Buzz Advertising Creates Trust that Money Cannot Buy
Never underestimate the incredible power of word-of-mouth advertising. Word-of-mouth reviews can make— or break your business.
Word-of-Mouth Advertising Hits You Right in the Bottom Line
Positive recommendations from satisfied customers keep sales humming. Shared disparaging critiques from disgruntled customers make the bottom line dip.
Word-of-mouth (WOM) advertising— also called word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) or the verbal buzz— refers to what your customers are telling others about your business. When word-of-mouth works at its best, your satisfied customers recommend your products or services to their friends, family, and acquaintances, leading to more sales.
It is a Matter of Trust
Consumers trust their friends and family more than ads. It is that simple.
Nielson studies show ninety-two percent of consumers believe the word-of-mouth recommendations of friends and family over all other forms of advertising. Seventy-seven percent say they are much more likely to purchase a new product if someone they know recommends it.
Word-of-Mouth: The BEST Advertising Possible
Forty-four percent of direct mail is never even opened. Eighty-six percent of people skip TV commercials.
Eighty-five percent of small businesses receive the lion’s share of the sales from WOM advertising.
According to Adobe’s CMO, word-of-mouth advertising generates an estimated six trillion dollars in annual sales. Buzz advertising drives twenty to fifty percent of all sales. On average, word-of-mouth consumers spend twice as much with the recommended company as do customers from other lead sources.
In a recent American Marketing Association study, sixty-four percent of marketing executives rated word-of-mouth advertising as the number one form of marketing. Yet only six percent of those participating believed they had mastered WOM.
Although some companies offer incentive programs to encourage referrals, there simply is no substitute for a sincere endorsement of your company. The best way to generate positive word-of-mouth referrals is to provide the quality products and exceptional customer service.
Sadly, in this day and age, people no longer expect excellence in the marketplace.
If your company exceeds expectations, your customers happily share their experience with others in the sphere of influence. Treat potential customers and repeat buyers with patience and respect. Go the extra mile. You will build brand loyalty your ad budget could never afford.
Ignore or mistreat customers at your own peril. Incur the wrath of one customer and he or she will gladly share their complaints to everyone within earshot. Thirteen percent of unhappy customers repeat their dissatisfaction to an average of twenty people in person— and countless others online.
The Times They Are a Changing— or Are They?
Internet-savvy companies sometimes put so much time into collecting data on click-through rates and pages viewed, they forget to directly connect with their customers. Let’s face it: you earn a sale when you earn the customer’s trust.
Although Web company sites and social media are definitely an important part of today’s marketing mix, the internet cannot replace sales generated by word-of-mouth referrals.
Nothing can replace WOM advertising. It is the last— and best— frontier in getting the word out to customers.
In the U.S., there are almost two-and-a-half billion brand-specific conversations every day.
According to the Journal of Advertising Research, seventy-five percent brand-dropping word-of-mouth discussions still take place face-to-face. Another fifteen percent discuss brands by phone. That means ninety percent of WOM still happen offline, leaving only ten percent occurring online.
RHINO: We Aim to Please
Here at RHINO metal buildings, we consider our customers valued partners in our success and treat them accordingly. Consequently, our customers honor us with their business. Our entire company strives to treat every client and potential customer as we would like to be treated.
We encourage positive word-of-mouth by really listening to what people want. Customers appreciate that.
In the past twelve months, 30% of our sales came from returning customers and word-of-mouth referrals by earlier buyers.
Contact RHINO today to chat with one of our experienced and friendly metal building specialists. Call us at 940.383.9566.
Once you experience the RHINO Difference, we believe you too will soon be hooked on RHINO!
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