Content Strategy and Words for Business on the Web • • Feature Post Sales vs. Marketing

« Cartoon - Good Fun with a Bad Pun | Blog Home | Olivia Brown on Amazon Vine »

The Power of Word of Mouth Marketing - A Vignette

By Brad Shorr | October 22, 2007

word-sell-word-of-mouth.jpg
Six o’clock AM, Starbucks. I’m in line to order my cup of tea (yes, tea). In front of me is a young businessman waiting for his drink. I’ve never seen him before. He wanders over to a nearby rack of CD’s and pulls out Bruce Springsteen’s new release, Magic. He examines it thoughtfully.

Finally he takes the CD to the cash register. But then he pauses. He changes his mind. He turns around and puts it back on the rack.

I say, “It’s really good.”

Immediately he takes the CD back in his hand. He smiles at me and says, “Yeah, I love The Boss.” He’s really happy. He buys the CD.

Had our roles been reversed, I could almost guarantee you I’d have reacted the same way.

I see a huge and joyful point in this small story. When people are just being people, there’s an implicit trust. Three words from a guy in a Starbucks carries just as much weight, maybe more, as five expert music reviews.

Somehow it’s a comforting thought.

Related:

  • “Beyond Buzz” … A New Book to Help Companies Turn the Conversational Corner
  • Put Life into Your Meetings with Open Space
  • My Best No Comment Posts
  • What’s with the Busy Book Formats?
  • When Not to Market

    • 4 Responses to “The Power of Word of Mouth Marketing - A Vignette”

    1. Mike Says:
      October 22nd, 2007 at 4:29 pm

      That’s a really great case study to prove just how powerful social proof is.

      And everybody says you have to have a relationship with your list and that they have to hear about a product 7 times before they’ll buy.

      We should do a teleseminar about this ;-)

    2. Kim Says:
      October 22nd, 2007 at 4:48 pm

      Sociological theories in action!

    3. Brad Shorr Says:
      October 23rd, 2007 at 6:00 am

      Mike, I’ve never done a teleseminar, but it sounds like fun. Relationships are at the heart of sales, that’s for sure.

      Kim, tell us more! What theories are at work here?

    4. Mike Says:
      October 23rd, 2007 at 6:45 am

      Hey Brad,

      Send me an email and we’ll detail it out and get ‘er done.

    Comments