J.d. power buys umbria, buzz monitoring firm

Umbria of bowlder, CO, offering a platform for trailing consumer sentiment on blogs, message boards, populace social networks like MySpace, and other conversation-based media. It employment 40 staffers, about 20 of whom are focused on engineering development. The rest help analyze and distill data spewed forth by its scheme into actionable themes and penetration for clients. These are organized according to demographic profile.

"We specialize in adding analysis," said Umbria CEO Janet Eden-Harris. "What's the story the data is trying to tell? What are the deduction to merchandise management? Is my selling message workings? There are any figure of inquiry [we can help reply]," she said.

The Umbria brand will probably go away as the firm is integrated with its much good known parent, which is itself a unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

nevertheless, Eden-Harris said the division will operate as an mugwump product division. Its data offerings will also be added to J.D. Power's "voice of the client" research study, which deliver customer satisfaction ratings to clients in the auto, finance, electronics, and health care sectors.

Umbria says its gross quadrupled from 2006 to 2007 as the firm completed more than 70 undertaking for 50 companies in multiple verticals. Some of those categories, including consumer packaged goods and media & amusement, are new to J.D. Power. Umbria's price point for person projects starts at $25,000 to $30,000, and goes up from there depending on a client's needs, Eden-Harris said.

J.D. Power President Steve Jane Goodall, in a statement, said the combination of its name acknowledgment and research credentials with Umbria's platform would help progress the merged entity's idea leadership "well beyond the automotive industry into other emerging industries and marketplace."

"Consumer-generated Web comment is becoming a prominent part of our social fabric," the statement added.

The companies did not disclose financial details of the transaction, which closed yesterday.