To do word-of-mouth marketing well, these 5 "T"s are essential

In today's Internet age where everyone is a self-media, the importance of word-of-mouth marketing is self-evident. In the context of the eyeball economy, what we need is attention and discussion to attract more exposure. Only by making good use of word-of-mouth marketing can we obtain a steady stream of traffic and new users.

Andy Sernowitz, an American expert in word-of-mouth marketing, believes that the crazy spread of word-of-mouth is inseparable from the five "T" elements.

01 Talkers

Talkers are a group of people who discuss your product brand to others. They may be your customers, ordinary people, or fanatical fans who voluntarily spread your information.

The best talkers are probably the customers you deal with every day, and they welcome the opportunity to talk more. For example, a fan of the Rolling Stones. They spend hundreds of dollars to support and promote their favorite bands and urge their friends to do the same. They are eager to spread their ideas and are even willing to spend money to do so (for example, by buying music CDs, concert tickets, T-shirts and posters).

Once you have identified these groups of talkers, the next challenge is to give them a topic they are willing to talk about in order to get the conversation started.

02 Topics

Topics refer to the specific things people talk about. Commerce Bank is an American bank that is hospitable and helpful. Its slogan is: "America's most convenient bank." This bank provides general banking services. So what is its word-of-mouth topic? It is a free coin collection machine set up in the bank lobby, called the "Penny Arcade".

Everyone was talking about this bank, which was the only one in the area where anyone (even non-customers) could come in and exchange coins for paper money, a service that most banks didn't have at all. This information doesn't have to be anything peculiar. A special sale, great service, a cool new feature, a unique flavor, a funny name, or beautiful packaging should be enough to do the job. What the information is is not important. But it has to be a good enough topic, concise, clear and easy to repeat.

Once you’ve found a topic that’s interesting enough to get word-of-mouth commentators talking, the next challenge is to provide the tools to get the conversation started.

03 Tools (Push Tools)

No matter how good the topic is, spring broadcasting still needs a certain amount of promotion. The greatest role of word-of-mouth marketing is that it provides transportation infrastructure for the travel of information. If you own a store or restaurant, make sure your customers leave with something they can pass on to a friend, such as a menu or a coupon.

Kiehl's cosmetics store is famous for its free samples. Customers leave the store with a small bag full of snacks and sweets, and sometimes more than one, so that they can give something to their friends. If someone is willing to talk about you, do your best to help them do so. Magazines realized this early on. There's a reason why every magazine sends subscription postcards into your house like a storm (which is a bit of an exaggeration). People share magazines. These postcards were a promotional tool, helping to spread the word about magazine subscriptions.

For those who have created tools to accelerate word-of-mouth, the next challenge is to keep the conversation fresh and spreading quickly by participating in it yourself.

04 Taking Part

Marketers can't help but feel a little nervous at the thought of joining a word-of-mouth conversation. Once the door to word-of-mouth conversation is opened, it can never be closed. You reach out to real people, encourage them to talk about your brand, and they want you to join the conversation. Such as replying to messages in emails, opening the comment function of a blog, joining discussions on message boards, and answering phone calls.

Thank the blogger who wrote about you. When complaints are made, find out the cause of the negative talk and remedy it. Be willing to help. Express your opinions sincerely. Be grateful. Be friendly. If you don't join the conversation, the conversation will die. Joining a conversation can be intimidating at first and may result in negative feedback or even encounters with crazy people. But at the same time, you will win the respect and praise of your customers and build strong long-term relationships with them.

Once you're in the conversation, the next challenge is to follow the conversation and understand what people are talking about.

05 Tracking

With good word-of-mouth conversation-driving tools, we can understand how word-of-mouth conversations spread and track what consumers are saying. It's now easier than ever to keep track of what others are saying about you and your company. You can see every comment under every blog post and on the message board, immediately after it is posted.

Gain insights into how word of mouth is spreading, right at your fingertips. It’s instant, free, and easy. Online communication can help you understand consumers’ true thoughts on your brand, your marketing, and your products. This high level of insight is more reliable and timely than data obtained through traditional analytical techniques.

Sometimes, good reputation is gained by accident; sometimes, it is the result of careful planning, so no matter what, these five Ts are the basic qualities that everyone needs to possess.

Author: Spider

Source: Spider (ID: sangdi890129)