Shanghai, China (November, 2007) /China Newswire/ — CIC, China's leading Internet Word of Mouth (IWOM) research and consulting firm, announced in a study released today that it tracked 15,618,268 automobile related messages found on online message boards (BBS) written by 468,430 unique users from the period of April to June 2007. This most recent installment of CIC's IWOM white paper series represents the first comprehensive analysis of IWOM surrounding China's automobile industry.

China has 162 million Internet users according to China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), making it the second largest Internet market in the world behind the United States. CIC's finding of massive consumer participation in online communities echo earlier findings from CNNIC showing that China's Internet users are some of the most "interactive" online consumers in the world with 36.9% and 25.3% frequenting BBS and blogs respectively. All of these figures demonstrate that Chinese consumers are going to the Internet in droves to seek and share opinions and experiences about products; the auto industry is no exception to this phenomenon.

Using its proprietary text mining technology, CIC determined that in comparison to foreign invested joint-ventures, "pure" Chinese domestic brands accounted for seven out of the top ten most mentions of manufacturer brand, with Chery garnering the most buzz (107,151 messages mentioning). CIC found that Chery buzz is driven by national pride and its star models like Chery QQ. Compared to other brands, Chery had a stronger spike in buzz coinciding with the Shanghai Auto Show and saw buzz spikes around announcements related to new model releases and overall company performance.

Daisy Zhang, CIC research director, suggests "the passion and pride for pure Chinese brands, especially Chery, has fueled a strong IWOM base which presents a unique advantage for communications over foreign and foreign invested brands. The passionate brand fans driving these conversations will actively promote domestic brands' improvements and will facilitate Chinese consumers to gain confidence in the quality and service of domestic brands."

For the 430 models tracked for this study, Ford Focus from Changan Ford-Mazda dominates with 3.5% of all model mentions ¬– talk about its Interior was a unique major buzz driver compared to other models. Interest in safety spiked when results from China New Car Assessment Programme (C-NCAP) safety test for Focus were released –during this time, Focus's safety buzz increased 5 fold.

In an analysis of the language and culture of these forums, CIC found that 50% of all Ford Focus mentions refer to Internet nicknames such as "FKS" instead of its official name, offering interesting implications for search engine marketers. The report also outlines activities such as "fubai" and "homework" which encourages consumers to meet together and share detailed experiences and opinions about particular models both online and offline.

Sam Flemming, founder and CEO of CIC, suggests "Online culture in China is breeding a consumer media of experience and sharing which means consumers are now playing a larger role in influencing brand image and purchase decisions of fellow consumers. In understanding IWOM, marketers not only gain insight about what consumers actually want and need, they can use this insight to more effectively and meaningfully engage and participate in their consumers' world.

INTERNET LINKS

http://www.cicdata.com
http://www.seeisee.com
http://www.seeisee.com/sam

CIC is the leading Internet Word of Mouth (IWOM) research and consulting firm in China. CIC IWOM analysts help its clients make sense of the buzz found on Chinese blogs, BBS forums, and other IWOM platforms using proprietary technology developed specifically for the Chinese language on the Internet.

With sensitivity toward marketing, market research, media planning, public relations, and product development, CIC's team of IWOM analysts provide actionable insights for a stable of Fortune 500 retainer clients in China and around the world, including retainer relationships with leading automobile manufacturers.

CIC was founded in 2003 by a team of local and international professionals with rich experience in the Chinese marketing communications.

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Lucy Guo
  Tel: 86-21-5237 3860/61/62/63
  Fax: 86-21-5237 3632
  Email: info@cicdata.com

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