We've got good news and bad news, so we'll start with the bad news - as of today we are officially retiring this blog. It's treated us (and hopefully you) well over the past few years, but we decided it was time for us to take a more proactive, company-wide approach to blogging.

That being said, time for the good news - we are happy to announce the launch of Affinitive's Social Media Playground! Topics discussed:

• Word of Mouth Marketing
• Social Media and Consumer-generated Media (CGM)
• Customer Communities and Consumer Panels
• Case Studies and Best Practices
• Research, Measurement and Metrics
• Social Applications (Facebook, OpenSocial, etc.)
• Industry News and Events
• Technology, Tools, and Platform

We hope you find our "playground" to be a great resource and that you'll join our conversation!

by Bob Troia

At this week's Word of Mouth Marketing Summit and Research Symposium, PQ Media presented findings from their first-of-its-kind, in-depth analysis of the word of mouth marketing industry:

Word-of-Mouth (WoM) Marketing is the fastest-growing segment of the $254 billion marketing services sector of the media industry, which includes among others, branded entertainment, direct marketing and public relations. WoM marketing grew almost five times faster than the overall marketing services sector in 2006 and more than six times faster than the overall media industry and nominal GDP.

Spending on word-of-mouth (WoM) marketing jumped 35.9% in 2006 to $981.0 million and is expected to top $1 billion in 2007, making it one of the fastest growing alternative media segments. Driving the growth is the continued consumer shift to alternative media and the marketers' need for increased brand engagement and ROI.

Does your boss still need convincing?

Related Links:

Press Release: New PQ Media Forecast: Word-of-Mouth Marketing Spending To Break $1 Billion in 2007
Word-of-Mouth Marketing Forecast 2007-2011

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, word of mouth, word-of-mouth, marketing, research, WOMMA

We're proud to announce that our work with American Skiing Company and their MyA41 Passholder program has been named the winner of a 2007 "Wommie" Award by the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA)!

According to WOMMA, the Wommies are "designed to recognize amazing word of mouth campaigns and the smart people who create them."

That being said, it's truly an honor to receive this award, which was judged by a panel of our industry peers and chosen out of over 50 submissions by some of the best and brightest marketers around.

We will be presenting a case study of the program at WOMMA's Word of Mouth Marketing Summit, which is taking place Nov. 14-15 in Las Vegas. To learn more about WOMMA's Summit and Research Symposium, visit www.wommasummit.com.

Related Links:

MyA41 Passholder Community Case Study (via WOMMA case study library)
WOMMA Announces Wommie Award Winners (press release)

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, WOMMA, word of mouth, wommie, marketing, award

by Bob Troia

Earlier this summer Facebook announced they were opening up their platform to allow developers to create social applications that could deeply integrate with their functionality and data (and in turn, take advantage of the "social graph" of their 30 million members).

We see the potential here as being enormous, and are already hard at work integrating social applications into our clients' word of mouth/social media marketing mix. We've just released our first app, called Pass the Soccer Ball.



The premise is quite simple - you pass 'balls' to your friends who can in turn either pass it down the field to one of their friends or take a 'shot' at the goal (with each successive pass improving the odds of scoring a goal). The very nature of the game takes advantage of the "social graph" and spreads virally. In fact, we quietly released the first version of the application last week with no promotion and over 1000 people installed the app in just the first few days (it also boasts an "active user" base in the top 15% of all Facebook apps, according to Adonomics).

This is a sign of bigger things to come, as Myspace, Yahoo, and even Google are rumored to follow suit and release developer APIs that allow deep integration with their platforms. Social networks are becoming the new operating systems :)

Got a Facebook account? Why not check out the app and pass me a soccer ball?

Related Links:

Facebook Developers API
Pass the Soccer Ball Game (Facebook account required)

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, Facebook, social graph, web 2.0, marketing

by Warren Ackerman

While in the process of pitching a prospective client I stumbled across a new trigger for word of mouth – validation.

Imagine the scenario where you have some organic advocacy brewing around a new product you've released and you are receiving anecdotal stories about how people "love your product." So what should you do? The short answer is connect them with each other.

Very few consumers will go out of their way (online or offline) to find other people that also like a product - the responsibility lies with the brand to connect these people.

Once your consumers get to see and talk to all the other like-minded consumers it validates and strengthens their own existing opinions of your product, making them more confident that your product has mass appeal.

It's like those high school electricity experiments we all did - once you connect your passionate consumers (the circuit) the light goes on and people start thinking, hey, I’m really part of something here.

Bottom line: Brand advocacy in a vacuum is one big missed opportunity.

For the past 9 months we have been working with The Nielsen Company to develop an innovative social media platform that allows consumers to become a collective voice of change and, in turn, influence the decision makers in the entertainment industry, while also helping Nielsen reinvent the ways it conducts audience measurement in our DVR time-shifted, ipod using, web2.0 world. Today we're happy to announce the "public beta" launch of Hey! Nielsen.

Part "opinion engine", part social network, and part buzz tracker, it's been a true labor of love for our team (including many late nights and weekends), and has given us the opportunity to work with a group of extremely talented folks acrosss all of Nielsen's divisions (including Nielsen Media Research, Nielsen Entertainment, AC Nielsen, Nielsen Buzzmetrics, Nielsen NetRatings, Billboard, Nielsen Trend, and Nielsen Wireless & Interactive).

We'll definitely be posting a more in-depth case study in the near future, but why not check it out for yourself? In the meantime, we're going to go catch up on some sleep but you can check out some of the latest buzz here:

- Hey! Nielsen: Influence the Ratings through Social Networking (via Mashable)
- Nielsen Rates Social Network Site a Must See (via CNBC)
- Hey! Nielsen screencast demo (via Demogirl)
- Hey! Nielsen Beta (via Being Peter Kim)
- Exlcusive Look: Hey! Nielsen Private Beta (via Muhammad Saleem)
- Reviewing Hey! Nielsen (via Pulse 2.0)

by Bob Troia

It's been a busy summer here in Affinitive-land (seriously, where did the summer go?), but I wanted to take a moment to proudly announce that we have just been engaged to develop our 100th consumer-centric marketing program! It's a huge milestone and truly validates that word of mouth and social media marketing should be an integral part of any company's marketing mix. We have shown that it can be done in an honest, ethical and transparent way, can be measured, and can provide both short- and long-term ROI.

I would also like to thank all of our clients old and new who have believed in us, as well as everyone on our team who continue to amaze me by coming up with innovative ways for companies to engage, empower and connect their most passionate consumers.

See you at 200!

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, word of mouth, social media, web 2.0, marketing

Ready to join the fun, exciting world of word of mouth and social media marketing? We can use you! Just follow the links below for more details:

Project Manager (full-time)

Marketing Program Manager (full-time)

Web / Graphic Designer (part-time)

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, word of mouth, social media, web 2.0, jobs

by Jen Sehnert

The online social media explosion continues with daily news coverage highlighting companies and advertisers wishing to harness the power of WOM by tapping into online communities. Solely engaging and activating the invaluable and trusted "influencers" at their online spaces, however, has left one critical WOM strategy neglected and underutilized... OFFLINE Word of Mouth Marketing tactics.

Marketers are tripping over each other in the race to reach "influentials" who, according to a recent EMarketer story, make up 18% of all online communities.

The numbers are impressive. It is reported that the population of American Internet users considered word of mouth "influencers" will be 28 million strong next year, but advertisers who are hoping for a cost-effective and measurable way to grab hold of the online social media phenomenon and get the loudest "influencers" to scream their message are missing a valuable piece of the equation.

According to Debra Aho Williamson, author of the eMarketer WOM Marketing report (via MediaPost), "While there's a small segment of people who are very vocal, posting reviews and blogs, there is this vast middle ground of people who are moderately influential, the ones who pass a video on to their friends, or find a cool site and tell their husband. Marketers can't forget consumers who are influential in their smaller circle, both on- and offline."

For example, 64% of "influencers" do online research after seeing or hearing an ad on TV, radio, or in a magazine -- but only 30% notice a Web ad and later visit the Web site or check out the product in a store.

Some additional stats on "influencers":
Influencers over-index in consumption of news vs. the general population such as reading the local paper in a given month (84% vs. 68%) and visiting a broadcast news site monthly (48% vs. 38%).

Related Links:

Word-of-Mouth Marketing: Winning Friends and Influencing Customers (eMarketer)
EMarketer: Brands Shouldn't Ignore Offline WOM Activity (MediaPost)

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, word of mouth, WOM, influencers, social media

All work aside, the past few weeks have been crazy here with the addition of several new (little) members to the Affinitive family:

Warren (and Natalie) Ackerman gave birth to their second son, Luke Els, on Wednesday, May 9. Word is he's already managed to get his golf handicap to under 20 strokes.

Rob (and Regan) Marscher became first-time parents with the birth of their daughter, Maryn France, on Friday, May 18th. Love the photo - very rock and roll!

Latest updates are that babies and moms are home and resting soundly, although I doubt the dads are getting much sleep these days.

Congratulations to the new parents! I am sure there will soon be lots of discussion in the office about soccer moms and NASCAR dads. I came across the book Trillion Dollar Moms, which provides a few eye-opening stats:

• There are 82 million moms in the US
• They control 85% of household spending (82% refer to themselves as "CFO"!)
• They represent $1.7 TRILLION in annual US spending

Here's a USA Today story about Alpha Moms.

Technorati tags: Affinitive, babies, moms, dads

by Bob Troia

(disclaimer: I disdain PowerPoint as much as the next person, but it's considered a necessary evil in the business world. In fact, there are entire sites devoted to the art of the presentation, which I highly recommend any marketer check out).

At Affinitive, we have a rather large collection of presentations and marketing decks that we have spent a good deal of time creating over the past few years - from capabilities/process overviews and "Word of Mouth 101" backgrounders to "how-to's" and case studies we have presented at conferences.

While things like capabilities overviews get significant everyday use, others are often one-off presentations with a very short shelf life. For example, we may be asked to present at a conference on a specific topic, and we'll invest tens of hours putting together what ends up being a one-off, 15- to 20-minute presentation in front of, at most, a few hundred people. Unless you were in attendance and took good notes or you read a summary of the presentation on another marketing blog, that is basically the presentation's shelf life. Or is it?

We have all seen how online video can be an effective viral marketing tool and how even niche content benefits from The Long Tail effect, so, why can't the same be said for PowerPoint?

Check it out - here is a copy of the presentation we gave earlier this week at the Word of Mouth Marketing Association's Word of Mouth Basic Training 2007 Conference.

(if your RSS reader isn't displaying anything above, click here to view the presentation or if you would like to see the accompanying speaking notes)

Now this presentation has been given a new life. Instead of a simple "Download this pdf" link buried somewhere on our (or the conference's) website, the presentation, much like a YouTube video, can be easily re-posted on other blogs, as well as tagged, social bookmarked, emailed, commented, and rated (the service I used to convert the presentation has it's flaws, but the point of this post isn't to give it a review - for example, why can't the presenter's audio be added?). The benefits have been immediate - people interested in the topics presented have been finding/stumbling upon the presentation, and tagging and comments (such as speaker's comments) help attract natural search engine traffic. Pretty cool, huh??

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, presentation, PowerPoint, Long Tail, WOMMA, WOMBAT

by Bob Troia

I'll be speaking at WOMMA's Word of Mouth Basic Training conference this year in New Orleans, April 17-18. There will be lots of great speakers, authors, and keynotes. Plus, there's food - lots and lots of food. If you want to learn more about word of mouth marketing, and schmooze with word of mouth marketers, this is the place to do it.

I've arranged for a special $75 discount as a courtesy to my colleagues and associates. Just use the code "speakerdeal" when you register at http://www.womma.org/wombat3.

by Bob Troia

As I exited the subway this morning and began walking towards our office in my caffeine-deprived aloofness, all I could think about was how much I really needed a cup of coffee. Imagine my surprise as I approached the nearest Starbucks, only to be greeted by a line of people - not the usual, morning rush type, but a line that went out the door and spilled onto the sidewalk! I didn't feel like waiting, so scratched my head and simply walked over to the next-closest location (fortunately, just 2 blocks away). Again, a line of people spilled out onto the sidewalk!

I had totally forgotten that today was "Coffee Break" day at Starbucks. They were giving away free 12-oz. coffees between 10am and 12pm. A noble gesture on their part, but what they did was inconvenience many of their regular customers (many of whom didn't want a 12oz cup of coffee). Why didn't they create a separate line for PAYING customers? I'm a pretty impatient person so I ended up just going to the nearest deli and getting a large tea. Sorry Starbucks, you lost a sale.

"It's just a fun way for us to say 'thank you' to our customers."

It's great to thank your customers, but not at the expense of inconveniencing others.

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, Starbucks, free coffee, loyalty, word of mouth

by Bob Troia

"I chill at White Castle 'cause it's the best, but I'm fly at Fat Burger when I'm way out West."—Beastie Boys, The New Style

It looks like we'll be getting our fill of Fat Burger, er... I mean, Peet's Coffee, as I am happy to announce the opening of our San Francisco office. It is the first major expansion for Affinitive and will allow us to better serve our existing West Coast clients in addition to handling new accounts. Heading up our West Coast operations will be our VP of Business Development, Warren Ackerman, who recently relocated from New York City (we had to promise him that he would still have remote access to our office jukebox!).

These are very exciting times, and we hope that this is only the first of many big announcements to come - stay tuned!

Technorati Tags: Affinitive, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, expansion

by Bob Troia

I stumbled up on this clip, titled "Web 2.0... The Machine is Us/Using Us," via The Long Tail blog - it was created by a cultural anthropologist at Kansas State University ("Digital Ethnography" - great term!):

(note to rss readers - if the clip isn't appearing, you can view it here)

I agree, Chris - very inspiring. This is why we do what we do!!

Technorati Tags: Web 2.0, Long Tail, social media, digital ethnography

"Great word-of-mouth marketing campaigns are elegant. They are fun."

So says Andy Sernovitz (the founding CEO of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association) in this iMediaConnection article, where he gives some nice props to our work for Square Enix. Andy also talks about the The Five Ts of Word-of-Mouth Marketing - components that any successful word of mouth campaign shares:

Talkers: find the people who like to talk
Are they your customers? Neighborhood moms? Doctors? Bloggers? Think about the people who are most likely to tell a friend about what you're doing. Make sure they know about your new topic of conversation.

Topics: give them a reason to talk
Give people a reason to talk about you. It doesn’t need to be fancy. A special sale, good service, a cool, new feature, a better flavor, a funny package. (Remember the Gateway computers that came in cow-patterned boxes?)

Tools: help the message spread faster and further
Do everything you can to make it easy for talkers to pass along your topic. Include postcards and stickers in the box when you ship a package. Put up a chat room so people can talk to each other. Join a blog conversation. Hand out samples. (Did you ever get one of those emails with a "secret" coupon that was supposedly for employees only? Did you forward it?)

Taking part: join the conversation
Conversations die out when there’s only one person talking. When people are talking about you, answer them. Reply to their emails. Comment on blogs that write about you. Send a lot of thank-you notes.

Tracking: measure and understand what people are saying
The word-of-mouth conversation is the best feedback you’re ever going to get. It’s far better than any other kind of market research because it is the authentic voice of the consumer. Hear what people are saying, learn from it and use it to be a better company.

Read this Book!
If you haven't already, I highly recommend you get a copy of Andy's new book, "Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking," which is a great guide full of ideas on implementing successful word of mouth programs, regardless if you are a major brand or a mom-and-pop restaurant.

see also:

iMedia Connection: Chrysler, Coke: New Brand Buzz Leaders
Square Enix: Slime Knights case study

by Bob Troia

While doing some online surfing in search of Christmas gift ideas for one of my brothers, I came across a consumer-created video demonstrating a small, radio-controlled helicopter sold by Radio Shack called the "Micro Mosquito". What got my attention wasn't its flashy packaging or price point - it was how precise it could be flown, even indoors. I went to YouTube to see if there were others. Lo and behold, I came across not just 2 or 3, but over 40 videos created by consumers demonstrating their flying skills (and harassing their family and pets). I was sold. During lunch I went over to the closest Radio Shack and plucked down $70 (plus another $12 for batteries) for a Micro Mosquito. Turns out I wasn't alone - the helicopter was their hottest selling holiday item, and I had grabbed the last one in stock (as of today, it's still out-of-stock online as well).

I've probably seen a hundred Radio Shack Christmas commercials on TV in the past month, but what got me to walk into their store was a 2-minute homemade video that cost them nothing to produce.

Will it Blend?

Blendtec is another example of a company who found a way to create a conversation out of something that you normally wouldn't have a conversation about. A blender is a blender, right? They launched a humorous website called Will it Blend where, to demonstrate the power of their Total Blender model, they provide "extreme blending" videos showing their blenders taking on everything from an entire Christmas dinner to hockey pucks to marbles, and even an iPod! They also encourage consumers to submit ideas for other items to try to blend.

Technorati tags: mosquito, helicopter, consumer generated, viral, blendtec, blender

by Bob Troia

Time Magazine just announced 2006's Person of the Year, and the winner is... drumroll, please... you! Beating out the likes of George Bush, Kim Jong Il, and Hugo Chavez, the title is bestowed on the person who, in the opinion of the magazine's editors, had the greatest impact on the year's events ("for better or worse").

From the article:

We've been talking about "consumer empowerment" and "brand democratization" for nearly four years, but 2006 will be known as the year things such as social networking, blogs, wikis, citizen journalism, and user-generated media reached the collective mainstream.

So, what are your marketing plans for 2007? Have you included a budget line item called "World of Mouth"? The revolution has already begun - are you ready to engage, empower and connect with the revolutionaries?

by Bob Troia

by Bob Troia

Two related, but equally-important concepts related to word of mouth are "social capital" and "social currency."

Social capital can be best defined as an "investment in social relations with expected returns in marketplace." It deals with the value of an individual's social network/connections.

For example, let's say you have a great new product that you'd love to have Oprah talk about on her show (who wouldn't!). It's safe to say that Oprah's social capital is much more valuable than yours or mine - she has a worldwide audience of millions and is one of the wealthiest people in the US with connections to a who's who of celebrities, business leaders and politicians - so it would be extremely difficult to gain access to her connections/spheres of influence.

Social currency is a term used to describe the value of exchange of information. In a nutshell, social currency acts as an "icebreaker" and is ammunition for conversation. It can come in many forms such as a funny joke, a stock tip, a funny viral video, or juicy gossip, i.e., "I know something you don't know" - it makes someone look good in a social context and buys respect and admiration. Oprah would happily mention your great new product on her show if she felt the social currency it provided would be of value to her audience and make her look "in the know." "Water cooler" TV shows work because those who watch them are "in the know" while others feel left out.

Remember the first time someone sent you a link to Subservient Chicken? You probably felt special, like you were privy to something no one else knew about. You quickly emailed the link out to your friends, family and co-workers. Then the mainstream media picked up on it, and soon your inbox was flooded with "check this out" emails! The value of the social currency dropped significantly since it had become old news.

So, how does this all relate to word of mouth and your company, product or service? When developing a word of mouth strategy you need to factor in the social capital of those you are trying to engage/reach (are you trying to reach hip, cool Gen Y-ers, or simply trying to reach people willing to try new products?) as well as the value of the social currency you can offer them (is your brand/product/service itself remarkable?), or can you provide some level of inside access/content/information which would be of value to your most passionate, outspoken customers?

Technorati Tags: word of mouth, social capital, social currency, marketing, oprah

by Bob Troia

The results are rather surprising. SoaP was released on August 18th. It did not achieve a noticeable spike in discussion until just 2 days before it was released. In fact, it did not even surpass Napoleon Dynamite in blogosphere discussion until July, barely a month before it was released. Meanwhile, Little Miss Sunshine barely made a dent in online discussion when it first came out in late July, but has been steadily inching its way up trend chart, much like its box office revenues. So, what's going on?

I'll argue that the Snakes phenomenon was largely due to an "echo chamber" effect, in which a relatively small group of enthusiasts/bloggers generated a ton of perceived buzz that had relatively little impact outside of their circle (i.e., the offline world). The discrepancy is when mainstream media (news outlets, shows such as "The Daily Show") amplify the perceived buzz and make it out to be much more than it is. Little Miss Sunshine, on the other hand, is taking a more organic approach, and each week it is benefiting from additional discussion as more and more people see it. It may not have been your first-choice movie to see when it came out, but after 5 weeks most of your friends have probably seen it and are talking about it, so you may finally decide to check it out.

I'll further contend that the blogosphere is not a true gauge of trends in the offline world. Internet buzz is great for top-of-mind awareness leading up to the release, but true word of mouth, especially offline, does not occur until after the movie comes out, when people have actually seen the film (offline results tend to trail online buzz by 1-2 weeks). And, of course, the movie has to somehow resonate with people. Movies such as Napoleon Dynamite, The Wedding Crashers, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding are all great examples (and all are lighthearted comedies - see a trend here?)

The word of mouth lesson to be learned? Before getting caught up in any hype, pay attention to how many people are talking, not just how loud they are shouting. Snakes on a plane, man...

Related Items:
Snakes on a Plane: 5 lessons for marketers
What SoaP has in common with the liberal netroots
Snakes on a Blog

Technorati Tags: Snakes on a Plane, Movies, SoaP, marketing, word of mouth

by Warren Ackerman

Mike Hofman recently wrote a piece on the current state of WOM marketing called, “Lies, Damn Lies, and Word of Mouth.” In the article, key points were made on topics including the need for transparency of WOM program participants, recent venture capital investments and WOMMA’s mission to protect the value and trust that WOM holds with consumers.

The most high-profile WOM campaigns to date have been executed by companies who have a trained network of people who are ready and eager to talk up certain products. I’m assuming this leads most marketers to assume this is the only way to execute a WOM program, the reality is that there is another option – invite your own customers to participate.

Before getting to the specifics of how you can get your own customers to help you market your products, it’s worth first looking at the differences between organic and amplified WOM.

The WOM programs you read about fall under the amplified category. The programs that Affinitive creates are somewhere between the two, primarily because the participants in our programs are existing customers of the client. Our programs are created to be experiences - experiences that cater to passion points, letting the WOM evolve at a slow and steady pace. The increased loyalty and relationship building benefits alone are worth considering this type of program the next time you’re looking for some WOM marketing.

Technorati Tags: word of mouth, WOM, loyalty, consumers

by Bob Troia

There's a construction site down the block from our office that is employing non-union labor. This has drawn the ire of pro-union protesters, who have resorted to everything from picketing in front of the construction site and blocking the entrance, to handing out (and plastering the construction site with) flyers accusing the construction firm of cheating the IRS, to bringing in bagpipers to play their soothing annoying music. Thus far, their efforts have gone largely unnoticed by busy New Yorkers.

Enter the giant inflatable rat. To most New Yorkers, the rat has become somewhat of an icon. For years, unions have used these sometimes 30-foot balloons to call attention to companies employing non-union labor.

As union organizer Jerry Kraft points out, “The rat gets people to stop and ask questions about what’s going on. That’s why we use it.” And it works - shortly after it appeared, tourists could be seen stopping in front of the rat to take photos of (and with!) it. Smiles appeared on the faces of those passing by. Even those in our office spent a morning discussing the rat. Flickr groups have even been created by inflatable rat enthusiasts! 

The point - they've managed to create an icebreaker that starts a conversation and gives people something to talk about. Other unions in New York and other cities are now following suit as well. Maybe your company could use a Giant Inflatable Alligator?

Technorati Tags: word of mouth, WOM, inflatable rat, Flickr

by Warren Ackerman

by Bob Troia

The key factor that determines whether a sales distribution has a Long Tail is the cost of inventory storage and distribution... Netflix is therefore able to build a viable business stocking a far wider range of movies than a traditional movie rental store. Those economics of storage and distribution then enable the Long Tail as advantageous: Netflix finds that in aggregate "unpopular" movies are rented more than popular movies.

by Bob Troia

How-To: Generating WOM for a New Product or Service that Doesn’t Yet Exist

How do you get people excited (and talking) about your great new product or service while it’s still in development? Bob Troia, Founder and President of Affinitive, shares five tips that have proven successful:

Tip #1: Motivation
If you are truly starting “from scratch,” with no existing customers (let alone an existing CRM system), you’ll need to think about what will motivate a group of consumers to want to learn about your new product or service. Consider the use of an incentive to attract a group of prospective consumers.

An incentive could be tangible (free T-shirt, entry into a sweepstakes), or intangible (the chance to help test out a new product, the opportunity to interact directly with product developers and like-minded consumers). Think about the type of consumer you are trying to attract and what they would value (what would wealthy middle-aged men care about more - a free T-shirt, or some frequent-flier miles?)

You can build an experience around your product or service by providing an exclusive online community to allow these like-minded consumers to interact and share in the experience.

(Note that at this point you are not “rewarding” word of mouth; the up-front incentive is simply a way to get consumers to “hear you out.” They shouldn’t be obligated to do anything beyond this step. The consumers who stick around are the ones who truly want to learn more, interact and become product experts.)

Tip #2: Education
Discovery is a key element in triggering conversations. People want to be “in the know” - education provides them with “social currency,” since they will have valuable information/knowledge that their peers do not. Education also allows you to articulate your key selling points and ensure that they are accurately passed along. Quizzes are a great way to engage and interactively educate your consumers. If you have a prototype/beta version of your product, provide a set of testing instructions and solicit feedback through the use of surveys.

Tip #3: Co-creation
The best way to develop an emotional bond between consumers and your brand is to involve them in the process as early as possible. Activities such as providing feedback on packaging and marketing materials, helping come up with names and taglines, or submitting photos documenting brand interaction or product use are just a few examples. Provide ways for consumers to show off (and share) their creativity and newfound passion, and gain recognition for their work. Encourage them to make it “their” product. Consumer-generated content is a valuable by-product of co-creation and can build awareness for your product or service months in advance of any traditional advertising initiatives.

Tip #4: Anticipation
As you approach product/brand launch, you should have a group of passionate consumers who have developed a strong emotional connection to your product (without having actually experienced it!). Continue to feed their passion - involve them in product testing, chats with product managers and developers, first-look sneak peeks and insider information. The trick is to release information in “bite-size chunks” - enough to feed their enthusiasm over a period of time and reinforce your selling points, but not so much as to overwhelm them.

Tip #5: Recommendation
Congratulations - your new product or service has launched! This passionate group of people you have fostered are no longer “consumers” - they are your customers. Treat them well; they are your early adopters and evangelists. They will be the ones sharing their enthusiasm for your new product or service (chances are they have already been doing so for quite some time).

Publicly acknowledge and provide these customers with special status in your customer community since they have been with you from the beginning. Be on a first-name basis with these customers. Invite them to special events. Send them birthday cards.

Lastly, don’t consider this the end of your WOM “campaign” - consider it the beginning of your long-lasting WOM program.