FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA INQUIRIES: Carrie Krysanick,
Dan Pinger Public Relations, 513/564-0700
OTHER INQUIRIES: Carol Brandon,
Burke, Inc. 513/684-7719
“Whole-Brain”
Web-SiteWeb Site Assessment
To Be
Demonstrated at Advertising Research Foundation Convention
Cincinnati, Ohio (February X25,
2002) – An innovative new process for assessing combining
Wweb
site usability and market impact assessmentsconsumer motivation
will be demonstrated [time/date]April
8, at the Advertising Research Foundation’s
annual convention in New York. The presentation, sponsored by Burke,
Inc., an international leader in strategic decision -support
services, will include example results from assessments of
television broadcast network and cable news sites.
“Traditionally,
tThe
question, of how easy to use and effective your Web
site is ‘of “Ccan
visitors to your Wweb
site use the features or functions easily and effectively?’” has traditionally beenwas
the exclusive domain of usability experts,” says Carol Brandon, Burke vVice pPresident
of Burke
Qualitative
Services. “Too often these types of studies studies deal only in downsides and failed
to answer important upside
marketing questions: : – WWwhat
image does the site convey?, Ddoes
it motivate the user?,
Aand
does it meet their needs?. ‘Whole-brain’ Web
site assessment combines quantitative and qualitative procedures to provide a
complete picture of how ayour Wweb
site is performing.”
The “whole-brain”
Web site assessments are conducted in traditional focus group facilities using
technology developed by Blue Bear™ LLC and marketed exclusively by
Burke, Inc. Stephen Brock, pPresident
of Blue Bear, will show how the technology produces insights for effective Web site development
at the ARF Annual Convention & Research Infoplex 2002, which will take
place April 8-10
at the Hilton New York.
“In
addition to mixing qualitative and quantitative approaches to Web site
evaluation, this approach combines behavioral and attitudinal testing,” says
Brock. “It gathers ‘rightleft-brain’
data on site functionality, while also collecting ‘leftright-brain’
information on the site’s emotional and motivational impact.”
-more-
Page
Two — Whole-brain assessment
Participants
in the whole-brain assessments “surf”
Web sites using a set of wirelessly connected portable laptop computers
with special browser software that allows users to comment on their likes,
dislikes, frustrations and questions as they move from page to page. The
software keeps a behavioral record of participants’ paths through the sites
being tested and the time they spend on each page, as well as their comments and reactions
to what they are seeing.
Throughout
these periods of free surfing, Mmoderators
can monitor this use
the continuous feedback and from the technology to intervene
with in-depth discussions aboutof
particular issues of concerns offor
the
Wweb
designers and the marketing teams. Respondents’
typed comments, survey responses, and timed patterns of movement are
automatically fed into spreadsheet-based reports, which that are
enhanced and explained by the group discussion findings from the group discussions.
“This
exciting marriage of hard and soft data focuses our attention
on how the many facets of Wweb site
design must work together to produce a truly successful site,” says Carol Brandon,
Burke Vice President of Qualitative Services. “Companies
should not change existing Web sites – or develop new ones – without first
conducting whole-brain assessments.”
Examples
of wWhole-brain
assessments conducted on ABC, CBS, and NBC Wweb sites, as well as those
of CNN, FoxNews and MSNBC, will be shown during Brock’s ARF conference presentation at
the ARF conference. (For more information on this research
see [INSERT URL HERE].http://www.burke.com/newssites)
[NANCY – IS THIS THE CURRENT BOILERPLATE?] Editor’s
Note:
Founded in 1931 and based in
Cincinnati, Burke, Inc.
is an international leader in providing marketing, financial and business
process information to its clients, linking an organization’s key stakeholders
— customers, employees, shareholders — to its financial performance. The firm
has offices and affiliates in 50 countries. business solutions
through the following business unitsCurrent business units include: Burke
Customer Satisfaction Associates, Burke Marketing Research, Burke Strategic Consulting
Group, Burke Interactive, Burke Qualitative Services and The Training &
Development CenterBurke Institute.
Founded in 1999 and
based in Cincinnati, Blue Bear TM LLC is a unique, research tool, created to help clients
evaluate,
improve and benchmark
Web sites – at the concept, development or finished stages. Blue Bear is the exclusive
supplier of qualitative Web site assessment to Burke, Inc. with clients ranging
from the Fortune 100 to high technology start-ups.
###
[Insert Blue Bear boiler
plate]