This post is all about generating word of mouth and creating a positive buzz about you or your business.
If a friend recommends a great restaurant to you, you are massively more likely to go and eat there than you would be, if you’d found out about that same restaurant via an expensive advertisement. This is because, as we all know, a word of mouth referral is extremely powerful.
So, here’s a question for you:
Why do so few companies do anything to encourage word of mouth?
There are a number of reasons, but here’s what I believe to be the primary one: In my experience, most business owners think they are already doing enough to generate a buzz about what they do. They genuinely care about their customers and work hard to try and exceed their customer’s expectations.
Surely that’s enough to get people talking about them?
No. It’s not!
That’s because there’s a high level of customer expectancy within the marketplace. Think about it for a moment. You expect great service don’t you? Of course you do and so does everyone else!
So, we all notice when we get bad service, but when we get either a good or slightly better than good service, it just washes over us. It certainly doesn’t motivate us to want to tell all our friends. We reserve that kind of buzz for the special companies – The one’s that stand out.
Word of mouth 101: We attract remarks, when we become remarkable
The marketplace will not start talking about a company, unless there’s a reason. So, if we want to attract word of mouth business, we need to give people something to talk about. A great place to start, is to continuously look for ways to offer a remarkable service, remarkable products or both.
To become remarkable takes courage; the courage to be different. I’m not talking about being different just for the sake of it. If Bob’s the only Accountant in town to wear a batman outfit to his meetings, he will be different AND people will talk about him. (But that’s a whole different kind of word of mouth!)
Here’s a thought: Why not take a moment to think about the companies, services or products that you are talking about and figure out how to adapt what you do, so your business becomes just as remarkable – but in your own way. Use companies in different industries as inspiration, but don’t copy them. Dare to be different and offer unique value.
Okay, that’s my take on it. I’d really like to hear what tips or ideas you have for generating word of mouth.