What’s WOMP? Word of mouth potential – there is nothing more powerful than a good recommendation. According to Corey Eridon with Hubspot, word of mouth advertising is enough to catapult your most excellent product from nothingness to bestseller overnight.
Word of mouth marketing goes beyond just asking your family and friends to say nice things on the Internet. It is a strategy designed to boost your other marketing efforts. How can you put word of mouth to use on your project management timelines?
Word of Mouth is Really Slight of Hand
It’s true. Word of mouth allows you to add authenticity to your product. Something that sells to less than one hundredth of one percent of the population still looks pretty impressive when fifty people on Facebook suddenly start talking about it. If three of your Facebook friends mention one product, at the very least, you are going to look it up to see what all the fuss is about.
Getting That WOMP Going
How do you get those fifty people to start singing your praises to their social media buddies, though? That is where the strategy part comes into play. You need to develop a plan that reaches enough people to start a buzz. Consider some ways to maximize your word of mouth potential.
- Just ask them – It may sound too easy, but if you already have an audience at your disposal, why not generate word of mouth advertising by asking them to recommend you. For example, a company that sells dog biscuits might develop a new line of cat treats and ask their dog lovers to help them out.
- Barter for It – If you don’t have existing clientele, find someone who does and make a deal.
- Give out samples – Nothing says try me quite like free. This is an effective way to leverage word of mouth advertising if you have a product that sells itself.
- Make it worth trying – If free samples are not a practical option, then how about offering a starter coupon or a discount to the first 100 people who talk about your product on social media.
Why Politeness Pays Off
Sometimes all it takes to get word of mouth buzz going is a little respect. People love to talk online about exceptional service and quality products. Encourage those happy campers to share the news. Set up surveys and ask for feedback to ensure the customers are impressed with the product and avoid negative word of mouth while you are at it.
Make Your WOMP Grow
You can turn even a little positive word of mouth into a buzz. Monitor social media chatter and find people talking about your product. Make them feel special by thanking them and, maybe, offer a surprise discount as a gift. That extra touch is all it takes to fan the WOMP flames.
Your customers are your best advertising asset, so put them to work sending some positive WOMP your way.
Writer Bio: Darla F is a full-time freelance writer who specializes in helping agencies meet their goals by developing creative and engaging content.
