Definition: An unpaid form of promotion in which satisfied customers tell other
people how much they like a business, product or service
Word-of-mouth advertising is important for every business, as
each happy customer can steer dozens of new ones your way. And it's
one of the most credible forms of advertising because a person puts
their reputation on the line every time they make a recommendation
and that person has nothing to gain but the appreciation of those
who are listening. What are you doing to make sure your potential
ambassadors feel confident enough in your business to recommend it?
What are you doing to trigger word-of-mouth?
Here are some tips to help you generate word-of-mouth:
Word-of-mouth is triggered when a customer experiences
something far beyond what was expected. Slightly exceeding
their expectations just won't do it. You've got to go above and
beyond the call of duty if you want your customers to talk about
you.
Don't depend on your staff to trigger word-of-mouth by
delivering "exceptional customer experience." Good customer
service is sporadic, even in the best establishments. The customer
who receives exceptional service today can't be sure their friends
will receive the same tomorrow, so even the most well-served are
unlikely to put their necks on the line and make a recommendation.
Deep down, customers know service comes from an individual, not
from an establishment. And even the best people have bad days.
Physical, nonverbal statements are the most dependable in
triggering word-of-mouth. These statements can be
architectural, kinetic or generous, but they must go far beyond the
boundaries of what's normal. If you don't want to be average, why
do you insist on being normal? Here are some examples of these
statements:
- Architectural. The piano store that looks
like a huge piano, with black and white keys forming the long
awning over the long front porch. The erupting volcano outside the
Mirage in Las Vegas. A glass-bottom floor that allows customers to
see what's happening on the floor below them. Do you remember when
McDonalds began building attached playgrounds to all their
restaurants? It's worked like magic for more than 20 years.
- Kinetic. The tossing of fresh fish from one
employee to another at Pike Place Market in Seattle. The magical,
twirling knives of the tableside chefs at Benihana. Kissing the
codfish when you get "screeched in" at any pub in Newfoundland. (A
screech is a loud and funny ceremony during which
non-Newfoundlanders down a shot of cheap rum, repeat some phrases
in the local dialect and kiss a codfish. Everyone who visits that
wonderful island returns home with a story of being "screeched
in.") While it may at first seem like a kinetic word-of-mouth
trigger is a violation of #2 above, "Don't depend on your
staff...," it's really not. A kinetic word-of-mouth trigger is
constantly observable by management. It isn't a "customer service"
experience delivered privately, one on one.
- Generous. Are you willing to become known
as the restaurant that allows its guests to select--at no
charge--their choice of desserts from an expensive dessert menu?
You can cover the hard cost of it in the prices of your entrees and
drinks. Flour, butter and sugar are cheap advertising. Are you the
jewelry store that's willing to become known for replacing watch
batteries at no charge, even when the customer hasn't purchased
anything and didn't buy the watch from your store? Word will
spread. And watch batteries cost less than any type of
advertising.
Architectural, kinetic, generous: These are the flour, butter
and sugar of effective word-of-mouth. Will you put these rich
ingredients into the mouths of your potential word-of-mouth
ambassadors?
Budget to deliver the experience that will trigger
word-of-mouth. Sometimes your word-of-mouth budget will be
incremental, so that its cost is tied to your customer count. Other
times it'll require a capital investment, so that repayment will
have to be withheld from your advertising budget over a period of
years. The greatest danger isn't in overspending but in under
spending. Under spending on a word-of-mouth trigger is like buying
a ticket that only takes you halfway to Europe.
Don't promise it in your ads. Although it's tempting to
promise the thing you're counting on to trigger word-of-mouth,
these promises will only eliminate the possibility of your
customers becoming your ambassadors. Why would a customer repeat
what you say about yourself in your ads? You must allow your
customers to deliver the good news. Don't rob your ambassadors of
their moment in the sun.