Think about it, how do you make your decisions to purchase something or go somewhere new or even do something new? If you’re like me, it’s because you’ve heard some level of buzz about it and that right there is an endorsement, plus it might even sound exciting. In fact, people tend to listen to other consumers over any form of traditional advertisement from the business itself.
Your wheels are turning, right? What can you do to create buzz? Well, think about what your competitors are doing and do something different, something radical, something your network can relate to, a movement, yet maintain your core business values. Get people talking by giving a free bite, something useful. Also, give them tools to easily spread the word with simple messaging, social media options and whatever else fits for your campaign, basically a new spin on traditional advertisement. Just remember the cardinal rule… send them to a central place for specific information, like a branded Web page with everything the consumer needs to know/have.
This is just my soapbox version of what makes word of mouth marketing (WOMM) work, but for more info, here are some great books a WOMM expert/friend of mine suggested:
Tribes: We Need You To Lead Us by Seth Godin
Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers become a Volunteer Sales Force by Ben McConnell, Jackie Huba, and Guy Kawaski
Citizen Marketers: When People are the Message by Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba
Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking by Andy Sernovitz, Seth Godin and Guy Kawaski
Unleashing the Ideavirus by Seth Godin and Malcolm Gladwell
Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell
The Hottest Ideas in Word of Mouth Advertising: What Works, What Doesen’t, What’s Fake, and Why by Godfrey Harris
The Anatomy of Buzz: How to Create Word of Mouth Marketing by Emanuel Rosen
The Secrets of Word of Mouth Marketing: How to Trigger Exponential Salses Through Runaway Word of Mouth by George Silverman
How to Generate Word of Mouth Advertising: 101 Easy and Inexpensive Ways to Promote Your Busienss by Godfrey Harris adn Gregery J. Harris
Thanks for the shout-out and link to my site, Andy! Here’s another resource to add to the list…just discovered this week: *Brains on Fire: Igniting Powerful, Sustainable, Word of Mouth Movements*, by Robbin Phillips, Greg Cordell, Geno Church, and Spike Jones.
Andy’s soapbox version is spot on. I hope if you’re reading this you follow her advice, and also read up more, on building your business tribes through word of mouth.
– Ann