Word of mouth is usually being referred to as passing information from person to person, and in the beginning it was all about oral communication. But now, it includes many types of communication between people. I thought, for a long time, that it had to be between two people to be called word of mouth. But I think that it needs to be between people, from one person to one or more people… that’s all.
The reason a lot of companies use this method of marketing, is that it’s more credible and trustworthy than many of the other methods. You want people to talk about your product, and you want them to spread the word.
For instance. If one of your friends tell you that he just watched an awesome movie, you would probably think that, wow, I’ve got to watch that movie. If your colleague at work told you about a new restaurant with excellent food, you’d probably think that you should try it. The same goes for close to everything when the message comes from people you know and trust. It’s about credibility.
And of course, even though you don’t know the person, if a guy (a friend of a friend) tells you about some new product that he just tested, and he thought it was perfect, you would probably trust him a lot more than a newspaper advertisement (because you’d know that it was an advertisement from the company).
I’m not fascinated by the thought of paying people to talk about my product. I’m fascinated by the viral marketing part, buzz, the powerful impact and free marketing potential of a product.
My question is this, how do you start a word of mouth marketing campaign, if you don’t pay people to talk about your product and you don’t have a lot of money to begin with?
The first things that comes to mind is using viral marketing techniques at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Digg etc.. Even if you reach a lot of people, it’s still word of mouth. The sender is one person, he shares the message with his “friends”, and they share the message with their friends, and so on.
Just look at how fast things spread when you create something different, something unique, creative, fun, and with a message that you either won’t forget, or a message you’re not sure how to interpret.
Word of Mouth Marketing is probably the coolest kind of marketing, but it’s probably also the most difficult kind of marketing. You’d never know for sure if you’re going to be successful until you try.
October 25, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Hi Mark,
Awesome comment. Thanks a lot.
At the moment, I'm trying to start a word of mouth campaign at the college where I work. Will write a post about it sometime during next week.
- Jens -
October 25, 2009 at 9:48 pm
Interesting.
How do you use “word of mouth”? Do you pay people to spread the word, just ask them to spread the word or something different?
- Jens -
October 28, 2009 at 8:15 am
Cultivating a network of infuencers? People who have built-in readership and whose words carry weight among their followers. Of course, it helps if you're marketing a great idea or product. You're right about Facebook. It's a lot more personal. And if something is shared on Facebook via comments, likes, or updates, then that's a good thing. Because it's a bit more intimate there than the other social media. The challenge is to get the attention of key people there, which might be difficult sometimes because they're preoccupied with their farms, robbing banks, and trying their luck in poker. LOL
October 25, 2009 at 11:58 am
Jens,
If you're marketing online products, with no geographic boundaries, then social networking tools/strategies are imperitive to get the word out to lots and lots of people. As folks retweet items like your blog entry, see status updates on Facebook, and video on YouTube, then more 'mouths,' become aware of your product, and credibility for you/your items travels with the people who recommend/refer you virtually through the social networking tools.
However, if you're product/service is a regional item, then face to face word of mouth marketing, combined with social networking, is important. Referral partner relationships with people in other companies that provide services to your target market without competing with you are very powerful. As referral partners teach each other about the benefits of their products/services, and target markets, they are better able to make high quality, profitable referrals for each other.
I like to ask my referral partners what type of reward is most meaningful to them. I know of two referral partners who like spa days, so they alter who pays for their combined spa day each month. They both value that reward, they continue to refer a lot of business back and forth, and they enjoy a day off together.
Some companies offer affiliate programs and have a set program to reward people who make referrals. That's equitable, if a bit impersonal.
Mark Storey
Professor Networker
October 29, 2009 at 6:17 am
I guess this is what you call MOUTHOLOGY! – the new viral marketing tool
October 29, 2009 at 6:55 am
Mouthology makes me think of pizza
October 27, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Word of mouth really works wonders but it depends on which kind of product you are working with. for e.g. If its a beauty product not only free sample and marketing ads work but when one lady suggest using the product to another lady. you can be sure that you have got the sale. This is because it gives you surety of the product as well as the confidence. And other things that works is “If one of my best friend uses it then I should definitely use it. So word or mouth no doubts works great in brand promoting and Marketing