3. HOW EFFECTIVE IS WOM?
•In America there are 3.3
billion brand mentions in
2.4 billion brand-related conversations EVERY
DAY
• Driving Forces of Purchase Decisions
• Word-of-Mouth – 54%
• Website Info – 47%
• Email from a Friend – 42%
• Online Review – 31%
• Americans that Trust Offline Word-of-Mouth
• 59%
• Americans that Trust Online Word-of-Mouth
• 49%
Statistics via WOMMA
4. A LITTLE HISTORY
•Word of Mouth is as old as oral communication
• Studying the phenomenon took off in the 20th century
6. WOMM IN THE AGE OF THE
INTERNET
•Coverage is exponentially greater
•Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Reddit and Youtube are key
players, and more crop up all the time
• Bloggers have become very effective WOM marketers
Social
Broadcasters
Mass Influencers
Potential Influencers
7. HUMOR AND EFFECTIVE WOMM
•Creates Buzz
• Shapes brand reputation
• Increases the chance of the “word” being passed on
Strategy is still very important, there has to be a message/brand
connection
8. BUT HOW?
Emotional
Influence
Authenticity Personification
Simplicity
9. HOW DID THAT DOUBLE
TREE INCIDENT PLAY OUT?
•A sympathetic editorial in the trade publication Travel
Weekly
• Coverage in national publications such as USA Today
•An offer of a complimentary two-night stay in any Hilton
Hotel
• A sizeable donation to the Toys for Tots charity
•Harm to Doubletree/Hilton’s reputation as the humorous
PowerPoint inevitably spread across the web
“Intentional influencing of consumer-to-consumer communications by professional marketing techniques” – Networked Narratives“is an unpaid form of promotion—oral or written[1]—in which satisfied customers tell other people how much they like a business, product, service, or event.” – WikipediaWidely considered the most effective kind of marketingWe assume we’re getting recommendations from people with no agenda such as getting paidSpending behind word-of-mouth marketing hit $1.54 billion last (2008) year, according to PQ Media.
People have always recommended things to each otherDichter’s article studies WOM, Everett Rogers (Diffusion of Innovation), the concept of influencers and early adopters (Jonas will focus on these people in brand communities), they’re small group but they’re passionate and they talk a lot, George Silverman in the 70’s
Would you go to this person for this information? What’s their motive? We use those influencers and early adopters to shape how we purchaseKendal running shoe anecdote A sense of trust must be built between the giver and receiver of info… Twitter is complicating that (paid tweets)
Think about all the wall posts and retweets and reblogs and links emailed… How many more people see these things?We go to sites where people write about what we’re interested in, they have a certain tone, reputation we come to trust and use things based on their recommendation - Jezebel recs beauty products and says they’re unpaidThis Pyramid is sort of an internet update of the Affluents/Mizers/Champions/AdvocatesSocial Broadcasters are few in number but great in scale — they are the top bloggers, most well-connected individuals, and have a lot of followers looking to them for news and advice on the latest and greatest. They have scale but lack trust, in the sense that their followers will click on the links and recommendations they share but still perform their own evaluation of the data — this makes Social Broadcasters better suited for awareness than preference. Mass Influencers, who make up only 16% of the pyramid but account for 80% of the influence impressions about products and services.Potential Influencers — this is where the trust really is. These are the proverbial “average consumer” who have primarily networks of people they actually know in an offline context (friends, family, peers). These networks are rich with trust, and make up 84% of the total population of the pyramid.
Old Spice – Currently almost 39 million hits ALSO On July 14, 2010, Old Spice launched the fastest growing online viral video campaign ever, garnering 6.7 million views after 24 hours, ballooning over 23 million views after 36 hoursThe Landlord – Over 78 million views on FunnyorDie – “What started as a lark for Ferrell and writing partner Adam McKay has become a profitable company, with revenue approaching $30 million this year, according to a person with knowledge of the Los Angeles-based business.”Absolut – 2.7 million views on Youtube, cements Absolut as a risk-taker (also have a spike jonzevid)
Humor creates a positive favorable perception of a product or brand, which correlates to purchase conversions. Humor is most effectively applied against “low-involvement offerings” where the decision-making process is not as emotionally intense for the consumer, and therefore, minor emotional influences can have a greater effect. While appropriate for deodorant, it’s not a tactic with a highly effective impact in long-cycle B2B sales.Because humor is a psychologically intimate experience and one that’s based on shared experiences and perceptions, the proper execution of a humorous device also creates a greater sense that a real, relatable persona is behind the impersonal exteriorHumor allows you to convey messages in simple, easily digestible pieces. Product features, cautions, and alternate uses are all potential elements that can be conveyed using humorous devices.Because making people laugh and smile has such a significant positive psychological impact, the utilization of humor can create a perception of personable authenticity. Humor’s ability to elicit positive emotions also has a positive correlation to trust
Humor update
Michael Bastian mention is pit-stains, made me laugh, got me to buy
