Advertising and marketing has come a long way since the days of Mad Men. Or at least, it should.
When there were three television networks, it made sense to spend good money to advertise on television – you were pretty much guaranteed a good audience to reach anyone in the United States. But today, the audience is much more global. The internet can put you in the homes of nearly anyone in a first or second world country. But with thousands of television channels available, how do you decide where to spend your money? More channels likely means fewer people watching each channel.
Well…one thing hasn’t changed so much. Word of mouth.
Through the use of examples from his business, Ted Wright explains the importance of word-of-mouth-marketing (WOMM), what to look for, and how to approach it. As he states in his introduction:
Word of mouth marketing has always existed. We’ve just found a better and more efficient way to do it by using a method that is both replicable and remarkably consistent. My hope is to share some of those secrets with you and help you get started on your own word of mouth program. … I promise you’ll walk away with a better understanding of how consumers today are driven by conversation – and how that can help you….¹
Wright lives up to this promise.
I don’t work for a major corporation, and I’ve not even dabbled in marketing, so some of this might already be common knowledge, but I found the book incredibly helpful and I will be putting in to practice many of the tips I’ve gotten from here to promote the small non-profit organization that I work with.
Wright explains the very basic needs for successful WOMM campaigns and how to follow-up with it. He also reminds the reader that many executives might balk because it’s out of the ‘ordinary’ or at least not what they’ve come to expect, but “Because of technology and the proliferation of brands, it’s a sampling culture that we live in. And we are never, ever going back.¹”
Regarding television advertising, Wright says:
This is one reason I sometimes refer to broadcast as the “heroin of business.” The first time you do it, you get this big bump in sales – a bump that exceeds what you invested. That’s a big thrill. But over time, the more you try to re-create that bump, the harder it gets. The increase in sales is rarely as dramatic as it was that first time. And further harshing your buzz is the fact that the media guys keep jacking up their rates on you. After a while, you realize you’re just chasing the dragon – a destructive and expensive habit.¹
I found this book quite easy to read and very informative. A lot of it seems to be common sense, but as is often the case, it sometimes takes a professional to remind us to use common sense.
Looking for a good book? If you are in any way looking to promote something – your self, your business, your favorite charity – then do yourself a favor and read Fizz: Harness the Power of Word of Mouth Marketing to Drive Brand Growth.
¹All quotes from an advance reader copy of the book and may not reflect the printed work.
I received this book free, from the publisher, through Netgalley, for an honest review.
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Fizz: Harness the Power of Word of Mouth Marketing to Drive Brand Growth
author: Ted Wright
publisher: McGraw-Hill
ISBN: 0071835741
hardcover, 240 pages
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