Afraid you’re gonna fall and skin your knee on your first Word of Mouth Marketing outing? That’s fair. So why not strap on some training wheels first?
This whole “word of mouth” thing has picked up a lot of steam in the past two years and is really turning some heads in the Fortune 50 camp. But there are still so many apprehensive CMOs out there who just aren’t sure.
“What if people say bad things about my company?” “I don’t know if we’re ready to be completely transparent.” And on and on and on.
Ya know what? You don’t have to dive into the deep end with something like a full-blown ambassador movement. Or create an engaging social community online and off right out of the gate. But you do have to do something. Or you will surely be left behind. So dip your toe in the water and, in return, you’ll not only get a taste for what’s in store, but internally you can begin to get some buy-in for this new way to engage your customers.
Examples?
Try a customer advisory board. Pick ten or fifteen of those people who love you and want to see you succeed. Then get them together. Listen to them. Bring them to your HQ for a day. Or, if they’re local, buy them breakfast once a quarter. Engage them. Listen to them. Tell them your challenges. And, not only will you get some great insight and feedback, but you’ll create loyal advocates who will voluntarily evangelize your brand.
Or, even simpler, sit down today and hand-write thank-you notes to ten random customers. A simple way to surprise and delight. And very WOM-worthy.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that the Word of Mouth Marketing Association is having a gathering of the minds in New Orleans the week after next for Word of Mouth Basic Training. It will be full of deep case studies and thought-leading authors …. so you’ll come home with your head and notepads full of applicable ideas.
(Disclosure: Brains on Fire is a member of WOMMA and also sits on the Board of Directors for the organization.)
Tags: customer_advisory_board, Marketing, Spike_Jones, WOMMA, word_of_mouth_marketing
OK Spike, you’ve whet my appetite, I’m ready for more. Bring it on in subsequent posts!
Spike,
I understand your point, and word of mouth is important.
But why does WOMMA seem to think they invented it. WOM started when we began walking upright and has been a strategy of busines forever. I have been using it as a strategy for my clients and for when I had to create both department and corporate strategies when I worked in the corporate world. That spans 35 years. My grandmother relied completely on WOM for the 50 years she ran her Italian market.
It scares me to think that we had to create an Association and then we act as if in the past two years WOM has taken off. WOM took flight thousands of years ago. Are there really businesses that don’t strategize around WOM. If there are, that indicates a lack of any marketing sense at all.
Paul, I’ll do my best!
Lewis, sounds like you need to be a member and a presenter at the next event!
I can’t officially speak for WOMMA, but I don’t think they have ever claimed to have invented WOM – I’m not sure where you got that.
And I’m with you, brother. The first time WOM was referenced was in 1533 – a long, long time ago. It’s not a new thing. But the setting aside of budget and the creation of a “bucket” for it inside of companies IS, for the most part, new.
In my eyes, the association was created to bring kindred spirits together. So we can talk about ethics and transparency. So we can share best practices. So we can learn from each others mistakes. And it’s for education, too.
I think a lot of businesses THINK that they use WOM – we’ve seen it first hand. But they are completely mistaking it for something else. And there IS a complete lack of marketing sense in some – dare I say a lot – of companies. I’m sure you have seen it first hand.
I encourage you to dig a little deeper into WOMMA and give it a fair shake. I’m sure that even you just might learn something.
Former WOMMA CEO Andy Sernovitz writes in his book that WOM of mouth has been around since forever. But what’s new is the “second M — Marketing,” which is learning to work with WOM toward a marketing objective. He talks about WOMM that’s actionable trackable and plannable — but never manipulative or dishonest. Andy’s book is a nifty little primer on the basics, actually.
And that’s my own little WOM for today…. : )
p.s. to Spike — what happened in 1533?
That’s the first recorded written mention of “word of mouth.”
Andy Sernovitz also said in his book that WOM has gone from being anecdotal to being actionable. As marketers, we have this desire to quantify what works. WOM works. WOMMA is just trying to help us marketers get smarter about WOM and helping us to quantify it so that it this marketing activity go from being anecdotal to actionable.
(Yeah, I’m a three-year member/supporter of WOMMA.)
Spike,
Word-of-mouth (WOM) has always been around. The reason is might seem to be taking on more importance recently is because of the emphasis on relationship selling and the decline of traditional media advertising.
People have always shared their opinions – solicited or not – with others. Who hasn’t told someone about a restaurant they ate at, a show they watched, a book they read, a bargain they got, an out-of-the-way beach or vacation spot, or many other such experiences?
The point is that you can’t stop WOM so you don’t have to go out of your way to create it or encourage it. What you have to do is be intentional about it. Know that it’s going to happen so do everything you can to influence the customer experience with you and your company in a positive light.
Everything your customer experiences – whether they ever buy from you or just browse – should be as you intend it. No sloppiness. Whether its the way you answer the phone, your signage, your ads, the condition of your samples or showroom, the way you maintain contact with your customers, the way you conduct your sales presentation, or the way your customer “think” they are treated by you – all this influences what people report to their friends, relatives, associates, co-workers, and neighbors about their experiences with you and your company. This is WOM.
Steve
Actually, WOM is much older. Plato wrote his Dialogues after Socrates death. If you haven’t read them they outline Socrate’s philosophy. In fact, without them we would know nothing of Socratic thought.
Regards,
Ollie Lind
WOM has been around since the days of the cavemen. For example: When a fresh resource of water was located this news was spread from tribe to tribe. Most successful businesses today, realize the importance of WOM. I am a big advocate of WOM as I don’s normally advertise any other way. My seminars are normally packed with people of heard from a friend about me.
I also find it hard to believe that an association was formed around this topic. It is actually funny! Only in America.
WOM has been around since the days of the cavemen. For example: When a fresh resource of water was located this news was spread from tribe to tribe. Most successful businesses today, realize the importance of WOM. I am a big advocate of WOM as I don’t normally advertise any other way. My seminars are normally packed with people of heard from a friend about me.
I also find it hard to believe that an association was formed around this topic. It is actually funny! Only in America.