The buzz you hear is true:
Word of Mouth Marketing (WOMM)
is affordable and it works

It’s not just that it’s an idea whose time has come; it has always been around. Eve was an early adopter. When she told Adam, “Take a bite of the apple; It’s delicious!” that was WOMM. Some say the apple was a metaphor for something else she had to offer. Regardless. It’s a case study of the beautiful simplicity of WOMM. combined with Point of Purchase (P.O.P.) merchandising.

When I was a display advertising A.E. for a daily newspaper, the hard-to-sells often told me “Word of mouth advertising is the best.” They were wrong. Not because WOM wasn’t effective. They were wrong because their competitors who advertised got more customers sooner than guys who sat on their wallets waiting for business. But most important, these new customers… this little band of happy campers… soon became a WOM army.

So WOMM always worked. True, it worked better for those with a few bucks to get it rolling. But now the big change is that there are more opportunities for the little guy to make it happen. Today--- via the internet, blogs, peer reviews, cell phones, instant messaging, video, photo sharing, file swapping--- people send and receive more information in a nanosecond than we could ever imagine.

In the old days (circa 1990’s) those fond of business-speak liked to say “Communications is a two-way street.” They didn’t have a clue! They continued to push messages without listening. Now they have to listen. Their prospects and customers will be heard. And these customers and prospects will pass on both the good and bad word about companies and products.

Customers, prospects, mavens, gossips (and bloggers) will respond to ideas, events and promotions that get them talking. For example, the July issue of Wired Magazine has a little 14-page booklet insert titled: “Backseat Driver’s Manual.” The sponsor, Volkswagen’s Jetta, is hardly mentioned.

The useful information it contains is presented with a light and smiling touch. This little promo already has people talking (I am) --- and checking out the Jetta.

WOM isn’t a product pitch. It’s the start of a conversation that helps make good things happen. The messenger isn’t a shill planted to get you in the tent. The messenger is another respected person with a story or opinion that can influence you and others.


WOMMA, as someone remarked, is in its sophomore year. Now is a good time to join the class. For starters go to the Word of Mouth Marketing Association’s home page at: http://www.womma.org. The site is loaded with excellent information, guidelines and case studies that can trigger ideas for your own WOMM.

“Show Up & Throw Up Selling”
Can Leave the Wrong Message

When young and too eager for my own good, I used to show up and barf a fusillade of benefits and features that left prospects glassy eyed. It took a while, but I learned that if I talked less and listened more, I did a much better selling job.

At the time, I was assistant sales and advertising manager for one of three companies that pioneered automation for poultry feeding, and egg handling. The three companies competed head to head and with dozens of others that were still doing things the old fashioned way.

Our distribution was both direct and indirect through distributors and dealers. Our sales staff included both company and independent reps. (It sounds like a hodgepodge, but it worked remarkable well.)

From sales calls, trade shows, and sales meetings, I learned that glibness was not an asset. Our most effective reps were those who soaked up more than they spouted out. They were strong closers, but they didn’t rush the deal. When the C.E.O. asked how a particular deal was progressing, they knew. They were tenacious without being obnoxious.

Most of all, they knew our products and their customers and how to find the right hot buttons. And they knew when to shut up.

In the decades since, I’ve made sales calls and worked trade shows with hundreds of talented people. And I’ve stood at the elbow of many others who suffered from my early malady. They showed up and threw up in an attempt to make a perfect pitch when they should have been listening for the right notes.

Good Marketers Eschew Obfuscation

A good start is not to use words like eschew and obfuscation.

Here’s a tip for all marketers, not just the little guy: Big words don’t make a marcom writer sound smart and neither does business-speak. Buzzwords and buzz phrases are not cool.

Clichés deserve their lumps. Still, most of the more apt have stood the test of time. Not so with buzzwords. Some are so recently coined, only a few know what they mean and that sometimes includes the coiner.

Buzzers are second cousin to politically correct language. When you call killing people “collateral damage,” that’s a real stretch. Buzzers, like their cousins who create such PCL, sometimes deliberately mint stuff to cloud meaning. For example, when someone says they want to “deep dive” a subject I assume he wants to examine it thoroughly, but I may be wrong.


Nevertheless, “deep dive” is ready to take the plunge as a substitute for solid words like explore or examine. Actually, it’s not a bad choice of words ---yet. But when empty heads start using it to impress, the novelty and power dissipate. It looses the ability to communicate.

Viable is another good word that has been demoted by folks who overwork it trying to sound smart. Doesn’t “good alternative,” “a possible alternative” “a workable alternative” or “a lousy alternative” tell you more than a vacuous “viable alternative”?

Another word that smacks of buzz to me is “operationalize.” I think…but may be wrong…that it means what you do to make something work. The danger is that it can be dumped into a meeting by a presenter (a.k.a. The Shadow) and cloud men’s minds so they can not see through him.

And, that’s the big danger of buzzwords and buzz phrases. Under the guise of sounding like they know what they’re talking about the perps are often guilty of shallow, sloppy thinking or just plain ignorance.

Just for the hell of it, the next time someone lays a buzzword or buzz phrase on you, ask for an explanation. If it’s good, you can add it to your repertoire or repartee.

For a good laugh, and a lesson in “How Not to Communicate” visit http://www.buzzwhack.com/. You’ll chuckle at the pompous stuff that folks are generating in an attempt to impress.

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Reading, ‘riting and ‘rithmatic:
heavy ordnance for marketers


The analogy between war and marketing is hard to escape. Like a good cliché it stands the test of time. It’s appropriate. But let’s tweak it a bit.

The battering ram and the catapult are passé. Victory now comes to those with permission to present their offer. It comes to those who know why, where, when, how and to whom they present... What’s more, regardless the degree of sophistication, it comes to those who understand the triple impact of modeling, permission marketing and the importance of dialogue.

But most of all it comes to those who tap the basic tools of reading, writing and arithmetic to guide their strategy and tactics.

Reading: scan, skim, dip, or plod and devour

Once a group of brilliant scientist tech reps were flummoxed by my simple question: “How do you make your living?” After a little coaxing, they all agreed that they made it “By selling stuff.”

When asked the next question, “In the past year, how many of you have read a book or magazine devoted to the subject of selling? “, not one raised his hand, not even the PhD with the title of marketing director.

The point is we are all salesmen of products, services or ideas. Why not devote some time to the subject? There’s so much valuable information available on line and off line on every phase of marketing that it boggles the mind. But the good news is you don’t have to read everything that’s printed. Just skim related books, magazines and newsletters for the meat and potatoes (or tofu and alfalfa sprouts) that will nourish your ideas and your business.

Read the book. Then call the consultant

Consultants earn their fees. But before you call for a session, read the guy’s book(s). After you read his $30 or $40 dollar book, you might not even have to call him.

Nobel Prize Laureate, Joseph Brodsky said, "There are worse crimes than burning books. One … is not reading them."

Writing: what you say and how you say it

Good writing is the heart of effective marketing. Yes, yes. I like pictures too. But the adage that “One picture is worth a thousand words,” is a crutch for some creatives. They cripple good ads when they lean on the graphics and forget the sales message needs the support of clean, crisp copy laden with benefits.

Some marketers have a tin ear, others perfect pitch. “Just the facts, Ma'am,” isn’t enough to motivate. What you say and how you say it can launch or scuttle a campaign. Often one word can make or break a good ad or cause a public relations crisis.

Rudyard Kipling said, “Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind." To help that drug produce the high that helps people buy instead of producing a stupor, you need a good ear, sympathy and empathy--- or the services of some one who does.

Arithmetic: count what counts

When a company, large or small goes down the tube, you wonder if any one was counting. You don’t have to be a financial genius to see the doomsday bus before it runs over you. You just have to know how to count and what counts.

Bean counters are not bad people

Over the years I’ve done my share of bitching about bean counters. Usually it’s been directed toward bookkeepers who tend to be historians rather than accountants with a feel for marketing. Those who understand the difference between immediate ROI, and ROO (return on objectives) are not paper clip economists.

Accountants can be creative as hell ---and still legal. But the boss better know what they’re up to. Spreadsheets are great, but so is a happy facility with grammar school math.

So, what’s it all about, Jack?

The three “R’s” are a prime source of marketing ammo. They can supply the information, motivation and control that guide strategy and tactics. They can also keep you from getting screwed.