When The Document Foundation has launched, it has been confronted – amongst the many – with a huge brand awareness challenge. Entering the marketplace with a new brand was a task that only a group of brave individuals could undertake.
Brand awareness analysis, though, is a challenge, because you have to study a moving target. In fact, today’s brand awareness is the result of the previous 12 or even 18 months of communication activity.
Let’s see how we have fared during the 18 months from October 2010 and March 2012, comparing the LibreOffice brand with those of the other office suites.
I will use several free indicators (we don’t have the budget for a proper brand analysis, with focus groups and other expensive research tools), which might give some insight into the present and into the future.
I am talking of Google Insights for Search, comparing LibreOffice with Calligra, OpenOffice and Microsoft Office during the 18 months from October 2012 and March 2012.
Product Search Worldwide
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
Web Search Worldwide
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
News Search Worldwide
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
LibreOffice is absent from Product Search (which is related to the installed base), is behind Microsoft Office and OpenOffice in Web Search (which is related to today’s brand awareness), although is growing, and is behind Microsoft Office in News Search (which is related to today’s interest), as it has overtaken OpenOffice in early 2011.
If we dig further into News Search, though, looking at countries where LibreOffice has a stronger community, we discover something interesting.
News Search Germany
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
News Search France
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
News Search Italy
Calligra (yellow), LibreOffice (green), Microsoft Office (red), OpenOffice (blue)
As you can see, in Germany LibreOffice is head to head with OpenOffice and Microsoft Office, in France is head to head with Microsoft Office, and in Italy is ahead of both OpenOffice and Microsoft Office.
Of course, if you look at raw numbers, today you see LibreOffice behind Microsoft Office and OpenOffice in most geographies, but if you look at perspectives… a truly independent, democratic and meritocratic community can achieve the unthinkable.
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