I have been out of a hairdryer for over three weeks now, as my trusted hair dryer died after four-years of reliable service, and I've been battling afro-head for too long. It was time to get a new one.
So I went on a mission, first to buy the same product I had before, only to find that it's not available outside of the US without significant planning and coordination across continents. I then went to several local department stores to find a suitable substitute, but nothing seemed to meet my needs. I travelled to specialty hair supply stores far and wide, looked in magazines and finally looked online. With so many options and being somewhat of a discerning customer, I was actually paralysed by the analysis of choosing between them all.
I then spoke with a co-worker who sent me a link and a note about her positive experience. A recommendation; it was just the nudge I needed. In the end, I spent more than I wanted to, but it led me to think about what marketers are doing to reach consumers at the points that most influence their decisions.
Traditionally, consumers would get the majority of brand and product messages before they need to purchase, then again after their purchase decision, as an affirmation and means of retaining loyalty to a brand or product.
But with the shift of communications away from pushed, mono-directional communication to a dialogue, and with social media channels being readily available, marketers need ways of managing word-of-mouth. As one of the moments of maximum influence, capitalising on word-of-mouth can increase the chance of reaching the right consumer, with the right message, at the right time - a tricky task, considering you don't want to waste money or seem out-of-touch with consumers.
Now, word of mouth happens when a conversation happens. Conversations about your product happen where consumers congregate to view and share product information, reviews and recommendations.
So if your customers are active users of Facebook/Twitter/Orkut/Hi5, your company should actively use those, too.
In a December 2008 study from Kudzu.com, results showed 86% of consumers seek out and read online reviews before making a purchase decision. 90% of consumers surveyed said they trusted online reviews they read. Another report from the eTailing Group in June of 2008 showed that 32% of retailers who added online reviews to their website experienced an increase of more than 11% in purchase conversions. Of those retailers, 11% of them experience a 20% or more increase in purchase conversions.
So perhaps listening to what customers are saying and addressing their concerns can help create buzz and identify advocates of your products.
Besides the obvious strategies of evaluating objectives, prioritizing spending and tailoring messages, it looks like investing in consumer empowerment is a way to be in the right place at the right time. Marketers should see this not as a loss of power through traditional means, but another way of listening to consumer needs.
So I went on a mission, first to buy the same product I had before, only to find that it's not available outside of the US without significant planning and coordination across continents. I then went to several local department stores to find a suitable substitute, but nothing seemed to meet my needs. I travelled to specialty hair supply stores far and wide, looked in magazines and finally looked online. With so many options and being somewhat of a discerning customer, I was actually paralysed by the analysis of choosing between them all.
I then spoke with a co-worker who sent me a link and a note about her positive experience. A recommendation; it was just the nudge I needed. In the end, I spent more than I wanted to, but it led me to think about what marketers are doing to reach consumers at the points that most influence their decisions.
Traditionally, consumers would get the majority of brand and product messages before they need to purchase, then again after their purchase decision, as an affirmation and means of retaining loyalty to a brand or product.
But with the shift of communications away from pushed, mono-directional communication to a dialogue, and with social media channels being readily available, marketers need ways of managing word-of-mouth. As one of the moments of maximum influence, capitalising on word-of-mouth can increase the chance of reaching the right consumer, with the right message, at the right time - a tricky task, considering you don't want to waste money or seem out-of-touch with consumers.
Now, word of mouth happens when a conversation happens. Conversations about your product happen where consumers congregate to view and share product information, reviews and recommendations.
So if your customers are active users of Facebook/Twitter/Orkut/Hi5, your company should actively use those, too.
In a December 2008 study from Kudzu.com, results showed 86% of consumers seek out and read online reviews before making a purchase decision. 90% of consumers surveyed said they trusted online reviews they read. Another report from the eTailing Group in June of 2008 showed that 32% of retailers who added online reviews to their website experienced an increase of more than 11% in purchase conversions. Of those retailers, 11% of them experience a 20% or more increase in purchase conversions.
So perhaps listening to what customers are saying and addressing their concerns can help create buzz and identify advocates of your products.
Besides the obvious strategies of evaluating objectives, prioritizing spending and tailoring messages, it looks like investing in consumer empowerment is a way to be in the right place at the right time. Marketers should see this not as a loss of power through traditional means, but another way of listening to consumer needs.
