Building Effective WOM - One Size Doesn't Fit All

Building effective Word of Mouth: “One Size Doesn’t Fit All” Search Engine Strategies, Toronto 2007 Presented by: Tamera Kremer [email_address]

Fundamental elements of a WOM program

Tell a story that matters

Understand the medium

Reach out to key influencers

Feedback loop

Authenticity

= Give people something to talk about

Getting the word out

Define your goals

Do research on the space and understand your initial niche

Choose the vehicle & tactics that are right for you – video; article; application; podcast; tagging

Make your content portable

Ensure you’re findable

Join the conversation

Who are you trying to influence?

The world isn’t watching… not yet

Mass isn’t sexy

If it isn’t personal, chances are no one cares

One size doesn’t fit all

What NOT to do

Be contrived or forced

Target anonymously

Rest on your laurels

Don’t anticipate traffic increases

Stop participating and listening

Your website as facilitator

Multiple subscription points – RSS and Email

Contextually rich content

Tagging/ Categorization

Social bookmarks (embedded or capable site structure)

Send to a friend

Metrics

So you got Dugg, Crunched, or Slashdotted… now what?

Pay attention to your traffic

Monitor & respond

Provide a reason for the audience to return

Stay away from a hard sell, no matter how tempting

Experiment some more

So you didn’t get Dugg, Crunched, or Slashdotted… now what?

Don’t panic

Keep engaging

Build on the initial effort

Experiment

Keep the long-term and big picture in focus

Lessons learned and opportunities taken… from big to small …From “Lazy Monday” to “On the Lot” and Product awareness in a narrow market

User posts video of SNL digital short “Lazy Sunday/ Chronic(les) of Narnia” to YouTube – generates over 5mm views before NBC demands removal

Community is outraged

Aspiring directors record their “answer” to Lazy Sunday & post to YouTube and Revver = Lazy Monday

Over 800k views; multiple pass-alongs; numerous parodies (e.g. Lazy Muncie; Wicked Wednesday)

Sam Friedlander & Adam Stein (creators) earn a spot on the reality TV show “On the Lot” this year due to their notoriety and talent

Half a year later NBC posts another digital short on YouTube and as of today has generated over 22,000,000 views

NarniaRapBattle.com redirects

to TheLot.com

Reaching out to a niche… the right one!

Mid-sized B2B promotional materials manufacturer releases eco-friendly product

Has small customer base with needs based relationships

Referrals are not driving business

Researches audience of influencers in Ontario within highly targeted niche group

Reaches out through email with personalized and targeted messaging and relevant information with a driver to optimized web content and product sampling requests

Provides opportunity to engage in conversation through direct outreach from senior executives

Results – 10% conversion rate on product sample and requests for meetings

Multiple contacts from prospects who were not within the initial group – referrals (existing customer and prospect) increased 6%

Thank You! [email_address] www.wildfirestrategy.com

Appendix A: Social Media Channels (sample)

www.Digg.com

www.Myspace.com

www.LinkedIn.com

www.facebook.com

www.newsvine.com

www.delicious.com

www.magnolia.com

www.twitter.com

www.feedburner.com

www.upcoming.org

www.talkdigger.com

www.slashdot.com

www.techmeme.com

www.techcrunch.com

www.technorati.com

www.youtube.com

www.flickr.com

www.chickadvisor.com

www.reddit.com

www.craigslist.org

www.furl.net

Case Study & Photo Credits

Lazy Monday

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=friedlsc

Via Flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7224171@N02/537029101/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7224171@N02/537029631/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zippy/22748510/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pg-photography/456400136/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jakob/146936654/

Building Effective WOM - One Size Doesn't Fit All

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