Word of Mouth - how it works
Think of the last time you made a purchase that needed consideration - like a car, computer or holiday. What do you believe had the biggest influence on your decision? Was it advertising, a salesman, or website? Or was it some advice from a friend, colleague or family member - Word of Mouth?
Most probably you chose the latter for good reasons.
- We're skeptical of people trying to sell us stuff. For example, a survey by Porter Novelli found that only 16% of consumers thought that what insurance companies told them was "very or somewhat believable". Only 28% of people felt the same about pharmaceutical companies.
- There's too much noise - we're exposed to upwards of 3000 promotional messages a day. It's becoming harder to pick out what's relevant.
- The vast majority - 85% - of us don't want to hear about new things. New things just make our lives more difficult; we have to spend time learning about them and they're bound to be expensive. What if they then turn out to be a waste of money?
This is why Word of Mouth is so important. The person giving you the recommendation knows you, your needs and, most importantly, has your interests at heart. What could be more customer-focused?
The most powerful conduit of messages about a product or service therefore isn't advertising, sales reps or websites, but what one customer says to a prospective customer; Word of Mouth.