Project Buys Word-of-Mouth Agency Affinitive

In the US, marketing agency network Project: WorldWide has acquired Affinitive, which develops customer communities and insights panels and offers social media audits. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Founded in 2002, New York City-based Affinitive provides social media business solutions which combine consumer engagement strategies with proprietary technology, real-time monitoring and integration with clients' existing enterprise systems. Its online consumer insight panels comprise pre-screened individuals - identified from a brand's existing customer database - who provide product or service feedback. Additionally, Affinitive sets up community platforms which provide two-way and three-way dialogue with 'highly involved' consumers.

Through the acquisition, Affinitive joins a diverse network of agencies such as creative ideas firm Partners + Napier, interactive marketing shop JUXT Interactive, and experience marketing agency George P. Johnson.

Bob Troia (pictured), Affinitive's founder and CEO, comments: 'Project is built on a foundation of engagement, and understands that social media is the fabric that ties everything together - from online and offline consumer behavior to the marketing, loyalty, CRM and research functions of any organization. Affinitive shares that vision, and by joining the Project: WorldWide family, we can now provide fully integrated social business solutions on a global scale.'

Web sites: www.project.com and www.beaffinitive.com .