Public Funding for Chatterbox Labs Ltd

Chatterbox’s Conversation Platform aims to analyse brand-based social media communication, going beyond existing buzz, influence or sentiment analysis to measure engagement and pinpoint individuals who engage others and drive opinion. For the customer, Chatterbox provides a direct economic benefit by improving the quality and efficiency of customer relationship management (CRM). Chatterbox addresses the social media analytics market, which is predicted to reach $3.1bn by 2014, growing at 34% per annum. The project is collaborative with a leading brand owner, and aims to develop a Software as a Service (SaaS) application which will be developed for and tested in a real operational environment.

Chatterbox Analytics plan to investigate the market for a new approach to automated real-time tracking of customer opinions around brands or products. Researchers at Queen Mary, University of London have been developing new methods to automatically detect and understand conversations in online social media (such as Twitter and Facebook). Demonstration software has been developed for the underlying techniques of detecting positive and negative opinions, the conversations around them and the people involved. Market testing is now required to get feedback from potential customers about its commercial appeal and viability, together with the requirements and desirable features for a commercial version. This project aims to carry out a beta testing period of web-accessible demonstration software with selected testing partners in order to better understand the needs of the market and the position of Chatterbox Analytics’ product(s) within it. This testing period will guide Chatterbox Analytics’ commercialisation plan in order to provide effective tools that address real needs. The project will have economic impact by creating a strategic plan for a technology firm with high growth potential, and by providing tools to other corporations allowing them to maximise their growth. Chatterbox Analytics’ products may be used to analyse and monitor opinions about societal or political issues. The project will also open pathways for societal impact, with the potential for future recruitment.