October 23, 2008 - At the Keller Fay Group, our mission is to help brands and their agencies develop strategies that maximize their word of mouth effectiveness, and to do so we undertake an ongoing program of research that monitors consumer word of mouth day-in and day-out throughout the year. This award-winning study, TalkTrack(R), has unveiled some very recent shifts in consumer conversation as a result of the ongoing financial crisis. This impacts not only financial firms that were at the center of the news recently, but also other products and services.

We have recently prepared a special analysis - drawn from TalkTrack(R) - examining the effect that the economic downturn is having on word of mouth at a category level and by brand. Among the findings, we see a substantial drop-off in WOM levels for automotive, travel, and retail/apparel categories, suggesting reduced consumer interest in these difficult economic times. We also see very big changes in WOM quality for the financial companies that have failed, while those that have “rescued” their former competitors have held up well in terms of WOM quality.

Knowing how much interest there is in the topic, we would be happy to share with you a summary of our findings. Please fill out the form below, or call Tom Zoretich at 732.846.6800.