Word of Mouth Marketing

“Hi! Are you the one who bakes the sweet potato pies? My friend Giselle is roommates with Aisha whose boyfriend Mike ordered one, and he said they were really good. I would love to buy one from you.”

Word of mouth means that a satisfied customer tells acquaintances, friends, and family how good your product or service is. Word of mouth is considered one of the most powerful forms of marketing because it has more influence over people’s purchasing decisions than does adver­tising. In addition, Michael E. Caffery, author of Let Your Customers Do the Talking, claims that 80 percent of people use recommendations from “a family member, friend or business professional” (Caffery, 1997). If word of mouth is this effective, it should be an integral part of any marketing program.

How Do You Get Customers to Say Good Things about Your Product and/or Ser­vice ?

Word of mouth can go three ways:

(1) the customer mentions your product to a friend but says only bad things,

(2) the customer doesn’t say anything at all, or

(3) the customer praises your product and takes every opportunity to mention it not only to acquaintances and friends but even possibly to strangers.

When a customer says bad things about your prod­uct, you lose sales. When a customer doesn’t say anything, your sales stay the same. When a customer says good things about you, sales increase. It is obvious that you want your customers to brag about how good you are, but you are probably wondering, How can I have any influence over what someone else says? Here’s how.
word mouth marketing
How to Get Customers to Say Bad Things about Your Product and/or Service : Cause your customers a big inconvenience or make them ex­tremely dissatisfied.

For example:

  • – An airline delays hundreds of passengers for several hours because of technical difficulties.
  • – At a restaurant, a customer finds a cockroach in the food.
  • – An appliance store advertises next-day delivery, but customers do not receive the goods until days after orders are placed.

How to Get Customers Not to Say Anything  : Be mediocre. A customer will not say anything about your product or service if it is just okay. People like exciting discussion material.

How to Get Customers So Excited about What You Have to Offer That They Mention It to Friends, Family, Acquaintances, and Even Strangers : Be exceptional.
For example:

  • – Have good prices or a high-quality product. Sometimes this can be enough to impress customers.
  • – Support a noteworthy nonprofit organization or cause. Stoneybrook Farms Yogurt donates 10 percent of all profits toward saving the en­vironment. You do not always have to give money. If you are in the food or restaurant business, you can provide the food for a special event.
  • – Give free gifts for a limited time.
  • – Hold fun contests.