“Let’s give them something to talk about.”

Savvy marketers and Bonnie Raitt fans agree – what people say and who they say it to are important in how we determine attitudes and make purchases.

We know that consumers increasingly turn to friends, co-workers, and family members for help in making buying decisions. According to our research partner Roper Reports USA, 91% of the public say they are likely to use a product or service recommended by another user.

The statistics clearly show that this is a trend not to be taken lightly. So, how can we use word of mouth (WOM) to get people to talk about – and endorse – a product or service?

Like most marketing efforts, there’s a right and a wrong way to do this.
One right way is to be creative. With the number of messages bombarding the public, getting attention is difficult. Yet getting attention is mandatory if you want to change an attitude, create loyalty, or sell a product or service. You want to give them something to talk about. If you think only about traditional methods, you will get traditional results. That’s just not going to cut through the clutter these days. It may not be “think outside the box”, but “why does there have to be a box?” Finding creative ways to get people talking about you is not only a lot more effective to boosting your bottom line, but it’s a lot more fun.

A wrong way–not being genuine. Faking it. Pretending to be who you’re not or pretending you’re not who you are. Bad news spreads like wildfire. Any misstep or bad experience ends up on the internet, and the dissatisfied customer will tell their friends (and your former-potential customers), about their bad experience. Do you really want someone’s bad experience with your product or service on YouTube?

Honesty is the best word of mouth policy, which is why WOMMA (the Word of Mouth Marketing Association) has the honesty ROI—Honesty of Relationship, Opinion and Identity. Honesty of Relationship means you identify for whom you’re speaking. Honesty of Opinion means you say what you believe. And Honesty of Identity means you never obscure your identity.

Because of the potential benefits – and misfires – that can result from word of mouth, businesses need to be smart about whether their company has the right mix of a superior product or service, a loyal customer base, and an innovative spirit to give WOM a try.

Give TVG a call or drop us an email and we’ll help you give them something to talk about.

Contact us at tvg@vandivergroup.com or send comments to blog@vandivergroup.com.