M&As - Not Music To Consumers' Ears
Companies may not be able to soft sell consumers on the benefits of mergers, according to a new study by Wirthlin Worldwide. The McLean, Va.-based company found that 38 percent of 1,050 U.S. adults surveyed believe that mergers hurt consumers, with Americans over 65 most likely to hold that view.
With M&As on the rise and communications steering much of the messaging that surrounds these business transitions, you need to find a way to tap into customer perception if your company is undergoing a merger. Poll regular and new customers to develop a benchmark of consumer perceptions and misperceptions.
To no one's surprise, the study also shows that stockholders are the real winners, while employees are viewed as the losers. Often, that's because of anticipated job loss - especially when foreign interests are concerned, according to the Wirthlin study.
Smart communicators would do well to research and file information about obstacles other companies have endured and learn from others' transition programs. (Wirthlin Worldwide, 703/556-0001)
When Branding Isn't Enough
Branding, one of the buzz words of the 1990s, has been heralded as an image fixer or elixir by many experts, including those in academia and crisis management. But a new study shows that brand names by themselves aren't enough to guarantee consumer loyalty.
Customers won't necessarily pay more for a product simply because it contains a branded component or ingredient, reports a new survey by CDB Research & Consulting Inc., New York.
To sway customers, the brand must demonstrate the ability to enhance the product in question, CDB reports.
Brands with that ability include Intel [INTC], Stainmaster and Teflon. Sixty percent of respondents said they would be more likely to pay more for goods containing those aforementioned brands.
But other brands don't sweeten the pot. NutraSweet is the most universally recognized brand, but it doesn't coax consumers to shell out more bucks. Go figure.
The findings were based on telephone polls conducted with 800 adults in March 1998. (CDB, 212/367-6815)
The Global Community
The discipline of community relations may prove it's a small world after all based on the findings of a new study by the Boston College Center for Corporate Community Relations, Chestnut Hill, Mass.
Sixty percent of 227 community relations professionals report that their employers have multinational operations. Of those, 42 percent report the companies have established international community relations programs.
Other findings:
- 83 percent have community involvement;
- 67 percent support volunteerism in those communities; and
- 62 percent have partnerships with community-based organizations.
(Boston College Center for Corporate Community Relations, 617/552-8668)