Before entering into a new market, companies do market research and may even test their products or services with local customers. But how many companies test their content to ensure it will resonate with their potential consumers? No matter how good your product or service is, you can still struggle with a market if your content doesn’t work. This case study shows how upfront content research provided invaluable cultural insights that shaped the way StubHub positioned their brand and tailored their voice for the German market.

1. ©2014 Andreas Woelk
I’M NOT A FAN! !
KEY FINDINGS FROM
STUBHUB’S CONTENT
RESEARCH IN GERMANY
CONFAB EUROPE 2014
ANDREAS WOELK
©2014 Andreas Woelk

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GOAL: !
MAKE IT WORK IN EUROPE!

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FOOTBALL (US)

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FOOTBALL (UK)

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No experience outside the Anglo-American context
Business model needs to be explained in Europe
CHALLENGES
No brand awareness of StubHub

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What is important to German customers?
What is the right voice for StubHub in Germany
What brand attributes resonate with them?
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Are there significant regional differences?

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METHODOLOGY

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THE TEAM
Bernhard Riedl
Christian Stotz
Sebastian !
Krause
Jennifer
Wang

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EXERCISE 1:
What’s most important to you for
buying or selling tickets online?

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EXERCISE 2:
How important are the following
attributes for a ticketing site?

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Informative
Customer-
centric
Professional
Human
Colloquial
Trustworthy
Friendly
Creative
Engaging
Motivating
1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6!
1 = very important
6 = not important at all

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TEST MATERIAL
3 pages from
the buy flow
3 pages from
the sell flow
Formal
Conversational
Casual
3 voice !
variations

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Voice is the reflection of the brand
personality through language.
DEFINITION

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EXERCISE 3:
Evaluate each variation against
the following semantic differential:

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-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3
Complicated
Uninspired
Not motivating
Unfriendly
Not informative
Unclear
Unsupportive
Unemotional
Boring
Not trustworthy
Unprofessional
Not engaging
Simple
Inspired
Motivating
Friendly
Informative
Clear
Supportive
Emotional
Upbeat
Trustworthy
Professional
Engaging

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EXERCISE 4:
If the formal/conversational/casual
voice belonged to a person, how
would that person look like?

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Excluded people who could be biased
50% had bought, 50% had sold tickets before
Selected 10 participants per city from all walks of life
RECRUITING CRITERIA
Sample was gender- and age-balanced
Interview session lasted 75 minutes

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RESEARCH LOCATIONS

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FINDINGS

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Professional
Trustworthy
Informative
Customer-centric
Friendly
KEY ATTRIBUTES FOR !
A TICKETING SITE

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1! 2! 3! 4! 5! 6!
Trustworthy !
was the one most
important attribute
for all participants.
1 = very important
6 = not important at all
Informative
Customer-
centric
Professional
Human
Colloquial
Trustworthy
Friendly
Creative
Engaging
Motivating

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1933-45: Nazi Germany. Gestapo established !
a system based on terror, fear, and denunciation
1950-90: Stasi in East Germany!
Again, snitching and snooping was pervasive
ABUSE OF TRUST !
IN RECENT GERMAN HISTORY
1990: Reunification !
Strong consumer and privacy protection laws in place

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SICHERHEITSDENKEN!
(Safety thinking)

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KEY FINDING
Online security and privacy protection are top priorities

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“I hate, I really
hate, this voice!
It’s just stupid.”
“It sounds snotty. !
Unless you like to be
treated as a child,
you leave.”
“You can’t talk to
me like this if you
want me to take
you seriously.”
CASUAL VOICE

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PREFERRED VOICE
Neck-and-neck race between formal !
and conversational voice

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-3! -2! -1! 0! 1! 2! 3!
Complicated
Uninspired
Not motivating
Unfriendly
Not informative
Unclear
Unsupportive
Unemotional
Boring
Not trustworthy
Unprofessional
Not engaging
Simple
Inspired
Motivating
Friendly
Informative
Clear
Supportive
Emotional
Upbeat
Trustworthy
Professional
Engaging
Transactional page
-3! -2! -1! 0! 1! 2! 3!
Educational page
Formal
Convers.
Casual

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€ = SERIOUS BUSINESS

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KEY FINDING
Preference for a formal voice in the context of a financial transaction
Preference for a conversational voice in areas of help and guidance

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PERSONIFICATION
Formal voice
Casual voice
Conversational voice

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TICKET OAK AS OUR !
BRAND AMBASSADOR?
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCukRxPKS58

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CONCEPT OF FANDOM

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I’M NOT A FAN
…in the context of music

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I’M NOT A FAN
…in the context of sports

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KEY FINDING
The concept of fandom doesn’t resonate overall

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KEY FINDING
There are no regional differences

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SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
Online security and privacy protection are top priorities
Preference for a formal voice in the context of a financial transaction
Preference for a conversational voice in areas of help and guidance
The concept of fandom doesn’t resonate overall
There are no significant regional differences

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IMPLEMENTATION

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TERMINOLOGY CHANGES
Buyer Protection
Bonus Program
Bonus Program
I like it
Your marketplace for tickets

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GERMAN STYLE GUIDE
Differences between the US and the German tone of voice
Between the US and Germany there are a few fundamental differences in terms of how we communicate with our customers:
US
Germany
The emphasis is on the fan.
Our personality projects our
fans-first commitment.
In general, don’t refer to customers as “fans”. Use the term carefully and rather in the context of
sports than concerts, theater, or comedy.
Example
US: I’m a fan
DE: Find‘ ich gut (I like it)
We want fans to experience
the fun, excitement, and
passion of buying and selling
tickets – and we want to share
those feelings with them.
Our research has found that German customers don’t expect the site to be particularly
engaging or entertaining. They expect it to be trustworthy, customer-centric, and informative.
They prefer a tone of voice that is leaning toward formal, especially for content relating to the
financial transaction.
It’s okay to be conversational in content that educates (e.g. a tutorial or help topics) or that
communicates a positive message (e.g. listing success page or tickets ordered email).

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CONTACT
www.linkedin.com/in/awoelk
andreasjwoelk@gmail.com
@andreaswoelk