How 11 Major Brands Have Successfully Used Word-of-Mouth

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92 percent of consumers anticipate recommendations by their friends, family members, and coworkers more than every other kind of marketing. And 83 percent of Americans say that word of mouth testimonials from individuals they trust to make them more likely to purchase service or a product.

Therefore, if you’re attempting to work out the ideal approach to get new clients, promoting word-of-mouth marketing from your current customers is a wise choice. Simply put, word-of-mouth happens when your clients spread the word on your brand to their friends–and this boosts your brand without any expense to you.

However, word-of-mouth could be unpredictable. Just how can you get your clients talking? Check out these 11 brands have used word-of-mouth, including the significant strategies rsquo that they ;ve ever employed to find everyone talking, so you’re able to gather some suggestions for your organization.

Table of Contents

Zappos
Wendy’s
Under Armour
Red Bull
TOMS
Chipotle
Tinder
In-N-Out
Dropbox
Girlfriend Collective
Tesla
Key Takeaways

Zappos

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Keeping clients satisfied

Keeping your customers satisfied encourages them to share your brand a strategy Zappos knows. Instead of focusing primarily on paid advertising, Zappos makes customer satisfaction a priority– because CEO Tony Hsieh puts it, they’& re ldquo;a customer service company that just happens to sell shoes. ”

Screenshot 282

From the start, Zappos has spent a lot of its marketing budget on fostering outstanding customer support, and very little on advertisements. According to Hsieh, Zappos chose to “just take the majority of the money that [they] would have spent on paid advertisements …and instead invest it in the customer experience, and allow [their] customers do the marketing to [them]. ”

(Some manners that Zappos prioritizes customer satisfaction comprise surprise, complimentary shipping updates for loyal clients, and creating the return and exchange process as easy as possible.)

Thus, under the leadership of Hsieh, Zappos smartly put their money on word-of-mouth marketing, figuring that satisfied clients would repeatedly purchase and share Zappos together with their buddies. And they were right. Repeat customers and word-of-mouth advertisements are the drivers of expansion to Zappos, which today exceeds $2 billion in yearly earnings.

Wendy’s

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Leveraging interpersonal websites; generating virality

Social networking is an amazing way to raise word-of-mouth, interactions stick out from the pack, and especially if your brand & rsquo; therefore savvy posts –and go viral. Wendy’s provides a prime example.

Because of its roasts, on-point memes and timely pop culture references, Wendy’s now-iconic Twitter account got everyone discussing the fast-food brand. And their answer into Carter Wilkerson’s “free chicken nuggets” converse sparked a hyper-viral word-of-mouth campaign.

Wendy’s told Wilkerson that 18 million retweets of his tweet would make chicken nuggets for annually to him. Wilkerson didn’t achieve that goal, but for the most retweets of all time, his tweet put a record at the time! Thus, Wendy’s no reply got everyone talking (such as numerous media outlets, who gave the series plenty of free coverage.)

Screenshot 284

The viral Twitter market between Wendy’s and Wilkerson. Notice the count at the bottom of the picture.

Under Armour

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Creating an innovative product with little to no competition

Rather than throwing itself into a cramped sporting use marketplace, Under Armour sparked word-of-mouth marketing by placing itself directly apart from its possible competition. Under Armour generated athletic apparel focused on rsquo & athletes; functionality and comfort, “built from microfibers kept athletes cool and that wicked moisture , warm, and mild. ”

Screenshot 285

Under Armour always focuses on the performance characteristics of their attire. Source: Under Armour/Instagram

Creator Kevin Plank had played football during high school and faculty. He knew how tough it was to wear cotton shirts under his football gear, where they would become uncomfortable and heavy with all the sweat they had been soaked in. So, he created a product and niche that no one else had dreamed up before.

Afterward , he gave the very first samples to his friends who also played football (and who had gone on to perform prestigious faculty and pro teams). He soon competitively set himself to sell to collegiate and pro football teams since his buddies on these high-level teams spread the word about his merchandise.

Before long, athletes of all sports and levels (such as many specialists ), their families, and their buddies were constantly talking about Under Armour–today an athletic attire giant all its own.

Red Bull

Word-Of-Mouth Strategies: Buzzworthy, on-brand experiences; brand ambassadors

Red Bull uses a multi-pronged strategy for raising word-of-mouth, but all parts of this strategy are centered on creating on-brand adventures and experiences that create buzz.

From the start, their Wings Team of young, daring brand ambassadors, who share Red Bull one-one-one and in the events, are an integral part of their marketing strategy.

The brand also sponsors mad extreme stunts that individuals may ’t even stop talking about, such as cliff diving along with Robbie Maddison’s motorcycle backflip over London’s open Tower Bridge, also hold an yearly Flugtag where opponents design and pilot human-powered flying machines.

Red Bull understands the way to ldquo;give wings” to their own marketing through experiences that get people talking.

The bike backflip stunt

TOMS

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Focus on philanthropy/giving back

Word-of-mouth was key to the success of TOMS because the start, driven by its own philanthropic “one to a single ” model.

On a trip to Argentina, founder Blake Mycoskie saw the difficulties children without shoes confronted and made a decision to begin TOMS as the car for a shoe-giving motion. For each pair of TOMS purchased, the brand gives a set to children who can’t afford shoes.

This angle–and story– made it easy for word to spread about TOMS.

Screenshot 286

TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie on a shoe-giving Visit to Hong Kong. Source: Blake Mycoskie/Instagram

Digital marketing adviser MaryEllen Tribby shared a prime example of this occurrence: her 13-year-old daughter persuaded her to purchase three pairs of TOMS by sharing the company’s shoe-giving mission. Says Tribby, “Even though I thought three pairs of shoes at $77-a-pop was a bit extravagant; I warranted the conclusion in my head, telling me that I would be helping children who weren’t nearly as fortunate as my own. ”

TOMS also takes advantage of networking to increase word-of-mouth and cause awareness. The brand established the One Day Without Shoes campaign and pledged to give another set of shoes for each and each single barefoot picture posted with all the hashtag #withoutshoes on this day. Plus, each picture someone posts with all the hashtag motivates rsquo & a networking user;so network to learn more, and then follow the trail back into TOMS. TOMS reignites the campaign every year since it’s been so successful!

Chipotle

Word-Of-Mouth Strategies: Telling a story according to a cornerstone and backing up it; delivering exactly what clients need

Chipotle stands out from different restaurant chains since it sources its components locally. The brand used this cornerstone to create an emotionally compelling video, “The Scarecrow,” to promote.

Through the story of a scarecrow that becomes skeptical of a food mill, “The Scarecrow” painted an image of environmentalhealth, health, and animal welfare threats made by industrial food giants, also encouraged buying locally sourced food for a means to “nurture a much greater universe. ”

Interestingly, the video only showcased the Chipotle emblem at the end, or so the content felt similar to a paid advertisement. Rather, the focus carefully crafted art and s story.

Chipotle established a “Scarecrow” app with the same cartoon quality and story as the video. This content prompted clients to keep playing, watching, and sharing with their friends.

“The Scarecrow” Chipotle short

More recently, Chipotle has endured from food safety scandals and the negative media that has followed them, but they’ve responded quickly to flip things around (like by shutting all areas for company-wide food safety training).

They are trying to restore their previous standing by delivering exactly what clients desire , for example “nachos,” “quesadillas,” along with a “dedication program. ” Plus, they’ve increased their amount of organic components, upped their veggie supplies, also additional keto- and – Whole 30-compatible menu products , to drive their normal dedication.

Chipotle understands that raising positive bio is all about telling a standout story and backing this up in everything they do. And that has workedChipotle’s stock shares rose 55 percent at 2019, on top of a 57% profit in 2018.

Tinder

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Offering value to their audience

You most likely don’t even think about word-of-mouth if you think of online dating giant Tinder, but word-of-mouth was key to Tinder’s grow . After winning a 2012 hackathon with the original version of the app, co-founders Sean Rad, Justin Mateen, also Joe Munoz had a means to market the app.

They made a decision to promote it at a USC party that Mateen’therefore brother had been holding, through word-of-mouth had to download the app. Although many of the students didn & rsquo; t know what the app was, they began once they got back to their dorms, swiping and matching. Tinder offered them value since they knew the folks the app was showing them were already interested in them (so, they didn’t even have to think about rejection).

pasted image 0 27

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Rad, Mateen, also Munoz understood at spreading the word, the faculty party was, so that they began holding events at fraternities and sororities all over Southern California.

And during the next winter break, Tinder disperse like wildfire as students eagerly shared with the app at home with their friends and families. As a result of word-of-mouth, Tinder climbed from 20,000 users at the start of January 2013, to over 500,000 at the close of the month.

In-N-Out

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Insider & ldquo;trick ” information

When I visited California for the first time, I knew I had to try In-N-Out. Why? Since everyone I knew who was there couldn’t quit thinking about it! It’s the same story for countless other people: In-N-Out is a West Coast institution built by word-of-mouth.

The thing In-N-Out veterans rave about is the burger chain&rsquo menu, from “creature personality ” into the “double triple. ” They feel as if they’ve got insider info, and they’re prepared to disperse it to the advantage of folks eating at In-N-Out for your first time.

And that word raises loyalty and brand awareness –it keeps clients flowing , and ultimately, returning clients coming back! This enables the string to continue to keep its promotional and advertising budget low also.

The menu is really popular with In-N-Out fans that the provider really markets the menu on its website– because the ldquo;Not-So-Secret-Menu. ”

pasted image 0 25

Source: Secret Menus Wiki

Consider using this technique to improve. Even if you don’t sell meals, you can produce a customer loyalty club together with insider discounts and advantages –one that will make your loyal clients keen to help their friends by sharing how to put in on the activity.

Dropbox

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Well-executed referral application

A successful-word-of-mouth list only wouldn’t be complete without Dropbox. Dropbox is an online storage giant employed with generations, all thanks to a few of the best-known referral marketing programs on the market.

By offering 500 MB of free bonus room for each friend a customer refers who newly signs up to your app (and rewarding this space to referrer and friend), Dropbox’s expansion has accelerated extremely rapidly.

They could double their increase every 3 weeks, and their users shipped 2.3 million referrals in just one month–without having to spend money on a single advertisement.

pasted image 0 26

Source: Referral Marketing School

Nevertheless, the offer itself isn’t the sole reason Dropbox’s referral application has enjoyed such success. Dropbox’s referral CTA and application description are clean, along with also the brand provides multiple convenient choices for sharing.

Dropbox has really benefited by the way referral programs are. Referral programs are terrific to get increasing word-of-mouth because they tap into happy customers’ present urge to share with friends, simplify the process, make it easy for the brand to monitor word-of-mouth in a formal way, and reward loyal clients for sharing with friends. So, follow Dropbox’s no example!

Take a look at these referral application notions for boosting word-of-mouth.

Girlfriend Collective

Word-Of-Mouth Strategy: Pre-launch referral application with Item that is free

Athleisure brand Girlfriend Collective, which makes leggings from recycled water bottles, fully rejected paid advertisements. Rather, they decided to utilize a referral program to promote their leggings before they launched. And that referral program made them famous!

Screenshot 244

Source: Girlfriend Collective/Instagram

Interested clients who see Girlfriend Collective’s FAQ and shared a referral connection with Facebook friends received a code for a free set of leggings. Yes, $80 leggings, for the price of shipping.

But clients who read the FAQ, and consequently revealed interest in the newest ’s mission, were eligible for the offer. The campaign was so successful that Girlfriend Collective received 10,000 orders on launch day, experienced site crashes because of interest, and extended this referral promotion even more.

Girlfriend Collective’so approach since it collected a record of customers are the first to test its products worked , who were already primed to talk about the brand with their buddies. And s palms after the products arrived in rsquo & these individuals, and they had their very first experiences with the item , they recommended for Girlfriend Collective and shared with additional buddies through word-of-mouth.

Tesla

Word-Of-Mouth Strategies: Product worth talking about.

There’s a reason why you’ve never found an advertisement for Tesla–that they purposely decide not to market in the conventional way, so that they spend no more money on paid advertisements or endorsements.

Rather, the brand relies from the customers who push their modern status symbols. Yes, CEO Elon Musk increases the manufacturer ’s visibility, but using a item which ’s worth sharing–and the rate at which owners discuss –are foundational.

Screenshot 288

Source: Michael Liebow/Twitter

Besides creating a item, Tesla owners ‘ are pleased to showcase, Tesla has accelerated sharing via its referral application. Previously, clients with referrals may make tickets to fresh model unveiling events, access to adventures such as SpaceX launch viewings, and a fresh Tesla Roadster. This referral program included levels .

Today, the Tesla referral program was revamped to be more cost-effective, but still exclusive.

If a friend uses a Tesla proprietor ’s no referral code to purchase a Tesla of the very own, both referrer and the friend get Supercharger miles. Each referral also earns an entry to win a Founders Series Model Y (at a monthly drawing) or Roadster supercar (at a quarterly drawing).

Tesla owners who already have free Supercharging get two opportunities to win. The scale of this Tesla referral program might appear daunting, but any brand can utilize drawings, exclusivity, and referral program levels to encourage loyal clients to talk with friends.

Key Takeaways

Based on your 11 success stories following these tips can help your brand create word-of-mouth.

Prioritize customer satisfaction. Listen to feedback, and provide what clients want. Clients are more likely to rave on your products.
Consistently know your prime market, and provide value to your clients.
Use experiences and social websites to create buzz.
Set or service apart from the competition.
Find your angle that distinguishes your service or product, tell a story, and back that narrative in all that you do.
Consider generating “literary ” info or ldquo;exclusive” experiences around your brand that get folks talking about you.
Produce a referral program and make spreading the word about your manufacturer as easy as possible.

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