Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/Wikimedia brands/2016 Wikimedia brands perception report

This page from the Wikimedia Foundation is kept for historical interest. Any plans, policies, projects, or strategies mentioned may be obsolete.

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" ?

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

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

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

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

• Wikimania 2016 Community Brand Interview - Questions

Findings

After reviewing the notes from our 20 conversations at Wikimania, the Wikimedia Foundation Communications team produced a full report.

2016 Report