>>To those who say that posts on message boards don’t matter, I say: wrong, they do matter<<
I have proof of 5 companies operating in various and different sectors, not similar in nature, neither in size, all of which zealously reading message boards. In one case a CEO stated in an interview that he himself indulges in this practice personally 15 minutes on a daily basis 'in order to get the feeling how the company is perceived by the public and the shareholders'.
I have no proof of their acting on the messages though.