Online Weather Information Source Market Assessment Study

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Online Weather Information Source Market
Assessment Study

• February 13, 2008

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Table of Contents

• Accessing Weather Information
• Awareness
• Usage
• Attribute Importance and Performance
• Summary and Recommendations
• Demographics

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Accessing Weather Information
4
Accessing Weather Information Source

• In order to participate in this study, all
  respondents must have indicated that they access
  weather information via the Internet. Roughly 75
  of potential respondents satisfied this
  criterion.
• Respondents seek weather information from a
  variety of media other than the Internet,
  predominantly local TV stations (74 of
  respondents).

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Accessing Weather Information Location

• The vast majority of respondents (92) access the
  Internet from home when gathering weather
  information, and roughly one-third of respondents
  (29) access the Internet from work when doing
  so.
• Almost all respondents have either cable or DSL
  Internet access at home.
• There were no consistent demographic differences
  in this data.

Type of Internet Service at Home
Locations Internet Accessed
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Accessing Weather Information Frequency

• In order to participate in this study, all
  respondents must have accessed weather
  information via the Internet at least once in the
  seven days prior to taking the survey.
• A majority of respondents (57) had accessed
  weather information via the Internet one to five
  times in the previous seven days.

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Heavy Users versus Light Users

• For the purposes of analysis, respondents who had
  accessed online weather information 15 times in
  the previous week are considered light users
  and those who had accessed online weather
  information more than 5 times are considered
  heavy users.
• Younger respondents and female respondents were
  more likely to be light users.
• There were no other key demographic differences
  between light users and heavy users.

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Awareness
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Unaided Awareness

• Unaided awareness of The Weather Channel was
  significantly higher among respondents ages 1824
  (87), and it decreased as age increased,
  dropping to 36 among those 65 and older.
• Unaided awareness of local TV Web sites was
  significantly higher among respondents ages 4554
  (64) than among most other age groups.

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Total Awareness

• Heavy users were significantly more likely than
  light users to be aware of WeatherBug,
  AccuWeather, NBC Weather Plus, Intellicast, and
  Weather Underground.
• Awareness of Google was significantly higher
  among respondents ages 1824 (76) than most
  other age groups.
• Awareness of NOAA was significantly higher among
  respondents ages 5564 (47) than most other age
  groups.

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Usage
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Overall Usage

• As might be expected, The Weather Channel led all
  Web sites in terms of overall usage, as 67 of
  respondents had previously used this site.
• Consistent with awareness data, heavy users were
  significantly more likely than light users to
  have used WeatherBug, AccuWeather, NOAA, NBC
  Weather Plus, Weather Underground, and
  Intellicast.
• Respondents 1824 were significantly more likely
  than most other age groups to have used Google
  (40).

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Primary Usage

• Just over three-quarters of respondents (77)
  indicated that they have one or two online
  weather information sources that they prefer to
  all others the remaining 23 said that all
  weather sites are basically the same to them.
• Among respondents who use more than one source,
  32 use The Weather Channel most frequently.
• Rates of primary usage for The Weather Channel
  tended to be higher among younger respondents
  (43 among ages 1834), and rates of primary
  usage for local TV Web sites tended to be higher
  among older respondents (18 among ages 55 and
  older).

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Primary Usage Heavy Users versus Light Users

• Light users were significantly more likely to use
  The Weather Channel and local TV Web sites as
  their primary source of online weather
  information, while heavy users were significantly
  more likely to use WeatherBug as their primary
  source.

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Reasons for Using Primary Source

• Overall, respondents cited many different reasons
  for using a particular online weather information
  source more than others.

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Reasons for Using Primary Source

• Classified into two broader categories of 1)
  attributes related to brand or URL (such as an
  easy to remember Web site) and 2) attributes
  related to site features (such as radar, maps,
  and graphics), this data suggests that brand/URL
  is a more important driver of using a particular
  online weather information source.
• Brand/URL-related attributes were cited by 57 of
  respondents as reasons for using their primary
  online weather information source
  feature-related attributes were cited by only 35
  of respondents.

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Reasons for Using Primary Source

• The Web sites used most often are differentiated
  in terms of why respondents use them more often
  than other sources of online weather information.

• Frequent users of MSN and Yahoo use these sites
  more often than others because they are set as a
  homepage or e-mail page.
• As might be expected, frequent users of local TV
  and other news sites most commonly cite local
  weather information as the reason for using those
  sites more than others.
• Users of WeatherBug note its presence on their
  desktop as the primary reason for using it more
  than other sources.

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Usage Characteristics

• Respondents most commonly access online weather
  information sources for severe weather or storm
  information (77), planning appropriate attire
  for the weather conditions (61), and driving or
  traffic information (47).
• Heavy users generally mentioned more reasons for
  accessing information than light users and were
  more likely to cite many of the reasons listed
  below, including severe weather or storm
  information, planning appropriate attire, and
  enjoying following the weather.

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Usage Characteristics

• Respondents did not appear to be significantly
  engaged with the online weather information
  sources that they use overall, only 19
  currently have a no-fee subscription and less
  than 5 pay a subscription fee or have
  contributed content.
• Primary users of WeatherBug were by far the most
  likely group to indicate that they currently have
  a no-fee subscription, as 54 did so.
• Heavy users were significantly more likely than
  light users to have a current no-fee subscription
  (29 compared to 11) and to pay a fee to access
  enhanced services (6 compared to 1).

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Attribute Importance and Performance
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Attribute Importance

• Overall, respondents rated Trustworthy, Provides
  accurate forecasts, Is easy to use, and
  Understands weather where I live as the most
  important characteristics when selecting an
  online weather information source.
• Heavy users tended to give higher ratings of
  importance on most attributes and had a
  significantly higher mean rating for Relevant to
  my lifestyle, Interactive maps and radar,
  Educational weather content, and Environmental
  and climate content.
• Is easy to use, Understands weather where I live,
  Relevant to my lifestyle, and URL/address that is
  easy to remember were significantly more
  important to females.

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Not at all important (1)
Extremely important (10)
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Attribute Importance

• Responses to an open-ended question inquiring
  about the most important factor in deciding which
  online weather information source to use are
  consistent with the attributes that were
  identified in the ratings questions as being the
  most important accuracy, ease of use, and local
  weather information were among the most important
  factors.
• There were no significant differences between
  heavy users and light users.

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Differences in Attribute Importance

• Is easy to use was more important to primary
  users of Google than to primary users of other
  sites.
• Alerts me of severe weather was relatively more
  important to primary users of WeatherBug and
  AccuWeather.
• Interactive maps and radar was relatively more
  important to primary users of AccuWeather and
  NOAA.
• URL/address that is easy to remember was
  relatively more important to primary users of
  Google and The Weather Channel.
• Fun and interesting was relatively more important
  to primary users of AccuWeather.
• Weather photo sharing was relatively more
  important to primary users of AccuWeather.
• Weather blogs and forums was relatively more
  important to primary users of AccuWeather,
  WeatherBug, and Yahoo.

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Attribute Performance

• Overall, The Weather Channel was the top Web site
  in terms of attribute performance. It received
  the best or second-best rating on 8 of the 15
  attributes and on 3 of the 4 most important
  attributes.
• Also performing well on the most important
  attributes were local TV Web sites, which
  received the best or second-best rating on all of
  the five most important attributes.
• AccuWeather and other local news sites were the
  top performers on many of the attributes less
  important to respondents, generally ones related
  to enhanced content or functional capabilities.
• The lowest-performing sites overall were
  WeatherBug, NOAA, and Intellicast.

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Attribute Performance Matrix Total Sample

• The table below displays the relative performance
  of each competitor on each attribute, ranked from
  1 to 10, for the total sample.
• The attributes are listed in descending order
  from most important to least important.
• The competitors are listed left to right from
  best overall performance to worst overall
  performance across all attributes (based on a
  composite score weighted to account for the
  relative importance of each attribute).
• The best and worst scores for each attribute are
  highlighted in green and pink, respectively.

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Attribute Performance Matrix Heavy Users

• The table below displays the relative performance
  of each competitor on each attribute as rated by
  heavy users only.
• Although it was the seventh-best performer
  overall, Weather Underground was the second-best
  performer among heavy users.
• NBC Weather Plus also performed well, ranking
  third overall just ahead of local TV Web sites.

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Attribute Performance Matrix Light Users

• The table below displays the relative performance
  of each competitor on each attribute as rated by
  light users only.
• Other local news sites and local TV Web sites
  outperformed The Weather Channel among light
  users, taking the top two spots.
• Whereas Weather Underground was the second-best
  performer among heavy users, it was the worst
  performer among light users.

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Unmet Needs

• The four attributes most important to
  respondents, Trustworthy, Provides accurate
  forecasts, Is easy to use, and Understands
  weather where I live, are also the four
  attributes that represent the biggest unmet needs
  in the market.
• Respondents ratings suggest that currently only
  local TV Web sites and other local news sites are
  meeting consumers needs with regard to
  understanding local weather.
• None of the competitors presented in this study
  appear to be satisfying consumers needs in terms
  of the three most important attributes
  (Trustworthy, Provides accurate forecasts, and Is
  easy to use). The Weather Channel and local TV
  Web sites come the closest, as they are the top
  two rated competitors on all three measures.

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Needs Matrix

• The table below displays the performance of each
  competitor on each attribute in terms of the
  expressed needs of the marketplace (for the total
  sample).
• Unmet needs are highlighted in pink these exist
  when satisfaction with the attribute performance
  for a given competitor falls short of the
  attributes importance.
• Saturated needs are highlighted in green these
  exist when satisfaction with the attribute
  performance for a given competitor far exceeds
  the attributes importance.

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Opportunities for Improvement

• Fifty-five percent of respondents did not have
  any suggestions as to what online weather
  information providers could improve upon.
  Accuracy/reliability was the most frequently
  cited opportunity for improvement, mentioned by
  15 of respondents. This result echoes the
  finding that Trustworthy and Provides accurate
  forecasts are among the biggest unmet needs in
  the market.

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Web Site Name Candidates
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Favorite Names

• MyWeather.com was the most popular name for a
  potential new weather Web site 53 of
  respondents chose it as their favorite name and
  91 selected it as one of their top three
  choices.
• AllWeather.com was also a popular name 29 of
  respondents chose it as their favorite name and
  88 selected it as one of their top three
  choices.
• There was relatively minimal interest in all the
  rest of the potential names evaluated.

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Suggested Names

• When asked to choose the ideal name for a brand
  new weather Web site, 26 of respondents
  suggested names that are already used by existing
  weather Web sites. These included
• Weather.com (almost 50 mentions)
• WeatherNow.com (27) (redirects to Weathernews)
• WeatherorNot.com (8)
• RainorShine.com (7) (redirects to AccuWeather)
• LocalWeather.com (5)
• WeatherMan.com (4)
• WeatherWatch.com (3)
• Twenty-five percent of respondents did not offer
  any names for a new site, and 5 suggested names
  that are already used by existing Web sites that
  are not directly related to weather.

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Suggested Names

• Among the 41 of respondents who suggested names
  that do not currently appear to be in use, the
  most frequently mentioned names were
• MyWeather.com (14 mentions)
• YourWeather.com (14) (possibly in development)
• AccurateWeather.com (5)
• WeatherAlert.com (5)
• WeatherWatcher.com (5)
• AllWeather.com (4)
• WeatherInfo.com (4)
• CurrentWeather.com (3)
• InstantWeather.com (3)
• Outside.com (3)
• RealWeather.com (3)
• TodaysWeather.com (3)
• WhatstheWeather.com (3)

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Suggested Names

• Other suggested names that do not currently
  appear to be in use include

• FastWeather.com
• FirstWeather.com
• Forecaster.com
• JustWeather.com
• LiveWeather.com
• MostAccurateWeather.com
• MyLocalWeather.com
• NewWeather.com
• PersonalWeather.com
• PinpointWeather.com
• SpecificWeather.com
• SportsWeather.com
• Weather247.com
• Weather4U.com
• WeatherandYou.com
• WeatherBeat.com
• WeatherChecker.com
• WeatherExpert.com
• WeatherFacts.com

• WeatherMania.com
• WeatherMate.com
• WeatherMatters.com
• WeatherMax.com
• WeatherMe.com
• WeatherMyWay.com
• WeatheroftheDay.com
• Weather-Only.com
• WeatherontheGo.com
• WeatherOutside.com
• WeatherPlans.com
• WeatherReady.com
• WeatherSpot.com
• WeatherTrack.com
• WeatherWeb.com
• WeatherWhereYouAre.com
• WeatherZone.com
• WeeklyWeather.com
• YourForecast.com

• EasyWeather.com (2 mentions)
• HowIstheWeather.com (2)
• TheWeatherWebsite.com (2)
• UptoDateWeather.com (2)
• WeatherFirst.com (2)
• WeatherForecast.com (2)
• WeatherRadar.com (2)
• WeatherUpdate (2)
• WeatherUpdates.com (2)
• WeatherWhereYouLive.com (2)
• WeatherWise.com (2)
• WeatherWorld.com (2)
• WorldWideWeather.com (2)
• YourLocalWeather.com (2)
• AllAccessWeather.com
• AllThingsWeather.com
• DailyWeather.com
• DailyWeatherWatch.com
• DaytoDayWeather.com

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Summary and Recommendations
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Summary and Recommendations

• The Weather Channel is the clear overall market
  leader in terms of awareness, usage, and
  performance.
• Local TV Web sites were also strong in terms of
  usage and performance, especially among light
  users.
• Yahoo and MSN were among the leaders in terms of
  awareness and usage, likely driven by their
  position as a homepage or e-mail page their
  performance was not assessed in this study.
• WeatherBug was highly rated in terms of awareness
  and usage, especially among heavy users, but it
  was one of the worst performers among both light
  and heavy users.

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Summary and Recommendations

• Web sites are chosen by users for a wide variety
  of reasons, but the data indicates that
  brand-related attributes are more important than
  feature-related attributes in a users
  determination of their primary source of online
  weather information.

Performance on Feature-Related Attributes
Performance on Brand-Related Attributes
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Map of Competitors Heavy Users
Performance on Feature-Related Attributes
Performance on Brand-Related Attributes
40
Map of Competitors Light Users
Performance on Feature-Related Attributes
Performance on Brand-Related Attributes
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Summary and Recommendations

• To establish itself in the market, it is
  important for a new weather Web site to develop a
  brand identity that resonates with the attributes
  that are most important to respondents accurate,
  trustworthy, easy to use, and localized. These
  are also currently the biggest unmet needs in the
  market.
• MyWeather should attempt to differentiate itself
  in the market by creating a strong, unique brand
  that is supported by its superior forecasting
  technologies and an easy-to-use interface for
  personalized weather information.
• MyWeather should consider the development of
  enhanced content and capabilities (such as photo
  sharing and blogs/forums) a secondary priority.
  These features are not viewed as particularly
  important, and needs for them are being met by
  existing sites.

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Summary and Recommendations

• The most vulnerable existing Web sites appear to
  be Intellicast, WeatherBug, and NOAAall of which
  performed poorly among both heavy and light
  users.
• Heavy users were significantly more likely to
  have used these sites.
• Weather Underground may also be vulnerable among
  light users, but it performed well among heavy
  users.

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Summary and Recommendations

• If MyWeather hopes to charge a fee for a
  direct-to-consumer Web site, it may be beneficial
  to first target heavy users, 6 of whom pay a fee
  to access enhanced services. (Older consumers and
  male consumers are more likely to be heavy
  users.)
• MyWeather.com is a good choice for a name for a
  new direct-to-consumer weather Web site.
• It is short and easy to remember, and it would
  convey the personalized aspect of a potential
  brand.
• It was by far respondents favorite name for a
  new weather Web site.
• Additionally, the data suggests that Weather
  Channels easy-to-remember URL is a contributing
  factor to their success.

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Demographics
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Demographics

• Seventy-nine percent of respondents 1824 were
  female, while only 53 of respondents 55 or older
  were female.

Gender
Age
46
Demographics
Region
Area Population
47
Demographics
Annual Household Income
Education Level
48
LIN TelevisionOnline Weather Recommendation
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Lin Markets Page Views
Assumes 2.00 cpm 2 ads/PV
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How can local media capitalize on the consumption
shift of online weather?

• Internet-exclusive

Trend
Everyday users

• Loyal viewer of nightly news broadcast

• Use Weather.com, CNN.com Google, and Yahoo for
  news weather
• Has favorite list of sites they frequent

To compete online, LIN needs to cast a wider net!
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Programming the Web - Its All About the Brand

• Building a website using station call letters
  limits recognition/awareness to TV viewers only
• Under 35 demo increasingly does not watch TV news
  they are on the web and are the future of your
  franchise
• Use weather as an on-ramp to your web channel AND
  to augment your on-air brand there is still
  much that TV can do that no other media can

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Recommendations Where do we go from here?

• Compete with weather.com and other portals
• Create a weather brand in each market i.e.
  myaustinweather.com A stand-alone, hyper-local,
  weather franchise
• Two way traffic with local LIN MET and station
  KXAN.com becomes a sister site built in
  legitimacy
• Brand is 1 - personalized, interactive features
  deliver on the promise
• MyWeather can build it from soup to nuts
• Market the brand locally both traditional and
  online media (Google Ad Words for Austin Weather)
• MyWeather can help monetize and sell select ad
  inventory and revshare back to LIN

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Optimized for Search engines

• Having a unique weather page for the Austin
  market improves Google Ranking
• Draw more pageviews from non-TV watchers
• Compete directly with online weather brands and
  win
• No additional cost to station