WHYWORD-OF-MOUTH COULD BE YOUR WINNING STRATEGY Your Dark Horse in the Marketing Race
Well, in the 1990s, WOMM was a difficult horse to back in the marketing race. It happened almost invisibly. People talked, referrals were made, and the only way a business owner could trace their success back to WOMM was by asking their clients where they’d come from. Without hard data, the strategy was tough to justify — and then social media arrived. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are basically WOMM made traceable. Suddenly, scientific studies started pinning down the ephemeral strategy’s success with facts. In 2008, a University of Maryland study dove deep into a comparison between WOMM and traditional marketing and finally revealed just how well WOMM works. For the study, researchers created a social networking site and started advertising it, both through member WOMM and traditional means like marketing events
and media appearances. They tracked outbound WOMM by the number of electronic invitations sent out by existing members of the site. At the end of the study, they discovered that not only did WOMM generate more members, but it also continued generating members for a longer period (three weeks versus 3–7 days), and its acquisitions were drastically more elastic, meaning they generated more return per dollar spent. In the long run, the study found WOMM had an incredible 20 times more elasticity than marketing events and 30 times more elasticity than media appearances! At this point, pursuing WOMM is just common sense, but many businesses leave it on the table because they haven’t changed their game (or checked in on the science) since the 1990s. If you embrace this newly proven strategy, it could be your dark horse in the marketing race.
In his 1999 marketing book, Ivan Misner called word-of-mouth “the world’s most effective, yet least understood marketing strategy.” More than 20 years later, word-of- mouth marketing (WOMM) is finally getting its day in the sun. Most businesses realize how incredibly valuable it is to generate conversation around their brands. Yet, many are still pouring their money into traditional marketing over WOMM. Why?
MINTY CARROT TOP PESTO Pesto may sound like a fancy ingredient on restaurant menus, but you can make it at home in minutes! This vegan recipe is a great way to use spare carrots tops, and it tastes delicious as a pasta sauce (thinned with water) or a cracker spread.
"WHEN YOU DANCE WITH YOUR CUSTOMER, LET THEM LEAD."
Inspired by YupItsVegan.com
INGREDIENTS
–Unknown
• 1 large bunch carrot tops • 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar • Salt and pepper to taste • 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh mint • 4 chives, chopped
DIRECTIONS
1. To blanch the carrot tops, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, prepare a large bowl of ice water. Remove the stems from the carrot tops and add the greens to the water. Boil for 3 minutes, then drain the water and dunk the tops in ice water. When they’re cool, wring out the extra liquid. 2. Use a food processor to blend the carrot tops and all other ingredients except olive oil. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil at a time to the food processor and blend until the pesto is smooth. Taste and serve!
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