Word of mouth has been supercharged
Get on the wrong side of your customers and they won’t just grumble in private. The chances are they’ll tell the world how disappointed they are.
Ah, remember the good old days when all we had to worry about was consumers switching channels to avoid our TV ads?
Conventional marketing tends to turns people off. Consumers today make the majority of their important buying decisions by seeking the advice of an expert or a trusted friend.
The internet makes this so easy, want to know what digital camera to buy? Then Google it. There you’ll find forums, blogs, user review sites, where ordinary consumers give you honest advice based on their experiences in using the product.
Amazon do a brilliant job here. Not only do they give a warts and all overview of every single product they sell, they even allow you to post a video review of the products you buy. In this way, we as customers can make an educated
decision before we spend our money.
These social networks are relied on and trusted more and more for purchasing advice.
For conventional marketer’s this is a nightmare scenario. No longer can they direct and control the communication. Hyperbole and exaggerated claims are quickly found out. Inferior products are soon outed.
The search engines, especially Google have become enormously important to brands, for most of us a search for information begins with Google or Bing etc.
As you probably know there are companies who promise to get you on page 1 and dominate the search engines. However as much as they try to manipulate the system, in order to achieve high search engine rankings Google and others are constantly changing the rules.
They have to, because they cannot afford to send web users to sites that don‘t deliver the content their users are looking for. Their entire business model and their profitability is dependent on delivering the most valuable and relevant content possible.
So what are you doing to engage both existing and potential customers?
Do you have a YouTube channel with videos that educate, entertain or guide people? Do you monitor the web to see what people are saying about you?
You’ll obviously have a Facebook presence but are you playing at it or are you fully engaged in the conversation with your customers?
We can help you with your digital strategy but whatever you do, don’t outsource the ‘conversation’ part of social media. The consumer will easily spot a voice that isn’t authentic. You have to be real, speak from the heart with passion and honesty. Own up to mistakes and forget spin.
Too many brands still feel they can out shout a disgruntled consumer, but if
ordinary people can bring down a despot using the web and especially social media, what chance does your brand have?
If you’d like to know more click here.