Why is Word of Mouth so important?

What is word of mouth marketing?

Word-of-mouth marketing , also called word of mouth advertising, differs from naturally occurring word of mouth, in that it is actively influenced or encouraged by organizations (e.g. ‘seeding’ a message in a networks rewarding regular consumers to engage in WOM, employing WOM ‘agents’).

While it is difficult to truly control WOM, research has shown that there are three generic avenues to ‘manage’ WOM for the purpose of WOMM:

• Build a strong WOM foundation (e.g. sufficient levels of satisfaction, trust and commitment),
• Indirect WOMM management which implies that managers only have a moderate amount of control (e.g. controversial advertising, teaser campaigns, customer membership clubs),
• Direct WOMM management, which has higher levels of control (e.g. paid WOM ‘agents’, “friend get friend” schemes). Pro-consumer WOM has been suggested as a counterweight to commercially motivated word of mouth.

Why is WOM Marketing Important?

Consumers trust their friends. This is why word of mouth marketing is the most valuable source of marketing.

According to a Nielsen study, 92% of consumers believe suggestions from friends and family more than they do advertising – this stat alone solidified the word of mouth use case.

WOM also doesn’t stop after just one interaction. One person will tell another, and that person will someone else, then that person will continue the chain and spread the word further, making it a great vehicle for exposure and distribution – if used well.

Of course, the same is true in reverse – negative news can spread just as fast, but the essential benefit of WOM in the connected era is personal endorsement, which is not only more readily available, but is seen as significantly more valuable to modern consumers.

How to Use WOMM?

Connect with consumers, as opposed to ‘collecting’ them.

Sure you might have millions of social media followers, but you have to establish connection with those users to generate any tangible benefit. If your audience is not interested in you, they’re not likely to help you grow. They’re collecting dust and clogging your real fan base.

You want real fans and supporters. The more passionate your fans are about you, the more likely they’ll share you. As noted, the passing of information through word of mouth is powerful in influencing others, it has a way of reaching parties that it might not have been able to do otherwise.

This is even more relevant when considering the rise of ad blockers and increasing ad blindness, particularly on digital platforms.

Here are four tips to help maximize your WOM potential.

1. Make Yourself Interesting

Think of it as social currency – share what makes you look fun/good/interesting. This entices sharing.

Consumers feel more confident in the information they’re sharing when they’re contributing something that’s worth talking about.

For example, research has shown that Facebook users are more likely to share content that educates their network, and/or makes them look good and reinforces a certain image of themselves. You can tap into such behavioral trends to benefit your messaging.

2. Create a Trigger

Can you tie yourself into other things that your consumers do or use?

As explained by LiveChat:

“You can design products that are triggered by the environment, and create new triggers by linking your products and ideas to prevalent cues within that environment”.

If people remember you, they’ll continue to talk about you. Sounds like a great way to start a successful referral program.

3. Provide value

If you establish yourself with a few people, they’ll share the experience with friends – you may not remember the last time you shared a mediocre restaurant or service with someone, but you’ll no doubt be able to remember an amazing experience or event.

For example, you might have gone to a great Japanese restaurant and had a good night out. You know a co-worker who loves sushi – you relate your experience to them

Sharing valuable information makes you valuable. Great, unique customer experiences, along with having a great product, can help increase your value, and thus, your WOM potential.

4. Provoke Emotion

Creating emotion goes hand in hand with creating value. People are more likely to share something that promotes high arousal, and people are more likely to share experiences in which they had some sort of emotion towards.

Word of Mouth Examples

Pinterest

Pinterest thrives on user-generated content. The company depends on users to create vision boards and actively recruit more “pinners” into the fold. So, how did Pinterest go from 3000 followers in early 2010 to over 200 million in 2018?null

Founder Ben Silbermann turned to the site’s small, but passionate, audience to plan a growth campaign. The site’s loyal group of users really loved the product, so Silbermann organized meetups with them to get feedback. Connecting one-on-one showed users the Pinterest team was serious about building a better site and a bigger community.

Pinterest used this gateway to run one of the most successful referral programs of all time. The “Pin It Forward” campaign encouraged users to create pinboards and invite their friends to do the same. Striking visuals provided inspiration for people to join and offered a preview of exciting projects they could try.

Casper Mattress Company

When a product is significantly different or more expensive than the industry standard, it takes some imagination to reach customers. Casper broke into the crowded mattress market with a $1000 flagship product by making an irresistible offer. Take a mattress home and sleep on it for 100 days before deciding whether to return it.

Who could walk away from such a tempting offer when it included fast online ordering and home delivery? Providing a long trial period also eliminated the biggest fears about buying a high-end mattress.

Customers had plenty of time to test the mattress for comfort and durability. More importantly, customers had a tangible product in their homes that they could use and show to others.

At the same time, Casper circulated detailed ads and reviews on social media sites. Altogether, the strategy generated substantial buzz that helped the company carve a niche in a competitive arena.

These are just some of the critical elements and considerations of word of mouth marketing. Used well, it can be a powerful way to spread your brand messaging – and with users now able to communicate faster and more broadly than ever before, it’s an important aspect to consider in any outreach process. If you are interested in WMM, please share your own idea or some great examples with me.