The document discusses word of mouth marketing (WOM) theory and its application both historically and in modern social media environments. It summarizes Ernest Dichter's 1960s work on simulating and stimulating WOM through advertising. While advertising saturation and consumer skepticism have increased, social media now allows consumers to instantly share opinions, triggering most WOM. The document analyzes Wiser's Whisky campaign that leveraged TV ads and social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter to foster consumer conversations, demonstrating how brands can apply WOM theory today.
Pr when the public does most of the relating by john bellJohn Bell
The truth is that our definition of “media” has exploded. Our idea of “influencers” has expanded. And effective communications has as much to do with building relationships through conversations and word of mouth as it does with marketing campaigns and message delivery. How do we create effective ommunications programs when peer-to-peer recommendations are the new form of “earned media”?
originally published 2008
Social Media For Business Part 1 Social Media BasicsSteven Fisher
In Part 1, we lay the foundation and explain the basics of social media, what created this new technology area, what tools are available and what it is used for in a business setting.
Pr when the public does most of the relating by john bellJohn Bell
The truth is that our definition of “media” has exploded. Our idea of “influencers” has expanded. And effective communications has as much to do with building relationships through conversations and word of mouth as it does with marketing campaigns and message delivery. How do we create effective ommunications programs when peer-to-peer recommendations are the new form of “earned media”?
originally published 2008
Social Media For Business Part 1 Social Media BasicsSteven Fisher
In Part 1, we lay the foundation and explain the basics of social media, what created this new technology area, what tools are available and what it is used for in a business setting.
The effect of social media communication on consumer perceptions of brandsJohnRandom
Researchers and brand managers have limited understanding of the effects social media communication has on how consumers perceive brands. We investigated 504 Facebook users in order to observe the impact of firm-created and user-generated (UG) social media communication on brand equity (BE), brand attitude (BA) and purchase intention (PI) by using a standardized online survey throughout Poland. To test the conceptual model, we analyzed 60 brands across three different industries: non-alcoholic beverages, clothing and mobile network operators. When analyzing the data, we applied the structural equation modeling technique to both investigate the interplay of firm-created and user-generated social media communication and examine industry-specific differences. The results of the empirical studies showed that user-generated social media communication had a positive influence on both brand equity and brand attitude, whereas firm-created social media communication affected only brand attitude. Both brand equity and brand attitude were shown to have a positive influence on purchase intention. In addition, we assessed measurement invariance using a multi-group structural modeling equation. The findings revealed that the proposed measurement model was invariant across the researched industries. However, structural path differences were detected across the models.
Waking up in the Post Social Media EraNick Decrock
Social Media has put the marketing world upside down. It changed the way consumers think, act and buy. Now it's time to get social outside social media, because people expect us to. Be aware of the social consumer ...
Slideshare summary of my presentation at the Click Asia Summit 2012 in Mumbai, India.
Practical advice for making Social Media work for your business HINTS, TIPS A...Typeset
If you're just getting started with social media for your business - and plenty of people still are - this paper was developed to give you some of the basic information you need. Developed in 2009, the paper is still relevant today with lots of practical advice to give business owners and marketers the confidence for a successful start.
The ‘Future of Mobile’ focuses in on location based services and the opportunities mobile presents for brands at the point-of-sale.
This is part of Mindshare's ongoing Future Of... research programme which explores the development of the media and technological landscape, and assesses the likely impact on advertisers and media businesses.
Using social media strategy in building the corporate brand image is a route a lot of people imagine they know - what with the number of influencers, opinion leaders, trend watchers, and spotters laying claims to so-called virile strategy which generate likes, impressions and conversations. However, that is not all there is to capturing corporate essence in an era of great cynicism. Using Social Media as a route to build corporate stature requires the need to develop and manage strategic partnerships, the monitoring of trends and applications of knowledge from trends in building conversations while measuring the impact of efforts in order to intensify or discontinue a course of action. Beyond this, this presentation attempts a historical perspective of the social media phenomenon as well as platform possibilities looking at the Nigerian context.
Ads are no longer unidirectional or one-dimensional but a blend of offline and online techniques designed to directly interact with the community. For many companies, advertising via online platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo has replaced commercials on television altogether. Recently, branded flash mobs have emerged as a popular form of viral advertising. While many branded flash mobs have experienced millions of YouTube views a metric such as view count does not fully indicate the effectiveness of the ad. This netnographic study evaluates viewers’ attitude toward the ad to better understand the effects of branded flash mobs. After examining 2,882 YouTube comments from three virally successful branded flash mob ads, a typology is developed, referred to as the archetype of consumer attitude matrix, to enable academics to formulate research questions regarding branded flash mobs. These archetypes of consumer attitudes to the online ad, in this case branded flash mobs, aid in the assessment of consumer response based on processing (cognitive versus emotive) and stance (supportive versus antagonistic). This typology also serves as a guide to marketing managers in the use of branded flash mobs in their viral campaigns. The article concludes with recommendations for future research.
This white paper by Paul Kennedy, Head of Consulting at Callcredit Marketing Solutions demonstrates that social media is no longer 'new' and has evolved in many different ways, therefore challenging businesses who, going forwards, will need to embrace a variety of tactics in order to engage and measure success
Comprehensive social media strategy by john bellJohn Bell
We spend millions defining and communicating the brand via marketing and communications channels. We need to take a fresh look at how the brand can behave in
social media. A crisp definition of our social brand will guide us from mere tactics to more impactful strategy. It will focus the efforts around best
practices from ethics to results and help our brands reap the benefits of social media faster and with a more enduring effect.
With companies looking to reduce customer support via calls and increase adoption of the new forms of Web-based communication,SOCIAL MEDIA has emerged as a channel with the potential to re-write some of the conventional rules. This whitepaper shares the right framework that companies must adopt while embarking on a social-media for customer service foray -- http://bit.ly/9EI3o4
The Customer-First Imperative: Five Steps for Applying Social Media to Genera...NM Incite
This white paper outlines 5 steps for applying social media insights to transform global marketing and brand strategies:
1. Measure your social performance relative to ‘expected’ outcomes
2. Link your segmentation approach to online discussions
3. Overinvest in data hygiene
4. Cast a wide net
5. Maintain measurement consistency across brands and markets
The effect of social media communication on consumer perceptions of brandsJohnRandom
Researchers and brand managers have limited understanding of the effects social media communication has on how consumers perceive brands. We investigated 504 Facebook users in order to observe the impact of firm-created and user-generated (UG) social media communication on brand equity (BE), brand attitude (BA) and purchase intention (PI) by using a standardized online survey throughout Poland. To test the conceptual model, we analyzed 60 brands across three different industries: non-alcoholic beverages, clothing and mobile network operators. When analyzing the data, we applied the structural equation modeling technique to both investigate the interplay of firm-created and user-generated social media communication and examine industry-specific differences. The results of the empirical studies showed that user-generated social media communication had a positive influence on both brand equity and brand attitude, whereas firm-created social media communication affected only brand attitude. Both brand equity and brand attitude were shown to have a positive influence on purchase intention. In addition, we assessed measurement invariance using a multi-group structural modeling equation. The findings revealed that the proposed measurement model was invariant across the researched industries. However, structural path differences were detected across the models.
Waking up in the Post Social Media EraNick Decrock
Social Media has put the marketing world upside down. It changed the way consumers think, act and buy. Now it's time to get social outside social media, because people expect us to. Be aware of the social consumer ...
Slideshare summary of my presentation at the Click Asia Summit 2012 in Mumbai, India.
Practical advice for making Social Media work for your business HINTS, TIPS A...Typeset
If you're just getting started with social media for your business - and plenty of people still are - this paper was developed to give you some of the basic information you need. Developed in 2009, the paper is still relevant today with lots of practical advice to give business owners and marketers the confidence for a successful start.
The ‘Future of Mobile’ focuses in on location based services and the opportunities mobile presents for brands at the point-of-sale.
This is part of Mindshare's ongoing Future Of... research programme which explores the development of the media and technological landscape, and assesses the likely impact on advertisers and media businesses.
Using social media strategy in building the corporate brand image is a route a lot of people imagine they know - what with the number of influencers, opinion leaders, trend watchers, and spotters laying claims to so-called virile strategy which generate likes, impressions and conversations. However, that is not all there is to capturing corporate essence in an era of great cynicism. Using Social Media as a route to build corporate stature requires the need to develop and manage strategic partnerships, the monitoring of trends and applications of knowledge from trends in building conversations while measuring the impact of efforts in order to intensify or discontinue a course of action. Beyond this, this presentation attempts a historical perspective of the social media phenomenon as well as platform possibilities looking at the Nigerian context.
Ads are no longer unidirectional or one-dimensional but a blend of offline and online techniques designed to directly interact with the community. For many companies, advertising via online platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo has replaced commercials on television altogether. Recently, branded flash mobs have emerged as a popular form of viral advertising. While many branded flash mobs have experienced millions of YouTube views a metric such as view count does not fully indicate the effectiveness of the ad. This netnographic study evaluates viewers’ attitude toward the ad to better understand the effects of branded flash mobs. After examining 2,882 YouTube comments from three virally successful branded flash mob ads, a typology is developed, referred to as the archetype of consumer attitude matrix, to enable academics to formulate research questions regarding branded flash mobs. These archetypes of consumer attitudes to the online ad, in this case branded flash mobs, aid in the assessment of consumer response based on processing (cognitive versus emotive) and stance (supportive versus antagonistic). This typology also serves as a guide to marketing managers in the use of branded flash mobs in their viral campaigns. The article concludes with recommendations for future research.
This white paper by Paul Kennedy, Head of Consulting at Callcredit Marketing Solutions demonstrates that social media is no longer 'new' and has evolved in many different ways, therefore challenging businesses who, going forwards, will need to embrace a variety of tactics in order to engage and measure success
Comprehensive social media strategy by john bellJohn Bell
We spend millions defining and communicating the brand via marketing and communications channels. We need to take a fresh look at how the brand can behave in
social media. A crisp definition of our social brand will guide us from mere tactics to more impactful strategy. It will focus the efforts around best
practices from ethics to results and help our brands reap the benefits of social media faster and with a more enduring effect.
With companies looking to reduce customer support via calls and increase adoption of the new forms of Web-based communication,SOCIAL MEDIA has emerged as a channel with the potential to re-write some of the conventional rules. This whitepaper shares the right framework that companies must adopt while embarking on a social-media for customer service foray -- http://bit.ly/9EI3o4
The Customer-First Imperative: Five Steps for Applying Social Media to Genera...NM Incite
This white paper outlines 5 steps for applying social media insights to transform global marketing and brand strategies:
1. Measure your social performance relative to ‘expected’ outcomes
2. Link your segmentation approach to online discussions
3. Overinvest in data hygiene
4. Cast a wide net
5. Maintain measurement consistency across brands and markets
This is my final year project on Social media Marketing for BBA examination under MAKAUT
Disclaimer-
This all facts are collected data from various new sportal and social sites
Social media marketing investments are increasing day by day but many of the marketers do not know how to evaluate their performance. I just gathered a few good articles with good examples. I hope you like it.
Measuring Value Of New Media Channels While Combining Them With Traditional C...Shael Sharma
4th Annual Corporate Communications ForumBombay 14-15 May’09:
Measuring Value Of New Media Channels While Combining Them With Traditional Channels To Manage Reputation In A Digitally Connected World
How can you build up long-lasting relationships with dialogue partners and use social media to attract and engage quality customers? By Jaydip Chowdhury
How can you build up long-lasting relationships with dialogue partners and use social media to attract and engage quality customers? By Jaydip Chowdhury
It was not Omar Al Mukhtar who introduced
the Arab Spring to Egypt but a
Google executive, Wael Ghonim, whose
campaign on Facebook and the famous
#Jan25 tweet that undermined Hosni
Mubarak’s political regime in Egypt. Similarly,
it was not a management consultant
who shaped customer service benchmarks
at United Airlines but a YouTube
video released by Dave Carol and his
band, earning more than 150,000 views
for his song about how United Airlines
broke his guitar during a transit from
Chicago to Omaha.
It was not Omar Al Mukhtar who introduced
the Arab Spring to Egypt but a
Google executive, Wael Ghonim, whose
campaign on Facebook and the famous
#Jan25 tweet that undermined Hosni
Mubarak’s political regime in Egypt. Similarly,
it was not a management consultant
who shaped customer service benchmarks
at United Airlines but a YouTube
video released by Dave Carol and his
band, earning more than 150,000 views
for his song about how United Airlines
broke his guitar du
Personal Brand Statement:
As an Army veteran dedicated to lifelong learning, I bring a disciplined, strategic mindset to my pursuits. I am constantly expanding my knowledge to innovate and lead effectively. My journey is driven by a commitment to excellence, and to make a meaningful impact in the world.
Recruiting in the Digital Age: A Social Media MasterclassLuanWise
In this masterclass, presented at the Global HR Summit on 5th June 2024, Luan Wise explored the essential features of social media platforms that support talent acquisition, including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok.
Building Your Employer Brand with Social MediaLuanWise
Presented at The Global HR Summit, 6th June 2024
In this keynote, Luan Wise will provide invaluable insights to elevate your employer brand on social media platforms including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok. You'll learn how compelling content can authentically showcase your company culture, values, and employee experiences to support your talent acquisition and retention objectives. Additionally, you'll understand the power of employee advocacy to amplify reach and engagement – helping to position your organization as an employer of choice in today's competitive talent landscape.
Anny Serafina Love - Letter of Recommendation by Kellen Harkins, MS.AnnySerafinaLove
This letter, written by Kellen Harkins, Course Director at Full Sail University, commends Anny Love's exemplary performance in the Video Sharing Platforms class. It highlights her dedication, willingness to challenge herself, and exceptional skills in production, editing, and marketing across various video platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.
Company Valuation webinar series - Tuesday, 4 June 2024FelixPerez547899
This session provided an update as to the latest valuation data in the UK and then delved into a discussion on the upcoming election and the impacts on valuation. We finished, as always with a Q&A
At Techbox Square, in Singapore, we're not just creative web designers and developers, we're the driving force behind your brand identity. Contact us today.
Top mailing list providers in the USA.pptxJeremyPeirce1
Discover the top mailing list providers in the USA, offering targeted lists, segmentation, and analytics to optimize your marketing campaigns and drive engagement.
Event Report - SAP Sapphire 2024 Orlando - lots of innovation and old challengesHolger Mueller
Holger Mueller of Constellation Research shares his key takeaways from SAP's Sapphire confernece, held in Orlando, June 3rd till 5th 2024, in the Orange Convention Center.
2. Section 1: WOM as it Applies to Marketing & Advertising
If, according to the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), word of mouth constitutes
consumers providing information to other consumers, the application of this concept would be word of
mouth marketing. WOMMA defines it as the art and science of building active, mutually beneficial
consumer-to-consumer and consumer-to-marketer communications. It is further defined as: giving
people a reason to talk about your products and services, and making it easier for that conversation to
take place.
The article in the course kit by Dichter states, “Why in a time of increasing advertising volume does
Word-of-Mouth (WOM) recommendation loom so high?”. Given that the article was written in 1966,
although much has changed since then, it is generally accepted that recommendation through word of
mouth is still the most effective form of communication to influence consumer purchasing behaviour
(Boalch & Law). Dichter’s apparent dichotomy can be solved by observing that advertising has shifted
over time, in an attempt to simulate and stimulate word of mouth. This endeavours to rouse emotional
currency between a brand and a consumer in an attempt to build advocacy (and by association, sales).
Dichter’s work, as it pertains to how WOM theory should be applied to marketing, is still very much valid
and in-use today. The hyperlinks to various advertisements below are a testament to the permanence of
his conjectures. It can be summarized as follows:
Simulate WOM by…
1. Proving Friendship & Intention by…
a. Initiating an ‘Exclusive’ Group – Chivas Commercial
b. Conveying a Personal Experience
2. Proving an Authentic Relationship to the Product by…
a. Tracing ‘Company Myth’ – Jack Daniels Commercial
b. Describing the Organization Climate – Smuckers Commercial
c. Utilizing Consumer Testimonials – ProActiv Commercial
The success of the message, according to Dichter, rests solely on the reader’s, listener’s, or viewer’s
belief that the speaker is talking spontaneously and that he has not been called in as a hired hand.
Stimulate WOM by…
1. Turning Messages into ‘Topics of Talk’ by..
a. Creating Shock – Axe Commercial
b. Creating a sense of “Heightened Reality” – Greygoose Commercial
c. Creating Humour – Dos Equis Commercial
d. Linking your products with needs and trends of the time. – Scotiabank Commercial
e. Creating Feelings of Exclusivity – Wiser’s Commercial
1|Page
3. If a brand can simulate a level of trust with the consumer and intertwine it with a “take-away” that
people can talk about and propagate, it has the potential to reap the benefits of WOM. But how does
social media fit into the picture?
Section 2: Then and Now: What has changed?
More recently, three key factors have changed the way marketers use WOM, thrusting it into the
limelight and making it more relevant than it has ever been. This is not to say that Dichter’s message no
longer applies, just that the environment within which his conjectures operate has significantly changed.
The three factors (Boalch & Law) are:
Marketing Saturation
As more and more messages flood the advertising environment, consumers tune out and reaching them
is getting more and more difficult. Cialdini estimates that the average person is subject to more than
1500 advertising messages a day, a number which desensitizes consumers to messages. WOM can cut
through the clutter by providing non-commercial, interactive, conversational environments.
Consumer Scepticism
Consumers are much more sceptical now (then in 1966) about advertising messages, especially “one-
way” brand communication. This has created a desire for more honest relationships between brands,
where honesty is exalted and dishonesty magnified. WOM, if used appropriately can help overcome
consumer scepticism.
Consumer Connectivity
Most importantly, and most relevant to social media, consumers are connecting like never before.
Whereas previously consumers were essentially dictated a message, now, with the introduction of
various social media, consumers are forming opinions and delivering recommendations constantly and
instantly. This happens through blogs, video blogs, social networking websites and forums, among other
mediums.
Figure 1: The Change in Communication Patterns (Boalch & Law)
Research shows that although 80% of WOM takes place offline, 75% of it is now triggered through initial
online conversations, mostly in the social media space (Balter & Butman). 63% of people consider
2|Page
4. reviews and product comparisons to be as credible as expert reviews from independent third parties
(Balter & Butman).
It is the job of the company to foster an environment that gives people a reason and a playground to
talk about its’ products and services, in effect facilitating a conversation. With the proliferation of new
and ever changing social media sites, combined with their constantly increasing adoption rates and
interconnectedness, messages move through the world at amazing speeds such that either the success
or failure of a campaign can be felt immediately in the farthest reaches of the ‘connected’ world. Figure
2 uses Australia as an example to show how ‘connected’ countries are becoming.
Figure 2: The Reach of Social Media in Australia (Boalch & Law)
As Boalch and Law state, there has been a shift of power from the brand to the consumer, where the
brand has been relegated from dictator to facilitator.
3|Page
5. Figure 3: The Power Shift (Boalch & Law)
To observe the speed and ease through which WOM is occurring, all one has to do is log onto Facebook.
Within 30 seconds of logging on, and without doing any research whatsoever, scanning only the “News
Feed”, evidence of word of mouth marketing was clearly present (See Figure 4).
Figure 4: Facebook as a WOM Facilitator
The important conclusion to draw from the changing landscape is that brands must listen to consumers
in the new online social media environments. They must interact with them and provide ways for them
to converse about brands. When brands decide to use social media, they must actually listen to the
consumers. An example of this going wrong can be seen with the iPhone 4 launch and the “Antennagate
Scandal”. Shortly after being released, consumers found that the antenna of the phone, if held in a
certain way, completely eliminated reception. When they started blogging about it on the official Apple
website, Apple shut down the forum and removed all of the postings, instead of listening and
responding to the consumers. Of course, this prompted individuals to move to other websites and
media to voice their displeasure, and the whole incident became much more damaging to the brand
than it would have been had Apple listened and responded appropriately to customers’ concerns.
Section 3: WOMM Short Case Study – Leveraging Social Media
If WOMM is based on giving people a reason to talk about your products and services, and making it
easier for that conversation to take place (WOMMA), then, in the current environment, social media
must be leveraged.
4|Page
6. An example of one of the earliest uses of Social Media for Word of Mouth Marketing can be found in the
campaign launched in 2008 by Wiser’s Whisky entitled, “The Wiserhood: The Society of
Uncompromising Gentlemen”. The campaign started off with a series of six television advertisements
that alluded to the fact that those who drink Wiser’s form part of an exclusive club. These commercials
utilize Dichter’s “Simulate & Stimulate” mantra for transferring WOM Theory to advertising. This was
followed up by the launching of the “Wiserhood Moments” Facebook page where individuals can view
the commercials (linked via YouTube), add comments, photos, and have discussions. It continues to be
viewed today. This was later expanded to Twitter, where users were invited to use the hastag
#wiserhood. Even this method continues to thrive as the most recent tweet, posted one day ago, reads:
Consumers clearly appreciate the effort that went into creating the campaign as they are utilizing
various social media and each page has been very active. This campaign can be summarized by two
comments on the YouTube channel: “God I love these commercials!” and “F&^$in classic!”.
Conclusion
Moving forward, it is clear that Dichter’s application of WOM Theory is very applicable from the 1960s
to this day. Changes in the communicatory environment caused by the proliferation of social media have
changed the way that information is shared and therefore companies must adapt by maintaining
multiple channels of multi-party, two-way communication that fosters conversation online, through
social media, as well as offline.
5|Page
7. Works Cited
Balter, Dave and Butman, John. Grapevine, the new art of word of mouth marketing. 2006, p 19.
Boalch, Zoe, and Nick Law. Understanding Word of Mouth Marketing. Sydney: Contagious
Communications, 2008. Online.
Cialdini, Robert B. Influence, Science and Practive,2000.
Dichter, Ernest. “How Word-of-Mouth Advertising Works”, Harvard Business Review, 44
(November/December 1966), 147-166.
6|Page