Word of Mouth Marketing: Still the Best Tactic
Marketing is an ages-old tactic. Before the advent of the internet, well before television advertisements, radio ads, or even marketing messages on print media, people were looking to peddle their wares, or trade goods and services with others for a profit of some form or another. Throughout the years, individuals and companies alike have tried to refine and automate this process, and to that end, they have succeeded — we have succeeded — we can now reach the masses, literally, with a sharp mind, a sharper message, and a credit card. However, even with the wide-reach of marketing messages today, sometimes the best strategies lay in the ages-old tactics: word of mouth marketing.
Word of mouth marketing – what it really is
Many people assume that word of mouth marketing is getting people to talk about their product, service, business, or brand. Which, it is. However, the reality lies slightly deeper — it’s giving people a reason to talk about those things. Word of mouth advertising is not simply the act; it’s the motivation behind the action that causes word-of-mouth promotion to bring about their desired effects.
Word of mouth vs. traditional marketing
There are plenty of choices for business owners who want to market their products, services, or brand. Moreover, there are plenty of marketing options that work exceptionally well — of that there should be no doubt. However, just because something works, or even works well, this does not mean that it is the best marketing option available.
Traditional marketing, whether it is through search engines, newspapers, radio, websites, or TV, all have one thing in common — it’s impersonal. Even with technology giving us the ability to better-reach audiences, and even interact with them on some level, marketing messages are simply advertisements made by an unknown party, no matter how you wrap them up. Conversely, word of mouth marketing is very personal, and though these positive words are still advertisements — they carry weight, warmth, and more importantly — a recommendation from a known party. These personal recommendations, though small in scale, can outperform the most persuasive sales copy penned by the most expensive copywriter.
How to make word of mouth marketing work for you
Effective word of mouth marketing is not only about getting people to talk about your business in a positive manner, it’s giving them a reason to talk about your business. And, taking this even further — it’s about giving your most satisfied customers ways to share their experiences with others. People love to talk about things that affect them, and people love to share things that have helped or benefited them. By cultivating this passionate interest in your company or brand, you can maximize the effectiveness of your customers’ thoughts and feelings toward your company.
Even though technology has afforded us a great number of delivery methods for our marketing messages, none, to this day, are as effective as word of mouth marketing. This is not likely to change any time soon. You can use all of the marketing tools and tactics that today’s technologies give us access to, but if you really want to market effectively, the ages-old tradition of word of mouth advertising is still what works best.
