Word of mouth marketing: the most potential publicity method in the Internet age

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More and more marketing companies are turning to another form of word-of-mouth marketing, which I call marketing that goes unnoticed and doesn't make you think it's marketing.

As mentioned earlier, some companies that specialize in word-of-mouth marketing now rarely even cooperate with KOLs. The word-of-mouth marketing they are doing is amateur-style word-of-mouth marketing. First of all, these marketing companies will open a large group of Internet accounts, or to use familiar words, they are Internet soldiers. Then they will use these accounts to post on well-known forums and fill in a large number of messages to drive discussion or wind direction.

There are usually two forms of posting, one is product introduction or unboxing post, in which you share your "real" usage experience, readers will basically not find too detailed introduction of product ingredients and functions in these articles or function text, otherwise it is not real. Most of the content of the article only revolves around the feeling of use and the explanation of whether it is worth buying.

Another way of posting is a higher-level operation, usually with another topic as the packaging. Readers seem to be reading an irrelevant story, but they have already gained an impression of the product in the process, and even aroused their desire to buy.

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Practical rules of word of mouth marketing​

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To create an effective word of mouth marketing, from planning to execution, there are several important factors to consider. Generally, when discussing word-of-mouth marketing, the focus will be on the operation of 5T: Talkers (talker), Topics (topic), Tools (operation tool), Taking Part (discussion participation), Tracking (tracking effect). And here, I condense it into three steps for your reference.

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Step 1: Target Talkers, Cater to Talkers

Finding Talkers is actually finding your audience. Think about who will be interested in your products or the topics you bring up, and then share, repost or leave a message below to discuss? By finding Talkers, you can formulate a marketing strategy for your own products, which will involve the selection of Topics and Tools.

Taking Topics as an example, if today's product is a cheap dessert, the audience may be students or younger social people. And most people at this stage of life are less resistant to the feeling of "little luck" at a small price. Starting from this direction to start the topic will be a path worth trying.

Then there is the choice of Tools. Take the marketing of baby care products as an example. Basically, they will not choose Dcard, a social networking platform mainly for college students or young people just out of society, but will turn to websites such as MamiBuy and BabyHome. And in these forums where mothers are the majority of users, the choice of words has to be coordinated or adapted. Here is a phenomenon I have observed. Usually, users who leave messages or share on mother forums use emoji or special punctuation far less than Dcard. Therefore, understanding and mimicking the speaking patterns of most mothers is essential if one is to feel natural in these mothers' discussions.

The main purpose of understanding the habits of Talkers and catering to these habits is to create a sense of reality, so that the audience does not have the feeling of being forced to sell or accept product information. Therefore, it can be said that clearly targeting the audience of the product will be the basis of all marketing.

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Step 2: Taking Parts to participate in the discussion

There are two main ways to participate in the discussion. One is to participate in the discussion in the name of an amateur user, that is, to dispatch the so-called Internet army to leave a message under the article. As for the skill of leaving a message, you need to be careful. How to make the audience not find it a marketing gimmick, but a sincere recommendation from another stranger with similar age and needs is a skill.

In addition, if the operation of the cyber army is more detailed, it is necessary to set a special background for each account. An account cannot leave a comment saying that they like sweets under this article, and then say that they hate sweets in another article. Even if the possibility of such flaws being discovered is low, the success of a marketing often depends on the meticulous grasp of details.

The other is in the name of the brand, but it is usually not recommended to actively participate in the discussion directly as a brand, but as an active passive person, when consumers are attracted by the product and take the initiative to contact, provide good product consultation, and even It is the customer service after purchase, etc. This will also help to improve the brand image and make your brand or products truly have a word-of-mouth effect.

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Step 3: Tracking Tracking performance

Although word-of-mouth marketing can bring a very good positive effect, it may also change the direction of the wind due to an operational error, and all the previous operations will be wasted. Therefore, it is necessary to keep track of the direction of the discussion, and the audience's evaluation of the issue or the brand itself. When the discussion does not go in a direction that is beneficial to the brand, it is necessary to have the ability to adapt to changing strategies.

In the final analysis, the most effective and powerful marketing basis is still "trying to amplify the advantages of the product and covering up the disadvantages of the product as much as possible." It's just that when word-of-mouth marketing is added, what is required is to create a sense of reality and sincerity. As mentioned above, the powerful word-of-mouth marketing is to let consumers be burned by the products so much that they don’t want them before they realize their impulses, and they even pay out of their pockets to place orders.