Marketing is not a hardcore task or an operation that only marketers can perform. We all tend to conduct marketing activities without even considering it.
We usually have the habit of telling about all our favorite stuff and its advantages to our close friends and acquaintances. In a flicker of a moment, we become referrals from a customer. Surprisingly, our friends get influenced to the core that they choose to purchase the product.
This cycle keeps on repeating where consciously or unconsciously, we create another customer.
What is Word of Mouth Marketing?
As the name suggests, Word of Mouth Marketing is an influential form of marketing where you can influence and encourage the other person to buy a product without any psychological aim of gaining benefits. But it tends to generate great results.
“Word of Mouth Marketing is a feasible and cost-effective source of promotion. Also, your self-boasting doesn’t value as much as your customer’s praise of your brand does.”
Why does Word of Mouth Marketing work?
In Word of Mouth marketing, your customers are the central players of your brand promotion. Therefore, empowering them becomes a prerequisite for you and your brand success.
Statistics themselves showcase the power of “Word of Mouth Marketing”. Some of them are as follows :
- According to a conducted survey, 74% of customers believe in WOM as a key influencer in their purchasing decision.
- 92% of consumers trust the recommendations given by their friends and relatives.
- Around 70% of the consumers trusted the online views and perceptions of other customers.
- 72% of customers trusted the reviews. It enhanced a sense of reliability on the said brand or business. Even a smaller ratio of reviews caught the other customer’s attention. Such is the supreme power of WOM.
Note: A business must work to turn their customers into a raving fan to get successful results.
Word Of Mouth Networking – How Can Customers Promote
As stated above, Word of Mouth Marketing is not only restricted to the customers promoting the products to their friends and acquaintances. It is much more than that.
Customers can also promote brands online. Let’s see how :
- Brag on social Media: They bought the product, used it and loved it. The next moment they are bragging about it online via a selfie on their favorite social media portal.
- Tag the brand: Customers show their affection towards the brand by tagging you, which is another way of promoting the brand.
- Create a buzz: Influencing other customers online via Word of Mouth Marketing is not a persuasive form of communication. Also, people never buy a product unless and until it has the “X” factor.
Therefore, word of mouth marketing helps in building an excellent foundation for your brand and multiplying your customer base.
What are the Essential Word of Mouth Marketing Strategies
- Catch Out Influencers
Apart from your customers bragging about your product, you can take the help of influencers who will further boost the Word of Mouth Marketing. But the difference lies in the customers and influencers; you need to pay them to promote your brand. But on a brighter side, you have control over your brand promotions like you can tell the influencers as to when shall they post about the brand on social media and what shall they post. - The World of Hashtags
Nowadays hashtags are in trend. You can easily promote your start-up with a video or post and write something unique about it with a hashtag# Your business name. Once you do this, you can ask your followers to use the hashtag to promote your product, and in return, you can reward them with special getaway prizes. As your hashtag becomes widespread, it will, in turn, increase brand sales. - Customer Generated Content
Customers perform much of your promotions. Suppose they buy an outfit from your brand and want to show it off to their Instagram friends as people come to know about it through the content generated by the customers. They feel captivated and end up buying a similar outfit. - Create a Contest
You can encourage word of mouth by getting customers to create content. You can post a customer’s photo on social media platforms or your product’s pages. Give them credit by offering them some incentives. You can create a contest in which you can ask a customer to post their photos with your product. In return, give them rewards or chances to win a free product. - Reviews Polish Your Image
Reviews play a significant role in boosting your word of mouth campaigns. Suppose a customer bought a product and left a review on the product page. Simultaneously, the visitors to the store browsed through the page and read some great reviews. It not only enhances the brand’s reputation but boosted sales too. - Design A Referral Program
Creating a Referral program not only gives your word-of-mouth campaigns a boost but also brings you more customers. How? Offer rewards and incentives to your customers who ask their friends to buy the product.
Note: You can offer cash or non-cash incentives to your already existing customers. i.e. REFERRALS
Examples of Successful Word of Mouth Marketing Campaigns:
- Chipotle: It generated a tremendous amount of success from the shareable online campaigns. It created a video campaign with the name SHARE CROW displaying the dystopian world of a crow who works in a factory. But being a rebel he ended up running his own factory. The video-enabled players to earn codes for free chipotle items. Chipotle’s video received millions of views where he combined the storytelling with an incentive to offer.
- Netflix: Netflix has always been a hot-headed topic for web series lovers. It has been and still is talk of the town. Watchers are already boosting the word of mouth marketing campaigns. Netflix’s strategy of “BINGE WATCHING” has undoubtedly got some great popularity amongst the viewers.
- Coca-cola: Coca-cola already has its share of name and fame in the market. Though it doesn’t need any promotion, it’s recent “Share a Coke” campaign built great enthusiasm amongst its lovers. It included the names of many customers on its cans and bottles. Customers who got their names on the bottles went out on social media showing off their names with captivating posts. It, in turn, intimidated other people as well.
The above companies and many more achieved higher conversion rates with the authoritative Word of Mouth marketing campaigns.
Conclusion
Word of Mouth Marketing is a simple yet powerful strategy to bolster sales and conversion rates. Your existing customers also play an equal yet essential role in promoting your brand to new customers, therefore put them on a higher pedestal, and they will be your best brand ambassadors.
