Word of Mouth: Types & Strategies for Effective Marketing

Word-of-mouth (WOM) is one of the most influential and natural ways to market something. It happens when people talk about a brand, product, or service with their friends, family, or coworkers. These conversations are based on real customer experiences, often as free advertising that can strongly influence a company’s reputation and attract new customers.

With the rise of social media, these word-of-mouth conversations have become even more important for businesses that want to build trust and strengthen customer loyalty.

In this article, we’ll learn about different types of word-of-mouth marketing, why it’s more effective than traditional advertising, and how you can use it to grow your business.

What is Word of Mouth?

Word of mouth is the casual way people talk about a product, service, or brand with each other. This happens when someone shares their personal experiences, thoughts, or recommendations with friends, family, or others, which can impact how those people view and choose to buy something.

Here are some key points about word of mouth:

• Informal: It happens naturally in everyday conversations.
• Trustworthy: People trust recommendations from friends and family more than ads.
• Viral Potential: Positive experiences can spread quickly, reaching many people.
• Influential: It can significantly impact how others view a brand.
• Engaging: It creates meaningful interactions between consumers.

Word of mouth can be a strong marketing tool that helps build brand loyalty and improve reputation. By encouraging positive conversations and addressing any negative feedback, businesses can grow and succeed by providing excellent customer experiences.

Why Word of Mouth is More Effective Than Traditional Advertising?

Using word of mouth can be a very effective marketing strategy, often better than traditional advertising. By creating positive experiences for your customers and encouraging them to share, you can build trust and loyalty, which can lead to greater success.

Here’s why word of mouth works better than traditional ads:

• Trust and Credibility: People trust personal recommendations more than they trust traditional ads. When someone shares their genuine experience, it creates a connection that regular marketing often misses.
• Cost-Effectiveness: Word of mouth is usually cheaper. Instead of spending a lot on ads, you can let happy customers promote your products for free. This cuts costs while still reaching a wide audience.
• Targeted Reach: When customers talk about their experiences, they share them with people who are more likely to be interested. This targeted sharing often leads to higher conversion rates than traditional advertising.
• Viral Potential: Positive word of mouth can spread quickly on social media, boosting your brand awareness rapidly. Traditional ads usually require a lot of money to achieve similar results.
• Long-Lasting Impact: Word of mouth helps create lasting brand loyalty. When customers share their good experiences, they become advocates for your brand over time.
• Real-Time Feedback: You can get instant feedback about your products or services through word of mouth. Unlike traditional advertising, this immediate response helps you quickly see what’s working and what needs improvement.
• Higher Engagement: Word of mouth encourages a two-way conversation between your brand and your customers. This builds relationships and creates a sense of community. In contrast, traditional advertising is usually one-sided, which limits engagement opportunities.

Types of Word of Mouth

To make the most of word of mouth (WOM) in your marketing, it’s important for you to understand its different types. Here are the main differences:

Organic Word of Mouth vs. Amplified Word of Mouth

• Organic Word of Mouth

Organic word of mouth happens naturally when your customers talk about your brand without any prompting. They might mention your product in casual conversations, post about it on social media, or leave positive reviews.

It’s free and authentic, which builds trust among potential customers. Organic word of mouth is unpredictable and difficult to track because much of it happens in “dark social” spaces like private messages.

• Amplified Word of Mouth

Amplified word of mouth is when you encourage customers to share through marketing campaigns. You actively create opportunities for people to talk about your brand, like running referral programs or contests.

You can track and control the sharing, allowing you to measure success. If your approach is too forced, it can feel less genuine.

Positive and Negative Word of Mouth

• Positive Word of Mouth

This involves good conversations and recommendations about your brand. It helps you build trust, attract new customers, and strengthen brand loyalty. Positive WOM often comes from great customer service, high-quality products, or memorable experiences.

• Negative Word of Mouth

Negative WOM consists of bad discussions that can harm your brand’s reputation. It usually arises from poor experiences, unmet expectations, or unresolved complaints. Negative WOM can spread quickly and can deter potential customers if not handled properly.

Different Types of Word-of-Mouth Marketing Campaigns

There are many ways to boost word-of-mouth marketing, and it’s important to find the right approach for your business.

Some companies use a mix of different channels, while others focus on developing one strong strategy. The choice depends on your goals. For example, a business can use several programs to achieve different objectives.

Now, let’s take a quick look at some common types of word-of-mouth marketing.

1. Referral Programs

Reward your customers for recommending your brand to their friends and family. This is one of the most common and effective ways to generate word-of-mouth buzz.

These programs are simple and don’t involve filling out long forms or invading privacy. You want to ensure the process is quick and easy for your customers.

Referral programs often use software to help customers share easily, track their referrals, and reward them instantly with gifts when they succeed. This keeps the information of both the referrer and their friends secure.

Referral programs work well for businesses looking for high-quality leads, as the recommendations are based on personal trust. While they might not lead to a large number of referrals, the leads generated tend to be more reliable and valuable.

Here are some tips for a successful referral program:

• Make it easy for customers and their friends to join.
• Ensure the referral program is easy to find.
• Allow sharing through different channels like social media, email, or SMS.
• Offer rewards for both referrers and their friends.
• Always allow friends to opt in rather than automatically enrolling them without their permission.

2. Partner Programs

Partner programs can be a smart way to grow your business. Here, you collaborate with non-competing businesses to refer customers to each other. By teaming up with a channel partner, you can increase sales and reach markets that may be hard to access on your own.

You can offer incentives like finder’s fees or discounts for successful referrals.

Many partner programs work like referral programs but with one key difference. In these programs, the referrer is not a customer but a business partner or third-party distributor.

Partner programs are ideal for businesses with similar customers but no direct competition. Your partner can sell your product or service alongside their own, benefiting both parties. It’s a great way to reach new clients that might be out of your immediate reach.

3. Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing is a modern form of word-of-mouth advertising that focuses on building brand awareness. It involves partnering with content creators who share what they like about your product over a short period of time.

When celebrities, industry experts, or popular online personalities promote a product, they can reach a large audience. However, smaller influencers, known as micro-influencers, can be just as effective. Even though they have fewer followers, their audience is often more engaged and trusts them like friends.

You’ll need to compensate influencers and track engagement metrics, such as likes and comments, to gauge success. Here is how you can use influencer marketing:

• Have a high-quality product that influencers will want to use and promote.
• Find an influencer who genuinely likes your product and has a good number of followers.
• Make sure to assess how much traffic and visibility they can bring to your brand.
• Get the influencer to promote your product, which often creates excitement and leads to sales.
• Offer fair compensation. Even if influencers love your product, they may not promote it for free.

4. Brand Ambassador Programs

Unlike influencer marketing, brand ambassadors work with you over the long term. They genuinely love your brand and share their positive experiences both online and offline. Since they focus more on building relationships with their audience rather than just selling products, their recommendations feel more trustworthy.

You need to look for people who already love your brand, have trusted networks that align with your audience, and are eager to represent you for the long term. Also, You’ll need to provide ongoing training, regular updates, and rewards to keep ambassadors engaged.

5. Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is similar to referral marketing, but it focuses more on reaching new customers beyond personal connections. Content creators or bloggers promote your products to their audience through affiliate links. They earn a commission on every sale made through their unique link, expanding your reach to their followers.

Affiliate marketing software allows you to track every sale, which can make it easy to measure the success of your campaigns.

6. Reviews and Testimonials

Customer reviews act like digital word-of-mouth. While many businesses ask customers for feedback through links, sometimes customers leave reviews on their own.

Your customers leave reviews on platforms like Google, Yelp, or industry-specific sites. These reviews provide an unbiased perspective and can build credibility for your brand. Although you can’t control what people say, positive reviews are incredibly powerful for attracting new customers.

Companies can receive user feedback on platforms like QuestionPro, which helps other businesses choose the right solution based on real experiences. Here’s how you can use QuestionPro to gather reviews and testimonials for word-of-mouth marketing:

• Create Post-Purchase Surveys: Send surveys to customers after purchases to collect feedback, including open-ended questions for testimonials.
• Incentivize Participation: Offer discounts or prizes to encourage responses and boost the number of reviews.
• Use Positive Feedback: Turn glowing reviews into testimonials for your website and marketing materials.
• Share on Social Media: Post reviews on social platforms, tagging customers (with permission) to amplify word-of-mouth.
• Showcase on Your Website: Feature top reviews on product pages or dedicated testimonial sections.
• Monitor and Respond: Track real-time feedback and respond to reviews, building customer trust and encouraging more positive word-of-mouth.

7. User-Generated Content (UGC)

User-generated content (UGC) is any content that your customers create and share on social media, showing your brand in a positive way. Essentially, they’re recommending your brand to their followers, and sometimes, a single post can quickly boost your brand’s visibility.

This type of content helps spread brand awareness and builds trust. You can encourage customers to create UGC by using branded hashtags or hosting social media contests.

Any business active on social media should take advantage of UGC. It’s a great way for customers to promote your brand, especially if their posts go viral.

How to Generate Positive Word of Mouth for Your Business?

Getting positive word of mouth is crucial for growing your business. Here are some simple ways to encourage customers to share their good experiences:

• Provide Great Customer Service: Go above and beyond for your customers. When you exceed their expectations, they’re more likely to talk about their positive experiences.
• Start a Referral Program: Offer rewards for customers who bring in new clients. This will motivate them to tell others about your business.
• Use Social Media Effectively: Connect with your audience by sharing content created by them and responding to their comments. This encourages them to share more.
• Highlight Customer Testimonials: Show off positive reviews on your website and social media. This builds trust and inspires others to share their experiences, too.
• Provide Quality Products and Services: Make sure your products meet customer expectations. Happy customers are more likely to talk about your brand.
• Follow Up After a Purchase: Send a thank-you message and ask for feedback. This makes customers feel appreciated and encourages them to share their thoughts.

Measuring the Impact of Word of Mouth

Tracking the success of your word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing can be challenging, but it’s essential to understand its influence on your brand. Here are some key methods you can use to measure the impact of WOM:

1. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

Use the Net Promoter Score to determine customer loyalty and satisfaction.

Ask your customers a simple question: “How likely are you to recommend our product/service to others?” The responses, rated on a scale from 0 to 10, will provide insight into your brand’s word-of-mouth potential.

A high NPS indicates that your customers are likely to promote your brand organically.

2. Customer Referral Tracking

Implement referral programs that allow you to track how many customers refer others to your business. This approach can help you see the direct results of word-of-mouth marketing. Monitor how many referrals lead to actual conversions to gather concrete data on WOM effectiveness.

3. Social Media Mentions and Shares

Keep an eye on social media platforms to see how often your brand is mentioned, shared, or tagged. You can use software tools to track conversations about your brand. An increase in mentions or shares indicates that word-of-mouth is spreading online.

4. Review Volume and Sentiment Analysis

Analyze the number and sentiment of customer reviews to measure how much mouth word influence public perception. Check platforms like Google Reviews, Yelp, or industry-specific sites to see the tone and frequency of reviews. A positive experience reflects strong WOM, while negative ones could signal areas for improvement.

5. Traffic from Referrals

Google Analytics is an excellent analytical tool for tracking your website’s traffic source. If you notice an increase in referral traffic where the visitors come from customer recommendations or social mentions, it signals the impact of word of mouth. A growing percentage of referral traffic suggests a successful WOM marketing campaign.

6. User-Generated Content (UGC)

Look for user-generated content (UGC), such as social media posts, videos, or blogs created by your customers, as a sign of strong word-of-mouth. The volume and quality of UGC related to your brand can directly measure how engaged your audience is and how much they are promoting your products or services.

7. Customer Surveys

Conduct surveys to gather valuable insights into how customers discovered your brand. You can ask questions like, “How did you find out about us?” This feedback will help you identify if word-of-mouth is a significant driver of new business.

8. Sales Growth and Retention Rates

Monitor your sales growth and customer retention rates, as increased sales driven by customer referrals can indicate the effectiveness of your WOM strategy. Higher retention rates suggest that satisfied customers recommend your brand and stay loyal, both of which are strong indicators of successful word-of-mouth.

Managing Negative Word of Mouth

Handling negative word of mouth is essential for keeping your brand’s reputation strong. Here are some simple strategies to effectively deal with negative feedback:

• Respond Quickly and Professionally
  Address the issue as soon as possible to show you care. A professional response can help calm the situation and prevent more damage.

• Listen and Understand
  Take the time to hear the customer’s concerns. This shows you empathize and can provide useful insights into areas that need improvement.

• Move the Conversation Offline
  If the discussion becomes heated in public, suggest continuing the conversation privately. This allows for a more personal resolution and helps avoid further negativity.

• Offer Solutions
  Provide practical solutions, such as refunds, replacements, or discounts. Showing that you’re willing to fix the issue can turn a bad experience into a good one.

• Learn from Feedback
  Use negative feedback as a chance to learn. Look for complaint patterns to identify what needs improvement in your products or services.

• Encourage Positive Reviews
  After resolving a complaint, ask satisfied customers to leave positive reviews. This can help balance out the negative feedback and improve your overall rating.

Turning Negative Reviews into Opportunities for Improvement

Negative reviews can be valuable for your business if you handle them correctly. They give you a chance to improve and show customers that you care. By addressing bad feedback and using it to improve, you can strengthen customer loyalty and boost your brand’s reputation.

Here’s a simple way to turn bad reviews into something positive:

• Understand the Feedback: Look for patterns in the reviews. If multiple customers point out the same issue, it’s likely something that needs fixing.
• Make Improvements: Use what you’ve learned from the reviews to improve your products or services. Every piece of feedback is a clue to getting better.
• Let Customers Know: Once changes are made, inform customers. Tell them how their feedback helped you improve. It can help build trust and show that their voices matter.
• Reach Out to Reviewers: After making improvements, contact those who left negative reviews. Let them know what’s changed and ask if their issue has been resolved.
• Create a Feedback Loop: Encourage ongoing feedback. This helps you stay on track and continuously improve. It also shows customers that you’re committed to giving them the best experience.
• Share the Success: Share stories about how feedback has led to positive changes. This shows how responsive you are and helps build a stronger brand image.

What Exactly Does Word of Mouth Mean for a Business?

The term, word of mouth, basically refers to your customers, clients and other business owners talking about your company and spreading the word that you’re there, in business and ready to provide your services. If you’re a restauranteur, for example, your word of mouth might come from customers who love the food. It could also come from you just letting people know in the local area that there is a new business open and that they should make use of it and check it out for themselves. 

Word of mouth could also refer to people talking about your business on the Internet. Nowadays, review sites and social media sites allow for people to talk about your business, spread the word and let people know what you’re all about. Unfortunately, not all word of mouth marketing is good, since many individuals who are dissatisfied with your company may write bad reviews about it or just tell people the bad experience they have had. This is why it’s so vital to try to keep word of mouth concerning your business positive so that people actually want to come in and make use of whatever type of company you happen to be running.

Tips for Better Word of Mouth Marketing

Word of mouth marketing is easy to accomplish when you provide a good service and superior customer service to those who have made use of your business. For example, those who own a store will want to put extra effort into their customer service so that the clients walk away and have something good to say about your company. If you provide bad customer service, you’re taking the risk of people spreading rumors of bad experiences that they might have had while there. This is definitely not something that you’ll want if you’ve just opened a new business and are trying to get it known to the public.

Word of mouth could also come from your own doing both locally and online. Go to local businesses and tell them about the business you’ve just opened. If you have business cards or brochures, be sure to share these with local companies so that they can hand them out to their own customers if they would like. If you live in a small town or city, let people know that you’ve just opened and what type of company you’re running. You’ll be surprised how quickly word of mouth will spread when a new company comes to town.

Also, don’t forget that word of mouth also goes for your online presence as well. Social media sites can be a wonderful place to spread the word of mouth that you’re in business and what types of services you offer to the public. Create a social media page for your company and link it to other businesses in the area. Make the sites searchable for those who might want to learn more about you. You could also put emphasis onto creating a website specific to your own company, and this can be a great resource for those who want to learn more about what you’re offering.

How to Deal with Bad Word of Mouth

Word of mouth can be both positive and negative, and you really never know what it’ll be like until you start hearing some feedback from customers or other business owners. One way to prevent bad word of mouth is to provide your customers with good service and superior customer support if they should need it. Even with good support, you may still get some people who simply want to bad mouth your business to anyone who will listen, and this can severely hurt a new business owner who is simply trying to do their best.

The best way to deal with negative word of mouth is to respond calmly and professionally to these individuals. For example, if someone writes a negative review on your social media page, there is no reason to blow up on the person and yell via the Internet. However, you can respond in a professional manner apologizing for their experience and doing anything you can to remedy their issue. By creating a professional atmosphere for even the negative comments, word of mouth will resound with your company so that it brings more business in for you.

Enhancing Word of Mouth Strategies Using QuestionPro

QuestionPro is a powerful survey tool that can boost your marketing efforts and help you gain valuable feedback. By effectively using QuestionPro, you can gain insights into your customers’ needs, enhance your offerings, and encourage positive word of mouth. Ultimately, it can lead to growth and brand loyalty.

Here’s how you can make the most of it:

Collect Customer Feedback

Create and send surveys to gather insights from your customers. Ask about their experiences, satisfaction, and suggestions. This feedback will help you understand what your customers appreciate and what areas need improvement.

Here’s how you can effectively use QuestionPro to collect valuable insights:

• Customize your surveys with specific questions that focus on various aspects of your product or service.
• Use a mix of multiple-choice, Likert scale, and open-ended questions to gain both quantitative and qualitative insights.
• Use distribution channels like email, social media, or your website to reach your customers.
• Send surveys at strategic moments, such as after purchase, following customer support interactions, or after events.
• Pay close attention to open-ended responses, as they can provide deeper insights into customer sentiments.
• Utilize the platform’s reporting features to visualize the data through charts and graphs.

Measure Customer Satisfaction (CSAT)

Use CSAT surveys after customer interactions or purchases to check customer satisfaction. This information will highlight what you do well and where you can improve. It can also help you make better decisions.

Here’s how to effectively measure CSAT and utilize the results to enhance your business:

• Ask Specific Questions: Focus on specific parts of the customer experience, like product quality or customer service. For example, ask, “How happy are you with the product quality?”
• Use a Rating Scale: Ask customers to rate their satisfaction using a simple scale, like 1 to 5 or 1 to 10.
• Send Surveys at the Right Time: To get fresh feedback, distribute surveys right after key moments, like purchases or support calls.
• Calculate Your CSAT Score: To find out your CSAT score, divide the number of satisfied customers (those who rate you 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale) by the total number of responses, then multiply by 100 to get a percentage. For example, if 80 out of 100 people give a score of 4 or 5, your CSAT score is 80%.
• Look for Patterns: Analyze data for trends, such as high support satisfaction but low product quality ratings, to know where to improve.
• Segment Your Data: Divide your CSAT results by different customer groups, like age, buying habits, or product types.
• Focus on Improvement Areas: Use survey feedback to prioritize changes, especially if many customers point out the same issue.
• Communicate Changes: After making changes based on feedback, let your customers know.
• Keep Monitoring: After changes, continue tracking CSAT scores to see if satisfaction improves and adjust as needed.s. This ongoing process allows you to continually adjust and enhance your approach.

Conduct Net Promoter Score (NPS) Surveys

NPS surveys help you measure customer loyalty and their likelihood to recommend your brand. Understanding this can give you insights into your brand’s reputation and its potential for generating positive word of mouth.

Here’s how you can use QuestionPro to conduct effective NPS surveys and gain valuable insights:

• Creating Your NPS Survey: With QuestionPro, you can easily create a simple NPS survey. It usually has one main question: “On a scale from 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our brand to a friend or colleague?” After this question, you can add an open-ended follow-up to ask respondents why they gave that score. This helps you gather valuable feedback about what your brand does well and where it can improve.
• Identifying Customer Groups: Using NPS responses, you can sort your customers into three categories:
  • Promoters (scores 9-10): These are loyal customers who love your brand and are likely to recommend it to others, creating positive word of mouth.
  • Passives (scores 7-8): These customers are satisfied but not overly enthusiastic.
  • Detractors (scores 0-6): These are unhappy customers who could damage your brand’s reputation by sharing negative experiences.
• Engaging with Customers: After reviewing the NPS results, connect with Promoters and Detractors. Thank Promoters for their loyalty and encourage them to share their experiences, possibly with rewards. For Detractors, reach out to understand their concerns and offer solutions. This shows you value their feedback and can help turn them into loyal customers.

Analyze Market Trends

Create surveys to explore customer preferences and industry trends. This analysis can help you adjust your products and services to meet market demands, improve customer experiences, and encourage positive recommendations.

Start by identifying the specific topics you want to investigate, such as product features, pricing, brand image, or new industry trends. Having a clear focus will help you create surveys that provide useful information.

Gather Reviews and Testimonials

Use QuestionPro to collect testimonials from happy customers. Encourage them to share their positive experiences, which you can showcase on your website and social media to build credibility and attract new customers.

Here’s how you can create surveys specifically designed to gather valuable feedback and compelling testimonials:

• Design Targeted Surveys: Design surveys that target specific areas like product quality and customer service. Use open-ended questions and rating scales for detailed responses.
• Ask for Specific Feedback: Ask customers questions like, “What do you love most about our product?” to elicit specific testimonials that highlight your brand’s strengths.
• Use Conditional Logic: Utilize conditional logic in your surveys to customize questions based on customer responses. For example, if a customer gives a high rating, follow up by asking if they’d be willing to share a testimonial. This personalized approach can increase the chances of getting meaningful feedback.
• Offer Incentives: Motivate customers to complete surveys by offering discounts or freebies. Emphasize how their feedback helps improve your services.
• Provide Clear Instructions: Include straightforward instructions for leaving testimonials and share examples to guide customers’ responses.
• Simplify Sharing: Make it easy for customers to share their testimonials publicly by providing a link to your review platform or asking to feature their feedback on your website or social media.

Manage Referral Programs

QuestionPro lets you design personalized surveys for your referral program. You can collect detailed information from participants, like who they referred, why they joined, and any feedback they have for improvement. This information will help you understand what drives your customers to make referrals.

If you have a referral program, use QuestionPro to track its success. Monitor who refers new customers, how many leads are generated, and conversion rates. This data will help you improve your program and encourage participation.

Identify Brand Advocates

Analyze survey data to find your most enthusiastic customers. By recognizing and connecting with these brand advocates, you can strengthen relationships and motivate them to share your brand with others. Here’s how QuestionPro can help you manage this process:

• Finding Brand Advocates with Surveys: Use QuestionPro to create surveys that identify brand advocates. Ask targeted questions about customer satisfaction and loyalty, including Net Promoter Score (NPS), to spot strong supporters.
• Analyzing Responses: Once you have the survey data, use QuestionPro’s analytics to find trends that highlight engaged and satisfied customers. Group your audience to identify loyal customers who share positive experiences.
• Personalized Engagement: Leverage survey insights to tailor your engagement with advocates. Send personalized follow-ups, like thank-you notes or special offers, to strengthen their connection to your brand.

Enhance Customer Experience

Use the feedback and insights from surveys to improve the overall customer experience. Make changes based on their input, and let your audience know about these improvements, showing them that their opinions are valued.

Here’s how you can use insights gained from QuestionPro to create a better customer experience:

• Review Customer Feedback: Look closely at the feedback you’ve gathered from surveys. Pay attention to the common issues and suggestions that customers share. This will help you figure out which parts of the customer experience need your immediate focus.
• Track Customer Satisfaction Over Time: Keep sending out surveys to regularly check how satisfied your customers are and to see if your changes are making a difference. This ongoing measurement will help you know if you’re meeting their needs and allow you to tweak your strategies when necessary.
• Create a Feedback Loop: Set up a system where customers can share their thoughts on your changes. This shows that you care about improving and helps you adjust your methods based on their feedback.

Conclusion

Word of mouth is one of the strongest marketing tools you can use. By focusing on customer feedback and improving their experiences, you can create a positive cycle of recommendations that boost your brand.

When customers feel appreciated and see that their opinions matter, they are more likely to share their experiences with others, both online and offline.

As you develop ways to encourage and manage word of mouth, remember that every interaction is a chance to create brand advocates. Whether it’s providing outstanding service, thoughtfully responding to feedback, or showing off your improvements, each action adds to a growing group of satisfied customers who want to share their stories.

QuestionPro is a valuable tool for tapping into the power of word of mouth. It allows you to collect meaningful customer feedback through customized surveys, helping you improve your offerings and show that you care about their opinions.

As a small business owner or entrepreneur, you may not have the funds to hire your own marketing department. While it’s fine to not have a department that works on marketing and advertising your business, these two things are still incredibly important if you want your business to grow and become successful. A successful business relies on proper marketing and advertising techniques, and there are many ways that you can accomplish this solely with word of mouth.