ParkHowell.com

So I asked Ryan, our word-of-mouth marketing guru, to comment on my blog: “How Tom’s of Maine Can Flex it’s Green Leadership Through Social Media.” Man-o-man, did I open up a can-o-worms.  Here’s Ryan’s response.

I didn’t exactly want to take off my shoes and hurl them at his head, but I did have to bring up something that always fires me up – SOCIAL MEDIA ISN’T ALL ONLINE.

A big part of my job is word of mouth marketing.  That means I get people talking about a product, service, person, etc.  I’ve noticed recently that social media conversations have almost exclusively migrated to the online domain, and Park’s post was no different.

Now I’m not saying online social media isn’t important and necessary when it comes to rallying the troops and getting people excited about your product.  In fact, it’s vital.  It’s just not the end all be all.  Nothing will ever replace a trusted friend telling you face to face that you have to try something, go somewhere, or see something.  Nothing ever. And that is something we can’t lose sight of.

Online social media should be looked at as just piece of the social media and word of mouth marketing pie.  So in that spirit, I’ve outlined a few more things Tom’s and Maine could do to create more excitement in their brand that doesn’t rely solely on the hottest new online tactics.

• Identify your evangelists
  There are people all across the nation already talking about Tom’s and Maine.  Finding them is easy.  A quick blog search reveals countless blog posts.  They are ready-made evangelists.  Reach out to them, tell them how much you appreciate their support and ask them to be evangelists on your behalf.  Trust me, it really can be that simple.  Recognition goes a long way.
• Create conversations in a niche group
  It’s easy to ask someone to sign up for your newsletter and while that might work, the chances that someone is regularly engaging with it are pretty slim.  Increase those chances by providing an incentive that creates ambassadors along the way.  Tell travelers that by signing up for the newsletter they’ll receive free travel size products for their trip.  That’s an easy, unexpected and shareable conversation starter.

Since we’re not billing Tom’s and Maine for their time I’ll stop there.  But you get the idea.  Word of mouth marketing and social media is about people.  It’s easy to get wrapped up in the hot new technologies.  They’re hot for a reason – they’re effective. But campaigns should start with people in mind and when we start with what’s hot we often lose sight of what’s best. Consumer to consumer communication will almost always be at its most effective face to face, something even the savviest of online social marketers need reminding of on occasion.