Digital Marketing Companies Cape Town -Why is Word of Mouth Marketing so incredibly Important?
Word of mouth marketing is an easy way to spread the word about your business or product. Here are some tips to optimize your WOMM
Can you think of the last time you saw something and you just had to tell your friends about it? Do you remember having a great experience at a restaurant or Beauty salon and later on tweeting about it or sharing it on Facebook? These could
be products of word of mouth marketing (WOMM). It is an organic way of spreading information. It uses components of viral marketing. Unlike viral marketing, it spreads through more natural ways.
So, do you really know what word-of-mouth marketing is?
Word of mouth marketing or (WOMM) is an action taken by a company that ends up motivating people to talk about their products, services, or brand spontaneously. It’s also an action taken by the mouth (or person) that recommends your product since he or she is putting their credibility or social currency on the line.
Meaning, it’s a free form of advertisement or promotion (just one reason it’s so important and why we love it!). It’s shared by customers. And it can be triggered by an event the customer experiences. This event is something beyond what’s expected (can be bad publicity too), this is why improving customer service and relationship marketing is so important. We know this to be true as one of the best Digital Marketing Companies Cape Town has.
Why is WOM marketing important?
With the exponential growth of communication through online media, this spontaneous, viral dialogue becomes even more evident and can be shared, commented upon and evaluated by many people at the same time. An encounter experienced by one consumer today can reach millions in a few seconds.
Essentially, word of mouth marketing can be summed up in a single word: Trust. People trust other people and the experiences they have to report, which means that when they hear from a friend or a consumer about a product or brand, they are more likely to buy.
Consumers trust their friends. This is why word of mouth marketing is the most valuable source of marketing. WOM doesn’t stop after just one interaction. One person will tell another, and that person will tell someone else. Then that person will continue the chain and spread the word further
Word of mouth travels fast…
Plus, it’s a good way for a business to spread the word about a product or service. Word of mouth statistics has proven that people trust their friends and family more than they trust advertisements. According to a Nielsen study… 92% of consumers believe suggestions from friends and family than other advertising. If 92% of consumers prefer suggestions from their friends then WOM marketing is valuable. Plus, having good WOM marketing amongst your customer may make it easier for you to ask for referrals.
How reviews affect word of mouth advertising
You can increase your word of mouth advertising in numerous ways. One way it can increase is because of happy customer reviews. Positive customer experience can get people talking. When people are open to talking about your product, your online reputation increase, and the channels you’re exposed to expand as well. This is because someone may write a review about you on a site like Google. That review can then be searched and shared across other channels. And, when other people search for your type of product or service, they will see your name amongst the competitors. This can then spark word of mouth marketing to occur. As you can see, it’s all interconnected… reviews lead to word of mouth.
‘For example, Bob and Mandy were talking about places who offers reflexology as Mandy has been suffering from headaches for a while and often had to take off work as it was so severe. Bob told Mandy that his wife also suffers from headaches and was going to this massage place she found online. Since going there she has had fewer to almost no headaches. Mandy looked up the place online and was happy with all the great reviews (See how word of mouth increases just by having a few good reviews) and ended up booking an appointment. She is now telling all her friends and family about this amazing place (increasing the word of mouth)
How to do word of mouth marketing?
Connect with consumers, stop collecting them. Sure you can have tons of social media followers. But to truly drive word of mouth marketing on social media effectively, is to be active and try to connect with them. Sounds like relationship marketing, right? If followers are not interested in you, then they are likely not there 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 will share you. 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.
Why should you have a WOMM strategy?
There are plenty of things you can do to increase your word of mouth. With the right strategy in place, you can set yourself up for a steady stream of referrals and create a repeatable WOM process.
A WOMM doesn’t necessarily have to come from a referral program either. You have plenty of word of mouth channels to consider. Like partner programs, influencer programs, affiliate marketing, and even reviews. Whichever channel you choose however, you’ll need to develop a strategy and measure your word of mouth marketing. If you need help with your WOMM strategy, speak to Digi-Guru, we are a handful of Digital Marketing Companies Cape Town can be proud of.
Here are just a few of the WOMM strategies you can consider.
Make yourself appealing
Use social currency – and share what makes you look fun/good/interesting as that can make you referable. This is a good idea to use when you hire us as your social media agency Claremont.
Prompt it to happen with a trigger
Try to tie yourself into other things that people like, need, or do. Linking yourself to other ideas makes it easy to remember you, and thus talk about you.
Offer value to consumers
If you offer something of value, whether it is an excellent product or great customer service, you will be valuable to a consumer. Everyone remembers an experience, and will often pay for it because of the value.
Create emotion
People respond to emotion. If you can create some sort of emotion, you are likely to get someone to share their experience with others. People share happy, sad, funny, etc.
Other terms that falls into word of mouth marketing.
Viral Marketing – the sister of ‘word of mouth marketing’ is viral marketing. It implies that products or services are advertised to everyone that its consumer contacts. Think of internet-based businesses and how their ads spread through social media. Viral Marketing spreads like wildfire – for example, funny YouTube videos.
Blog Marketing – To promote a product or service via a blog. In this instance, the blogger is the influencer or brand ambassador. Bloggers become word of mouth marketers, word travels quickly to their followers. The blogger provides reviews and ad space to their favourite brands/affiliations. The blogger’s followers are then inclined and share information with friends.
Social Media Marketing – Depends on word of mouth marketing. Content on social media has a way of reaching people outside of the original group following. As mentioned earlier, shared content has a higher value when shared by someone you know and trust. This type of marketing is the hub of marketing, especially referral marketing and you need a social media agency Claremont.
Never underestimate the Power of WOMM in your business – it leads to referrals which is the most cost effective and organic way to grow your business. Speak to us as we provide trusted digital marketing Cape Town.