methods. Using this information, the client was able to successfully: Refine their messaging to capitalize on consumers' underlying gift buying emotions and purchasing behaviors Re-evaluate their sales strategy to better target specific shopper behaviors Use the hot holiday gifts identified through the research to plan inventory levels. Since Imprint is a graphical tool, eBrain has created an online demonstration that shows the power, flexibility, and ease of use which enables Imprint to deliver results, quickly and cost-effectively, even with hard-to-reach niche markets. View the demo now. What Does the CAN-SPAM Law Mean to Your Business? The CAN-SPAM law recently passed by Congress takes a step in the right direction to limit the flood of annoying and offensive junk email, but also has some potential pitfalls for unwary businesses. Get familiar with the basics of the law. The CAN-SPAM Act is an opt-out law. In most cases, permission of the receiver is not required to solicit initial email correspondence. The law supersedes portions of prior legislation such as California's strict SB 186, which required "direct consent" or a "prior business relationship" before a commercial email could be sent. Punishable violations of the law as laid out in Section 4 of the Act include: hiding email origin using other computers (hacking and relaying) false or misleading email header information deception in registration of email and domain names, and ownership of IP address Punishment for violating these provisions range from fines to imprisonment. Individuals cannot pursue civil action under the Act. Enforcement is limited to State Attorneys General, Internet Service Providers and certain federal agencies. Basic requirements of the law: Don't use deceptive or fraudulent subject lines, headers, return addresses, etc. Comply with removal requests within 10 business days Identify advertisements and include an opt-out mechanism and physical address Don't harvest email addresses from websites Clearly mark sexually oriented material (specific requirements to be announced on or before May 1) The basic rules of the law are simple but much is still open to interpretation. Some dates to watch: May 1, 2004: Deadline for announcing "clearly identifiable marks or notices" required for email containing sexually oriented material. July 1, 2004: Deadline for announcing plan and timetable for a Do-Not-Email Registry. Not to be created before Oct. 1. October 1, 2004: Deadline for developing plan to reward people who help identify violators of CAN-SPAM's provisions. Plan will present electronic submission option. October 1, 2004: Deadline for regulations to protect consumers from unwanted mobile service commercial messages. January 1, 2005: Deadline for issuing regulations on how to define the primary purpose of an email as either commercial or transactional/relationship. July 1, 2005: Deadline for plan requiring commercial electronic mail to be identifiable from its subject line (use of the characters `ADV' in the subject line, or other comparable identifier, or an explanation to cause the Commission to recommend against the plan.). What it comes down to: Legitimate email marketers need not fear. Anything required in the legislation is usually a best practice that good marketers should be doing already. Follow generally accepted practices of marketing, know the law and stay on top of new developments. This is a limited overview of the legislation. Full text of the law can be found at http://www.spamlaws.com/federal/108s877.html Tip of the Month: Brand Perception Studies Help Build Profitable Customer Relationships In this issue we explore the value of measuring your company and product's brand perception. Why should you care about it? Why should you measure it? How can you measure it? What will it tell you? Why Should You Care About It: Successful branding increases value for a company and its customers. Branding provides a powerful means to differentiate a company's product portfolio from that of its competitors, The degree of success in branding is strongly correlated with increased perceptions of value among target market customers. Since stronger brands increase product differentiation and value, they permit companies to sell their products at higher prices (pricing premiums) in the marketplace, which is reflected in the brand's value (equity). Why Should You Measure It: It is the customers' perceptions of a brand that ultimately determines its success and builds long-term brand equity for a company. By understanding consumers' perceptions, product marketing strategies can be adjusted to address the evolving needs of both current and potential customers in order to acquire, retain, and grow a loyal customer base. How Can You Measure It: Evaluating brand perceptions requires engaging customers to determine what they know about and how they perceive the product and company image. To accomplish this, there are a variety of quantitative and qualitative measurements that can be evaluated through the use of surveys and focus groups. In conducting a brand perception study, there are several factors that need to be evaluated: What market segments are aware of the brand and what are their perceptions How did they arrive at these perceptions What is their interest in the brand and how intense is this interest What actions have they taken in response to their interest (e.g. research, shopping, etc.) What is their purchase intent (e.g. already purchased, plan to purchase, plan to repurchase) How and where do they shop for products within the brand category Would they recommend the brand to friends, family, and others and, how strongly would they recommend it What Will It Tell You: Through studying brand perception, companies can determine key factors that drive the success of the branding effort and enhance ROI. Some of these brand perception drivers and characteristics include: The buying patterns of current customer market segments What target market segments are most responsive to the brand How effective is the brand in meeting customer needs and expectations How effective is the brand at acquiring and retaining customers Why are non-customers choosing not to buy the brand Are there any gaps between brand promise, customer perception, and performance What promotional channels work best to reach the target markets What marketing strategies have the greatest impact on brand preference How effective are the current distribution channels in meeting customer needs and expectations What is the level of contribution of advertising vs. service and process quality to brand value What is the current realized brand value (equity) By understanding what customers' perception of the brand is and what factors drive it, a company will have the necessary information needed to create an actionable plan to increase customer loyalty, build brand equity, and enhance profitability. eBrain has the tools to help you conduct brand perception studies of any size or scope. Contact one of our account executives or email us for an online quote today to learn how we can help.
eBrain Events and Announcements
Recent and Upcoming Speaking Engagements Joe Bates, eBrain's Research Director, will be discussing "Leading Edge Issues in Online Research" at the Marketing Research Association's 46th Annual Conference, June 10 in Boston. The session includes a review of online qualitative research methodologies available, the advantages and disadvantages of online focus groups, and more importantly WHEN they should be used. Read the full session description Read Joe's bio Joe recently presented "Home Automation and Networks: The Next Generation of Consumer Electronics" at EH Expo's VAR Digital Convergence Conference in Orlando, FL. View his presentation For more information on eBrain products and services, please contact us.