by Scott JeffreyJun 17, 2010
Getting customers to talk about your products and services has long been the marketer’s coveted goal. Elusive as word of mouth (WOM) may be, the fruits of positive consumer talk can transform any business.
No matter how great your advertising and promotional strategies are, nothing is more powerful than one real person telling another real person why they should buy from you.
Most marketing initiatives and business plans incorporate some aspect of so-called viral marketing since Seth Godin’s Unleash Your Ideavirus and Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point.
But knowing terms like sneezers, influencers, connectors, and mavens won’t help you create authentic WOM.
What will? Start by understanding why your customers talk in the first place. Then, you’ll be less likely to waste time trying to manipulate your customer’s opinions and more time supporting them with a superior customer experience.
Our latest slideshow, created by Aaron Shields and designed by Melissa Thornton, makes the rules of WOM crystal clear:
If you want to go deeper in your understanding of consumer talk, check out BJ Bueno’s Why We Talk: The Truth Behind Word of Mouth.
by Jenny LeeJun 15, 2010
Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, knows a thing or two about the power of word of mouth. In the beginning, Hsieh made a critical decision to invest the majority of his marketing and advertising budget into the customer experience.
Over 80 percent of Zappos customers hear about the brand through word of mouth or online advertising. Once customers place their first order and experience Zappos’s stellar customer service, they usually come again.
Today, 75 percent of sales come from repeat customers. And it’s those happy customers who gladly share their enthusiasm about the brand with others.
What’s makes Zappos talk worthy? Zappos loves their customers and will go to great lengths to make them happy. Here, “P-E-C” or “Personal Emotional Connection” with the customer reigns.
Customer loyalty reps send hundreds of thank you cards to customers every week—not the automated email variety, but personalized notes handwritten on paper.
While most companies would see this as an unnecessary expense, Zappos understands the value of building relationships with its customers.
