Do you have a plan that’s itching to get out of your head and into your hands so you can let the whole world know about your business? Here’s how to build a Word of Mouth Marketing Plan.
Let me tell you the best-known marketing secret: It’s called word of mouth. Practically every entrepreneur and marketer knows how powerful word-of-mouth marketing is. It’s a way to build your business regardless of tough economic times or aggressive activities of your competitors.
Your customers are your best source of positive word-of-mouth marketing. But how can you get them to be engaged and energized, or to get them talk about you?
Word-of-mouth marketing isn’t “marketing” at all. It’s all about great products and service, earning the respect of your customers, and making them happy and satisfied.
With that being said, successful word-of-mouth marketing requires serious work. Here are some steps you can take to create word of mouth magic:
Market your business on social media
The easiest way to connect with your target audience is to reach out to them via social platforms. According to a 2012 study, 65% of internet users utilize social media; 58% of users on Facebook liked a brand page and 41% shared content about that brand on their wall. So be sure to add a social media campaign into your marketing plan.
With the existence of social media in recent years, sharing content on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and other social networks has been valuable word of mouth. For business professionals, Linkedin is a wonderful place to bring visibility to your business. From there you can make a strong contact list and join or create groups, and if you have an established Linkedin profile, people will often see it listed on Google.
Target influencers and join the conversation
When creating a marketing plan, take time to learn about leaders and industry influencers, including public figures, journalists, bloggers, Youtube sensations, or even trendsetting fans. Start a conversation in ways that are relevant to your brand.
Start a blog or online community and be a thought leader
As soon as you’ve learned all the tricks, not only do you want to engage with industry influencers, you want to be one! Find out what’s unique in your business and tell everyone about it. Figure out the best way to reach your audience — this can be through your website, blog, social platforms, or at a conference. Determine the best medium to use, develop a winning strategy, and establish your presence.
Let’s say you want to start a forum or group where your customers can connect and contribute. These communities formed around a specific interest or product are powerful. Aside from being able to reach out to customers anywhere across the globe, creating an online community is a great way to build partnerships.
The most widely used word of mouth marketing tool is blogging. This is where you can establish online presence, draw new customers in, and build credibility for your brand. Once you’ve set up your blog, you can deliver and gather content over the internet through syndication. It’s a great way to provide subscribers with up-to-date content. You can also add widgets to your blog to facilitate easy sharing.
To build your word of mouth marketing plan, you need to find your target audience, give people a reason to talk, help the message spread faster, join the conversation, and measure and understand what people are saying. The success of any marketing plan depends on customer’s trust of your brand, and you have to earn it. Maintain integrity across online platforms, whether it be on your blog, website, or social media and become a worthy topic of conversation.
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