WOMMA is accepting applications for “faculty members” to present business case studies and best practices showcasing proven Word of Mouth & Social Media programs that generate customer-driven conversations. Though we are looking for presentations based upon your unique ideas and experience, below are the School of WOM categories of focus:
- The Art of Engagement
- The Science of Success Measurement
- Creating a Culture of Service
- Integrating WOM into the Marketing Mix
- Psychology of WOM
Remember the above are only guided suggestions we are looking for you best case studies!
Submit yours here: http://womma.org/schoolofwom/faculty/
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Call for Case Studies - Deadline is Feb 14
Pat McCarthy
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The Trust Bubble Popped
Pat McCarthy
After a year of brands desperately infiltrating the social space, the consumers have issued a bit of a backlash. The number of people who feel their friends are credible sources of information about a company dropped from 45% in 2008 to 25% today. Before dumping your WOM stock, know that TV news, radio news and newspapers also saw significant drops in trust. It turns out the general public is becoming a fairly distrustful group. WOM marketing relies on the value people put on the opinions of others. In pursuit of more impressions, a saturation point may have been reached. Impressions are significant only when they are made with the right people. To reach them, consider making the opt-in a high priority in any campaign.
Read more about consumers’ changing trust at AdAge -
What Now WOMMA?
Pat McCarthy
Webinars:
Feb 17: Crowdsourcing for Marketers: User-Generated Advertising, Brand Engagement and Consumer Insights
Date: Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Time: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM CST
Cost: Free for WOMMA Members | $30 Nonmembers
Register Here: http://bit.ly/crowdsourcing-wommaYou’ll Learn:
- About the benefits of crowdsourcing user-gen advertising via case studies
- About successful user-generated advertising programs
- How to analyze the ROI of crowdsourcing advertising, engagement & insights
- How marketers are executing a crowdsourcing campaign
- Key insights for creating a successful crowdsourced user-generated ad campaign
Register Here: http://bit.ly/crowdsourcing-womma
Who Should Attend: Marketers looking to gain a competitive edge via user generated advertisingWOM in Healthcare & Pharma:
Call for FDA Comments Extended to Feb 15
WOMMA has extended our call for comments on our open FDA and Social Media blog to Feb 15. We need your opinions to help us shape the future of healthcare and pharma in the social space. The blog is open, but here are a few questions to spark your thought process:1. What type of “code of ethics” or “code of conduct” for pharma advertising should WOMMA establish that may be useful as a template for the FDA?
2. What specifically do you need from the FDA in terms of regulations? What type of standards should the agency enact?
3. What challenges are you facing with your pharma clients? What can the FDA do to assist you in promoting useful information to consumers in the form of marketing?
4. What are the specific instances where pharma would accept responsibility by comments made about their products through 3rd party statements?
5. Do you believe that the FTC standards are useful for your pharma clients? Why?
Comment here: http://bit.ly/b1KJKa
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Super Bowl Wrap-Up
Pat McCarthy
Super Bowl ads are the marketing championship for brands. We saw many this year and are happy to point out some of the WOM hits.
1. Pepsi – Everyone was talking about their Refresh Project because they leveraged their traditional ad time in favor of something unexpected and talkable.
2. Honda – Major points for devoting a whole second to promoting their Facebook page. That’s $100,000 of ad time.
3. Google – Like Pepsi, they disrupted assumed truths. Their first TV ad had people talking before it aired. In 30 seconds they told a Parisian love story through just a few Google searches. With Valentines Day one week away, the idea was appropriate and solid enough to inspire conversations until Feb 14.
Read more about the talkability of the Super Bowl ads at theKbuzz Blog -
You = Front + Center
Pat McCarthy
School of WOM Sponsorship:
WOMMA’s School of WOM, the premier event in the Word of Mouth Marketing industry has an average attendance of 350 professionals representing brands, agencies, PR firms, research and technology companies, most of which are decision makers. Showcase your new product, meet your next client, make your company known at WOMMA’s School of WOM! As an official sponsor, you will build brand awareness and get your message out to over 300 qualified WOM professionals from brands and agencies.
Email our Sponsorship Manager, Kelly Hartweg at Kelly@WOMMA.org
See the full sponsorship brochure here: http://womma.org/schoolofwom/sponsorship/ -
A Rock & A Hard Place
Pat McCarthy
Community managers find themselves between two demanding groups: the community and the boss. This leads to a lot of compromise with both. Keeping them all happy is difficult. One key method is finding the doers and weeding out the talkers. The true community leaders make the community manager’s job much easier. These folks strengthen the community. And a stronger community makes the lonely community manager’s job easier.
Read more about managing communities at Ant’s Eye View’s blog -
WOMMA Needs Interns
Pat McCarthy
Know anybody in the Chicago area who wants to learn the WOM marketing industry? Tell them to email their resume to Pat@WOMMA.org
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Dancing Fans, Now with Sharability
Pat McCarthy
Fans of Broadway musicals are known to sing and dance when they listen to CDs of the great musicals of our day. But what happens when they are in the actual theater? Usually they sit quietly, enjoy the performance, and clap at the end. That is the norm, nothing special, nothing new. In WOM marketing, disrupting the norm while staying true to a brand image is a proven method. The popular musical “Hair” did just that. At the end of every performance, the audience is invited on stage to dance to the last song. Wow. That is spot on connection with fans. Not only do they get an experience that they will remember for the rest of their lives, but the theater films the last dance and posts it online. When these exhilarated fans get home, they can tag themselves and share the video with their friends. This is the full WOM package: Disrupted expectations, unexpected experience, and simplified sharability.
Read more about the musical and its marketing at Damn I wish I thought of That -
What Now WOMMA?
Pat McCarthy
School of WOM:
Call for Case Studies - Deadline is Feb 14
WOMMA is accepting applications for “faculty members” to present business case studies and best practices showcasing proven Word of Mouth & Social Media programs that generate customer-driven conversations. Though we are looking for presentations based upon your unique ideas and experience, below are the School of WOM categories of focus:- The Art of Engagement
- The Science of Success Measurement
- Creating a Culture of Service
- Integrating WOM into the Marketing Mix
- Psychology of WOMRemember the above are only guided suggestions we are looking for you best case studies!
Submit yours here: http://womma.org/schoolofwom/faculty/Webinars:
Feb 17: Crowdsourcing for Marketers: User-Generated Advertising, Brand Engagement and Consumer Insights
Date: Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Time: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM CST
Cost: Free for WOMMA Members | $30 Nonmembers
Register Here: http://bit.ly/crowdsourcing-wommaYou’ll Learn:
- About the benefits of crowdsourcing user-gen advertising via case studies
- About successful user-generated advertising programs
- How to analyze the ROI of crowdsourcing advertising, engagement & insights
- How marketers are executing a crowdsourcing campaign
- Key insights for creating a successful crowdsourced user-generated ad campaign
Register Here: http://bit.ly/crowdsourcing-womma
Who Should Attend: Marketers looking to gain a competitive edge via user generated advertisingJan 27 Webinar Content Now Available
The 7 Habits for Maximizing Website Conversions was a great webinar that over 1000 people watched live. You now have the opportunity to view the deck and listen to the audio. Get your team together and visit our downloads page to see the full presentation today: http://womma.org/downloads/WOM in Healthcare & Pharma:
Call for FDA Comments Extended to Feb 15
WOMMA has extended our call for comments on our open FDA and Social Media blog to Feb 15. We need your opinions to help us shape the future of healthcare and pharma in the social space. The blog is open, but here are a few questions to spark your thought process:1. What type of “code of ethics” or “code of conduct” for pharma advertising should WOMMA establish that may be useful as a template for the FDA?
2. What specifically do you need from the FDA in terms of regulations? What type of standards should the agency enact?
3. What challenges are you facing with your pharma clients? What can the FDA do to assist you in promoting useful information to consumers in the form of marketing?
4. What are the specific instances where pharma would accept responsibility by comments made about their products through 3rd party statements?
5. Do you believe that the FTC standards are useful for your pharma clients? Why?
Comment here: http://bit.ly/b1KJKa
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R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Pat McCarthy
Brands have to change things up every now and then. Sometimes it isn’t needed (remember New Coke?) and sometimes it is. One example is the radio station KGSR down in Austin, TX. They changed from a underground rock format to a more commercial format because the way listener numbers are measured changed. Now they are measured by PPMs (Portable People Meters) that record each switch of the dial as opposed to the old method of radio listeners simply writing down the channels they tune into. Unfortunately, their most loyal fans were not informed about the change. One by one, they noticed that something was different. It’s really heartbreaking to see a brand with such a loyal base not even try to utilize their fans in fighting to keep their brand, a unique playlist. They don’t have to change, but without doing something to mobilize their base, they will have to.
Read more about KGSR at The Ant’s Eye View Blog
Glenn Friesen | Customer Service Training 3:44 pm on February 8, 2010 Permalink
In the past, we trusted our friends with the most expertise in a field. Nowadays, we “friend” experts on Twitter and do what they tell us. What a world!