Word-of-mouth (W-O-M) communication has been around a very long time. You can make a good argument that the Catholic Church used this medium to successfully build itself up as the first global brand, one that has transcended eras. The enduring power of W-O-M is rooted in its unrivalled credibility — when it comes to believability, nothing compares to the opinion of a trusted peer or family member. A 2021 study done by Neilsen, in fact, showed that 89% of consumers most trust recommendations from people they know. More so, 66% of W-O-M exchanges are still being done face-to-face (source: Engagement Labs). As such, we’re not talking about influencers on YouTube or even word-of-mouse exchanges. These are good, old conversations between individuals who trust each other and are interacting on a real-life basis. This kind of brand-related, peer-to-peer conversation is happening more often than you might think. According to Semrush, 23% of people talk about their favorite products with friends and family every day. Furthermore, 78% of people speak about their favorite recent brand experiences to people they know at least once per week.

If you Google ‘word-of-mouth facts’, you’ll come across a slew of statistics attesting to the relative power of the medium. You would think that in this day and age, when the pervasiveness of digital media continues to expand, this ‘old school’ means of communication would be losing steam. Au contraire. W-O-M has never more impactful than it is right now. The reason for this is related to the proliferation of commercial messages the average consumer receives on a daily basis (estimated to be anywhere between 6,000 to 10,000).
Every channel adds to this message overload … except word-of-mouth. What we observe when we ask consumers about their relationship to W-O-M is that this medium is the only source of brand-related communication that “closes down doors”, essentially cutting down the number of options and amount of buyer information to be processed — thus resolving the paradox of choice. Because when someone you know and trust tells you that “you’re going to love that restaurant / movie / bike / etc.”, everything else said about the product or service in question just fades away. In this manner, word-of-mouth does more than facilitate consumer decision-making; it actually reduces consumer anxiety and cognitive dissonance, resulting in a more satisfying buyer experience. This is particularly true in high involvement categories.

Any way you look at it, this W-O-M thing is a force to be reckoned with. So, why aren’t we seeing it being addressed in the typical launch strategy or media plan? The truth is that managing word-of-mouth requires a distinct approach, one that goes against the instincts of most marcom practitioners, people who are generally driven to control the brand message and get as many people as possible to hear what they have to say. Harnessing the power of W-O-M is more about listening than storytelling. It’s about selectively engaging real-life opinion leaders in a two-way conversation and thereby empowering them to spread the good word. Its reach potential is exponentially increased today by the capacity to digitally amplify the interaction with precursor consumers back to the mainstream market. Based on our long-standing experience working with consumer segments that are driven by cultural diffusion of innovation dynamics (ex. sneaker culture), we at Injektion have developed our own model for managing word-of-mouth across categories (see below). We welcome the opportunity to strike up a conversation with you on how we can specifically make it work for your brand.

Looking over a ranking of ‘top brands’ like Kantar’s most recent edition (see above) is always an interesting exercise for those in the marketing business. You get to confirm the fundamental movements, like the undeniable rise of digital native and fintech companies. Relatable newcomers also jump off the page (hats off to our compatriots at Lululemon). Ultimately, one’s eye is invariably drawn to the ‘big bosses’, the powerhouses that perennially dominate the brand charts. Having had the privilege of doing work for some of the leading names on this list, I can attest to the obvious fact that each of these brands has its own narrative and distinguishing factors. That said, when you look at them through the consumer’s mind’s eye, these dominant marques show some common characteristics. One of those aspects is the quality of being “tight”: coherent in their formulation, consistent in their deployment.

The characteristic of being one brand – singular over time and space – might seem elemental, but it’s a more exceptional attribute than you might think. In fact, I would say that the arbitrary separation between brand and product/service offering is the #1 mistake we’re seeing out there in marcom land. Driven by purpose-based directives, developed via mood boards, the brand is often treated today like an ethereal cloud that floats above the actual goods or services a company puts out. Anyone who actually deals with consumers first-hand – whether it’s in a research capacity, DTC sales or customer service – can tell you that end-users make no such distinction. As much as it may inconvenience some people in our industry, there is no such thing as top / mid / low funnel messaging for today’s consumer; just one brand they non-linearly interact with across a multitude of touchpoints. The most tangible, and thus most significant, of these touchpoints is the product or service offering itself. It’s at the root of why the #1 name on Kantar’s list tends to simply show off its product differential in its advertising. The consumer insight, the emotional connection, the pitch is actually “baked into” everything they put out, starting with the goods themselves. This method is tried and true. To quote Malcolm Gladwell, in describing the underlying philosophy of what he calls the most persuasive marketer of all-time, Ron Popeil (of RONCO fame)…

“They believed that it was a mistake to separate product development from marketing, as most of their contemporaries did, because to them the two were indistinguishable: the object that sold best was the one that sold itself.”
- From What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures

With ad recall and related brand link scores today being at an all-time low across categories, the capacity to be singular in one’s messaging – to base the creative storytelling around a tangible and relevant USP – has proven to be the most important success factor when it comes to a brand breaking through. When all's said and done, it comes down to pinpointing your ‘one’ core selling idea, one that is based on what you actually do, and delivering on it relentlessly. That’s where the path to brand greatness begins.