Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/Wikimedia brands/2016 Wikimedia brands perception report
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This will host research into community perceptions of Wikimedia brands including Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects. This research began with community interviews at Wikimania 2016.
What do we mean by "brand" ?
[edit]How people think of you is your brand. It’s the associated meanings between symbols (logos, names, colors, products, websites) and reputations (values, use cases, purposes, mission statements).
Simply put, a logo/name is a trigger for ideas and feelings about a brand. The names and logos are the signifiers. The values and meanings are the signified. Taken as a complete system, they are a brand.
Participants
[edit]We interviewed 20 key members of the community, including 2 members of the FDC and several former or current chapter presidents.
The group represented
- 17 countries
- 11+ languages
- 10 men
- 10 women
In reviewing the notes, common themes, phrases, and descriptions emerged. We have documented these commonalities here as preliminary findings on community perceptions of the Wikimedia brand system.
Research methodology
[edit]Our interviews were 30 minutes in length and semi-scripted. The interviews were free response: participants could offer any answer of any length to explain their perspectives.
- 19 conversations were in English
- 1 interview conducted in Spanish
Notes were taken during the interviews for later review and analysis. The conversations were not recorded.
Wikimania 2016
[edit]To better understand community perceptions of Wikimedia brands, 20 interviews were conducted over the week of Wikimania 2016. The interviews were semi-structured, meaning there was both a script of set question and the opportunity for interviewing teams to ask follow-up questions or explore new topics inspired by the conversation. Review 2016 findings here.
Each interview was approximately 30 minutes in length. While one research team member asked questions, a second team member recorded notes.
Two sets of visual guides were used to show Wikimedia brand marks and to compare Wikimedia brand marks to other well-known international brand logos.
Research documents
[edit]Findings
[edit]After reviewing the notes from our 20 conversations at Wikimania, the Wikimedia Foundation Communications team produced a full report.
