LUCI SHEEHAN

VP Sales, Umbria Inc.

Luci Sheehan is an At-Large Director of the Network of Executive Women and an executive on the cutting edge of change.

As vice president, sales, of the Umbria Group, she helps clients understand the "blogosphere," where so many of today's opinions are made. Umbria collects the unsolicited opinions and perceptions of the online community -- blogs, message boards, chatrooms, etc. -- and turns it into actionable market research. Using proprietary natural language processing and machine learning technologies, Umbria dissects "the who, what and why of online opinion to provide deep insight into the buzz" about companies, products, people and trends.

Luci was one of the first to develop Internet solutions in the CPG industry, launching SuperMarkets Online as Catalina’s vice president for sales in the late 1990s.

She has held executive sales management positions at NEO, Inc., The Ferolie Group, Catalina Marketing, CouponBasket.com and Merchandising Corporation of America.

A pioneer in the consumer products industry, she began her career at Procter & Gamble at a time when there where few women in the industry. She rose quickly at P&G, rising from sales rep to district manager of the company’s New York metro soap and detergent division.

In 2002 she founded Wendell Park Associates, a private consulting firm providing strategic sales, marketing consultation, training and development and business planning services to a range of CPG clients nationwide.

We caught up with her during her move from St. Petersburg, Fla., to Umbria headquarters in Boulder, Colo.

Q. For years business has had mixed results trying to talk to the online community. Umbria represents an attempt to make communication a two-way street. How is this working?

The first step for any business to engage in a two-way interaction with the online community is listen. The online community – and the “blogosphere,” in particular – represents an unprecedented opportunity to tap into candid, public conversations. Millions of them: on blogs, message boards and a range of public forums. There is a goldmine of immediate, unsolicited, unprompted and unbiased insights. And people are talking about everything, including how brands, products, people and topics of interest intersect with their lives. Umbria’s primary focus is on listening and measurement. We are listening to these online conversations for a variety of companies in many industries and sectors, primarily within the Fortune 1000.

Q. Tell us about the "blogosphere." Is every age group represented or do the demographics tilt one way or the other?

We think of the blogosphere as a rich and dynamic, living conversation that you can’t afford to not listen to, and we’re seeing the broadening appeal of the blogosphere among all demographics. When we began our research in early 2004, Gen Y females dominated the blogosphere. Over time, we have seen the blogosphere embraced by both genders and all age groups. In September, 2005, there were over 16 million bloggers and nearly 100,000 message boards. Over 80,000 new blogs are created every day.

Q. If I'm a brand manager, why should I care what people online are saying about me and my products?

There are over 16 million bloggers and over 50 million blog readers (over 30 percent of the Internet population). They represent segments of the population with higher disposable income and higher education, and are important influencers relative to the general population. Observing what they are saying about your brand is an effective means of understanding your target market and recognizing early trends. This is a segment that can’t be ignored.

Q. How can I change what's being said about me and my products?

Listen to what’s being said and use that feedback from the vast and dynamic online community -- and from tracking how the direction of the conversation about your brand may change – to improve your products. You can also use it to adjust your messaging and benchmark the effectiveness of your advertising and marketing campaigns. Umbria’s analytics platform is “always on” so it’s an efficient tool to collect directional insights that may include share of buzz, favorability, engagement level, acquisition of “new voices” and demographic breakdowns.

Q. You always seem to be ahead of the pack. You were one of the first women salespeople in the CPG industry, you were a pioneer on the Internet, you were an entrepreneur when that was the hot thing, and now you're on top of the blogosphere. How do you do stay fresh?

I stay focused on each day and each new adventure.

Q. What did you think of the NEW Summit last month in Atlanta?

I love the opportunity that NEW provides to meet smart, talented women and also to recharge my batteries through listening and participating in the conference. I really appreciate how much this organization has quickly grown in importance within our industry and the impact it is making in many organizations.

Q. One last question: Are you looking forward to enjoying real winters again?

It’s a lot drier here — after living on the beach in Florida, where every day was a bad hair day, this is a nice change!

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