Word of mouth marketing (WOM) is the sharing of opinions about products or services among people, distinguishing between organic and amplified WOM. Trust in WOM is significantly higher than traditional advertising, with several strategies identified for effective WOM marketing, including engaging influential communities and foster active communication. However, unethical practices in WOM, like stealth marketing and shilling, can undermine its authenticity and effectiveness.

1. The Art & Science of Word of Mouth Marketing 02.12.2008

2. Word of Mouth Defined Source : WOMMA WORD OF MOUTH (WOM) The sharing of an opinion about a product or service between two or more people. When a marketer says something, it’s advertising or PR. When a consumer says it, it’s word of mouth.

3. Amplified vs. Organic WOM AMPLIFIED A marketing campaign designed to encourage or accelerate WOM in existing or new communities. ORGANIC A natural occurrence when people become advocates because they’re happy and have a natural desire to share their enthusiasm.

4. A Mindset, A Movement … and Marketing Channel

5. Word of Mouth Has Always Mattered 92% cite WOM as a BEST trust Word-of-Mouth for purchase ideas and information 56% trust editorial content 55% trust advertising 76% TRUST others opinions 56% own past experience 15% advertising

6. Think LESS about enhancing your BRAND image… … MORE about what’s of VALUE to WOM participants Psychology

7. Word of Mouth is Different Online

8. Online WOM is a Game Changer

9. Reputation in Ruins

10. Disproportionate Digital Influence Source : The Influentials, Jon Berry & Ed Kellerr Authors Jackie Huba & Ben McConnell 10% Americans influence the other 90% 1% Rule For every 1 person who posts on a digital forum, at least 99 others view that content but don’t leave a trail.

11. The Network Affect Source : MotiveQuest, LLC Mavens – 20% of online influencers. Post very frequently and get their social worth from knowing and sharing Networked Opinion Formers – the other 80% of the online people looking for information Offline word of mouth. Get many of their options from their online friends because of the network effect

12. Mediascape: Not What It Used to Be WOM Matters More than Ever

13. New Channels of Insight & Engagement Video-sharing site Average site visit: 48 minutes 100 million video streams per day 100,000+ videos uploaded / day Fastest-growing web site in Internet history 61% of visitors: 35+ Social networking site with 222 million members More page views per day than Google and eBay combined Drives more traffic to retailers than MSN Search Over 50 % of users are 35 or older 1 in 3 are 45+ Blogs: online personal journals - 112 million (12-17-07) 2 new blogs each second Perpetual focus group 64 million users Average site visit: 20 minutes 6th most visited site in the world 50+ of users return daily

14. WOM Must Be Transparent and Ethical Types of Unethical Word of Mouth Marketing Stealth Marketing: Deceiving people about marketing being involved with a communication. Shilling: Payola for product promotion without disclosing you work for a company. Impersonating a customer. Infiltration: Using fake identities in an online discussion to promote a product. Defacement: Vandalizing or damaging property to promote a product. Falsification: Knowingly disseminating false or misleading information. Spam… of any kind Source : WOMMA

15. WOM Marketing Types of Word of Mouth Marketing viral marketing buzz marketing community marketing grassroots marketing evangelist marketing product seeding influencer marketing cause marketing conversation creation brand blogging referral programs Source : WOMMA Give People a REASON to TALK … … make it EASY to tell others

16. WOM Strategies

17. Encourage Communications

18. Encourage Communications

19. Give People Something to Talk About

20. Give People Something to Talk About THINK BIG

21. Connect People & Build Community

22. Work with Influential Communities

23. Evangelist & Advocacy Programs

24. Engage in Active Listening

25. Engage in Active Listening Source: TalkTrack ™, Keller-Fay 2006

26. Give People Something to Talk About

27. Monitor and Measure Associations with “Plastic” Anya Hindmarch phenomenon Pyrex Glassware as Tupperware alternative Discussion around using canvas or reusing plastic grocery bags. Plastic Recycling habits

28. Give People Something to Talk About

29. Give People Something to Talk About

30. Make Sharing Easy

31. Co-Creation & Information-Sharing

32. ACTIONS for Change Agents

33. #1: Ask the Ultimate Question How likely are you to recommend Company or Product X to a friend or colleague?

34. #2: Listen to and Nurture Passionates

35. #3: Be Remarkable Be Interesting -- or Be Invisible! -- Andy Sernovitz Source : Purple Cow, Seth Godin Be Interesting -- or Be Invisible! -- Andy Sernovitz

36. Source : Email Experience Council #4: E-Mail: Ultimate Gen X WOM Tool?

37. #5: Get Started Source: Andy Sernovitz, Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking.

38. Social Media Reflects & Influences The Truth of Your Brand Adv Promo Direct PR Social Media & Online Visibility Credibility Insights Engagement Measurement

39. YOU Can Lead in New Directions!

40. Direct Marketing Resource Favs: www. SmallPlanetPartners .com February 11, 2008 blog post Workshops, Seminars & Strategy [email_address] 816.914.1490 Thank You