There are some statistics that you really cannot afford to ignore if you’re trying to run a successful business; 84% of people trust recommendations from friends and family more than all other forms of marketing, 77% of customers are more likely to buy a new product after a recommendation from friends and family, and 80% of businesses say that their customers find out about them through word of mouth marketing. Word of mouth marketing is powerful, and that is the word.
So if word of mouth marketing is a powerful sales tool, how can you capitalise on it as a small business? Read on to find out our top 4 tips.
- Get your customers involved in your business; ask for their feedback on products, get their ideas for new iterations, and listen and act on this. The more the customer feels involved in the service or product they’re receiving, the more ownership and pride they’ll feel, and ideally, the more likely they are to recommend it to others.
- Make customers feel valued; make your customers feel special, everyone likes to be treated. Share discount codes with current customers, send them a ‘thank-you’ email or give them a surprise freebie. The more valued your customer feels, the more highly they’ll think of you, and the more likely they’ll recommend.
- Get people talking; that age-old mantra, the power of social media! Social media is designed to be a social platform, where people talk and have conversations. And that’s C2C, B2B and B2C. So talk to your customers, whether they’re a business or an individual consumer, and then encourage them to talk about you. Create inspiring content that they want to share and get your name spread around their networks.
- Referral bonuses; finally, after you’ve followed all of the above, reward customers who refer you by word of mouth. Give each customer a unique referral code which they can earn discounts, added extras or freebies with. Take FairFX for example, with your unique referral code, you’ll get a £10 voucher credited to your account, and your friend will have the £9.95 set-up fee waived by using your link. So not only are you rewarded, but there’s additional incentive for someone to sign up using your link.
If you need help with your social media marketing or setting up a referral program, get in touch: hello@webfwd.co.uk
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