10/ 25/ 2005
by Glenn Townes
Remember that tired cliché, talk is cheap? If you are looking for an inexpensive way to promote your business without breaking your small-business bank account, creating a buzz about your business through word-of-mouth campaigning may be the way to go.
Word-of-mouth campaigning is a cost-effective way to promote your business and keep clients returning. Some small-business experts say that word-of-mouth campaigning motivates an entrepreneur to manage a tight, sound operation. What you do, in effect, is encourage your happiest customers to spread the word and create a buzz about the quality of the services you provide. This is a surprisingly easy art that many entrepreneurs have yet to master.
According to some estimates, fewer than 10 percent of businesses have a systematic, cogent formula. Many businesses flourish with the help of word-of-mouth referrals, and some say it is the most effective and economical way to market a business. If an entrepreneur doesn’t encourage friends, relatives and current customers to chat up their business, revenue from potential future customers may indeed be lost.
Countless stories abound from entrepreneurs who landed their biggest and most profitable clients from current or former customers. From business owners who run professional marketing and consulting services to the neighborhood barber or beauty stylist, how well one provides and delivers a service may cause a business to sink or soar.
There are three surefire ways to utilize the simple, yet pervasive tool to implement the word-of-mouth strategy for your business. Shed your pride and implement a referral system that fits your business, but includes the following strategies and procedures:
- Carefully identify which of your clients are willing to help. Choose clients who enjoy working with you, are satisfied with the work you do and ultimately enjoy helping people.
- Find a convincing and innocuous way to ask clients to promote your business by dropping your name to associates and colleagues. A subtle approach would be to share with a client how essential word-of-mouth advertising is to the growth of your business. Let them know that you cannot succeed and prosper without their assistance. It may also be a good idea to offer incentives to customers who participate. Discounts, bonuses and special bargains are some frequent and common enticements.
- Finally, a polite, personal follow-up note or a small token of gratitude to customers who are willing to participate is always a good idea.
