Sizing the industry

Lots of news in social media analysis this week. The Cymfony acquisition got the big headlines, of course, generating a healthy selection of articles and some useful analysis. One thing really amuses me, though: the notion that there are only seven companies in the business. If you want to buy a social media analysis company before they're all gone, you have more than five choices left. And if you're looking for a vendor or partner, please note that the field is bigger and more varied than some of the articles suggest.

smacount.gifIn the process of developing the Guide to Social Media Analysis, I've found 48 companies in 11 countries so far (Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States). I'm referring to the headquarters locations here; some of these companies are multi-national, and their staffs are frequently international, too.

I'm sure there are more; I learned of four in the last 24 hours (Echo Research, Ethority, Primelabs, and Sports Media Challenge). No doubt language barriers are hiding even more. And if there's really only one company in China, look for others to enter (sorry, Sam).

Not all of the companies I'm talking to are direct competitors to Cymfony, Nielsen BuzzMetrics, Umbria, et al. In fact, their differences are part of what makes this interesting, and it's an area I'll explore here and in the Guide. After I finish with the company briefings.

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