DONDEQUIERA: Word of Mouth

I just came across an interesting web site, it's focused on using word of mouth advertising to push specific products. In their latest campaign, they are pushing a new book by the founder of the web site. The book is called 'A Word of Mouth Manual, Vol. II' and it is written by by Dave Balter.

What's the web site? Oh yeah, it's called BzzAgent.com. If you want to learn about word of mouth marketing, then you can start by downloading the PDF of the book for free, starting at this page. You'll have to visit one of the 20 blogs to get access to the PDF, but if you're already convinced, you can pop over to Amazon and buy a limited edition print copy.

Between the 20 blogs listed and the 'A Word of Mouth Manual, Vol. 2', you've got a lot of reading to catch up on. I'll wait here until you're finished.

sábado 21 de junio de 2008

Word of Mouth Marketing Roadmap

For many in the marketing community, the new road that is being blazed by the likes of YouTube, Flickr, Blogger, and most importantly the social networks (MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, etc) ventures into foreign territory. This new road doesn't follow the familiar routes that traditional marketing has taken for the last 50 years. No sir-ree, this new road has most "traditional" marketers feeling very uncomfortable and out of place; which is not a place that no anyone that is supposed to understand how to reach consumers should be.

Word of Mouth Marketing Roadmap

Well I ran across an article that I think lays out a new road map. A road map to understand how to successfully pierce the fog of confusion surrounding this new road, but without getting lost. As most people, traditional marketers, are hesitant to stop and ask for directions (help) from explorers (entrepreneurs) who are unafraid of driving around on this new road until they find their way, no, old-school marketers would rather just wish that the new road didn't exist in the first place. Unfortunately for them, this road continues under construction as daily tens of millions convert it from a two lane country road into a 8 lane super highway.

Entitled the "The Microfame Game," this article from Rex Sorgatz of the New York Magazine describes an eight step road map to micro-fame. And while micro-fame is certanaly not the goal of most marketers, the same essential steps are involved in getting your brand, product, service noticed. And while I'm just a starving high-tech entrepreneur and not really understand or believe in traditional marketing, in these days of mass-marketing over-saturation, I do know that getting noticed is the goal of marketing in this new territory.

The article is extremely well researched and gives you plenty of examples to study and imitate. As I've said earlier in this blog, YouTube plays a signficant role in this new road-map and any marketerer who chooses to ignore this new channel will do so at their own peril.

Well I'll leave you to start your analysis of these new steps, and a little word to the wise, don't be like the proverbial alpha-male who refuses to ask for direction when lost in the country, find an intrepid explorer (entrepreneur) of this new road as a guide. You'll get where you want to be a lot faster and you'll please your clients in the process.

8 STEPS TO MICROFAME