CorpComms Magazine

Word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing may be in its infancy, but it is already causing a stir in the communications world. More than 75 per cent of respondents to a recent survey by London-based consultancy White Stone said that that they felt ‘converted' or ‘intrigued' by it.

As a marketing vehicle, there is clearly something about WOM marketing that makes intuitive sense. ‘WOM marketing is gaining momentum because it has always been the most powerful way in which products and services are sold,' says Andrew Green, chief marketing officer at Ipsos MediaCT. ‘A recommendation from a friend or family member is far more powerful than a TV advert. People know that it is less biased and will be based on somebody's knowledge of them and what they like.'

For Crispin Manners, director, service innovation, at PR and word of mouth consultancy Kaizo, the environment is also ripe for development and innovation in WOM marketing. ‘Any business knows that customers come most reliably from recommendation; so companies go about trying to create recommendations in marketing programmes. The problem lies in getting the quantity and regularity of recommendation to make a difference. But that is all changing because of the penetration of broadband and Web 2.0. You can reach millions via the Internet,' he says.

For all the interest surrounding the potential of WOM marketing, there remains considerable uncertainty among marketers as to what it actually involves.

WHAT IS IT ALL ABOUT?

Just 21 per cent of respondents to White Stone's survey claimed a very good or excellent understanding of WOM marketing, while 37 per cent associated it with personal recommendations or advocacy for products and services, while 18 per cent believed it related to conversations, talking and buzz.

In actually determining how this translates to marketing techniques, the results seemed clearer but were likely misleading, given that the respondents were shown a list of 17 vehicles or tools associated with WOM marketing to choose from.

Nine out of ten respondents picked community/social networks while 86 per cent chose blogs, while others selected tools such as ‘brand ambassador programmes', ‘viral campaigns', or ‘influencer engagement'.

White Stone Consultants expressed reservations in these results. Their experience suggests that far more vague terms such as ‘PR', ‘Internet' and ‘social networks' are the most common unprompted responses among marketers describing WOM marketing tools.

Such findings may merely reflect the early days of WOM marketing. Procrastination or a ‘wait and see' approach, however, may not be the answer. ‘Web 2.0 has accelerated the WOM marketing process,' says Manners. ‘It is forcing organisations to recognise that they have to engage with WOM, or be left behind by consumers who will drive their own content. But it is also an area that can and has been ignored - as precedence is given to above-the-line techniques. Companies are scared witless about how to engage in the Web 2.0 world. Those that don't won't survive though.'

Green agrees, saying that there's a perceived lack of control over the content - and its extent - in WOM marketing. ‘And the measurement is not as accurate or as standardised as, say, TV or radio,' he adds. However, he thinks things are changing. ‘The rise of User Generated Media (UGM) - such as YouTube, recommendation sites for books or insurance, review sites written by real people, blogs and so on - have increased the profile and measurability of UGM. Also, media agencies have realised that it is not just about TV and print now, and have developed approaches that help quantify the role of WOM in brand purchasing.'

SIMPLE YET EFFECTIVE

Indeed, Kaizo has proved an early pioneer for WOM marketing, with its award-winning campaign for Accantia Health & Beauty, ‘Simply Web 2.0'. Launched in April 2007, the campaign aimed to drive successful product launches by directly engaging with customers through involving them in new product trials and key brand decisions for the Simple product line. ‘Compared to the global firms like Unilever, Accantia is a UK company with a small revenue,' says Manners. ‘We also knew that people generally like Simple products, once they try them.' With this in mind, Kaizo concluded that the brand would be a good candidate for the innovative and cost-effective techniques involved in WOM marketing.

In a drive to generate brand recommendations, Kaizo recruited consumers as brand advisers. ‘In the first fortnight, we managed to recruit 2,000 consumers. Since then, we've grown that to well over 12,000 people. It's growing so fast because consumers have a genuine interest in the products. We are also exposing them to products and brand plans before anyone else. This gives them honest involvement in the brand and people genuinely enjoy the process,' says Manners.

Not only that, but the firm quickly discovered that products launched via the advisory panel often enjoyed more success than other launches using other techniques. In particular, they used the panel to launch a Simple product for skin prone to severe dryness or even eczema. ‘Accantia expected it to be a relatively minor seller because it would only be used for problem skin. So we didn't plan a big marketing campaign for it,' says Manners. The company sent out 3,000 pre-launch trials of the product to consumer advisers, asking them to review the product if they could spare the time. ‘We even sent it out between Christmas and New Year - not really the best time of year to get consumer feedback,' he adds.

Within one week, however, the brand advisers had returned 500 reviews, saying, for example, that the cream made their skin feel softer and their hands look younger.

‘The feedback was incredibly valuable,' says Manners. ‘It revealed information that exceeded the brand owner's expectations and expanded their perceptions of the product. It convinced the team at Simple to review their agreed distribution channels; they ended up going to all the major multiple retailers, instead of the limited pharmaceutical retailers originally intended.'

To support these efforts, Kaizo also set up a microsite for the product launch. ‘Within two weeks of the initial trials going out, we'd got 30,000 further requests for samples. In fact, the product was the most successful launch in the company's 50-year history.'

LESSONS FOR THE FUTURE

One of the factors that undoubtedly helped make the Simple initiative so successful was the brand itself. ‘The key thing to recognise is that WOM is about people talking about things they are interested in - for example, cars or beauty products. You're less likely to get success if you're dealing with financial products or computer software - except, perhaps, at certain points in people's lives,' says Manners. ‘Brands need to think about whether they're going to engage or not with consumers - it's about listening rather than ‘telling' people. Advertising is about telling consumers about your product, whereas WOM is all about listening and then engaging in the conversation.'

Andrea Wilson, consultant at White Stone Consulting, also sees this as the key differential in successfully exploring the potential of WOM marketing. ‘One of the keys to effectively managing WOM marketing is to not view it as a campaign as such. Instead, it should be seen as a means to develop a long-term relationship with consumers, in which you work out what your customers want and need. If it appears as a thinly disguised package to just sell more products, consumers will see right through it. It just won't work.'

Manners also argues that the fear for some brand owners is that WOM marketing will ‘kill off the culture of spin'. Instead, in a Web 2.0 world of conversation and open communication, there will be a need for much more transparent communication and greater honesty than ever. Indeed consumers are increasingly unlikely to accept anything else. ‘In the online, social networking world, conversations are not only visible, but there's an historic aspect too - you can go back and see what people have said about a brand or product, over a long period of time' says Wilson. ‘In this environment, the most successful companies will engage with their customers in building honest, long-term relationships.'

A MANAGED PROCESS

Early success stories, combined with the idea that this is a cost-effective means of engaging consumers en masse, make WOM marketing undeniably appealing. But it is still a new and emerging vehicle, with much yet to be learnt. ‘The Internet and all the opportunities it offers for WOM marketing are getting stronger daily,' says Green. ‘But there is still plenty of room for improvement in the measurement of these things. For example, it is still not easy to measure the influence of the Internet. People can use it to research a product but still go and buy it in a shop. This does not leave a trail.'

Green points to some companies, like Technorati, which are measuring blogs - including the number that mention the brand, as well as positive and negative mentions. ‘But off-line WOM, which is essentially people talking, can only be measured using surveys. Both [methods] have their limitations,' he says.

Wilson also warns the marketing community against getting overly enthusiastic or over-sensationalising the possibilities of WOM marketing. ‘We don't want to turn this into another over-hyped fad,' she says. ‘We need to think hard about what WOM marketing really means. Consumers don't want to know about concepts that are just another way of planting products. This has to be different - it has to be more than that.'

The Web 2.0 landscape has opened up a whole new world of possibilities. It could even be described as transformational in its impact on global communication. People are able to engage in conversations in real-time with anyone, anywhere in the world - and through social networking, they are incentivised to do so. This gives organisations the unique opportunity to tap into a vast consumer audience more willing to listen and talk than perhaps ever before.

But there are dangers. People are more sophisticated than ever in their understanding of marketing and sales techniques. Attempt to engage in a ‘natural' communication process that is actually a sales pitch, and you will likely cause a backlash far worse than anything traditional marketing/communication techniques could muster. After all, where WOM marketing offers companies the possibility of numerous and invaluable consumer recommendations, it could also reap a whirlwind of bad reviews and long-lasting negativity. While still an infant, at least, WOM marketing may need to be treated with kid gloves.

share me: del.icio.us | digg | reddit | Tweet