Vauhini Vara of the Wall Street Journal writes about how marketers increasingly turn to weblogs for marketing data. The article mentions Volkswagen utilizing reporting tools from Techdirt to keep informed of “items that appear on blogs and message boards, as well as in mainstream news outlets.” Sony hired Intelliseek to find out how its customers compared its new digital Walkman to Apple’s iPod.
Karen Rizzo, director of marketing for Kryptonite, mentions how rapidly their product’s reputation fell apart online when a message in an online bicycle forum spread across the online world.
I expect to see more automated reporting tools in this space to help companies deal with the influx of data regarding their products. I already know of companies hiring consultants to interpret Technorati’s results, and it is only a matter of time before companies develop market intelligence tools to tap into this readily available information.