We all agree that word of mouth is the most effective and efficient form of advertising but, how do we make it stick? Paul Revere's ride is perhaps the most famous historical example of a word-of-mouth success. On April 18, 1775, a young stable boy in Boston overheard an officer in the British Army say something about "hell to pay tomorrow." The boy sprinted to a silversmith named Paul Revere and informed him of what he heard. Paul listened intently as this wasn't the first piece of gossip he heard that day. Well these rumors ended up being true and the British were about to march to Lexington to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams.
What Paul did next ended up being a legendary piece of history and something we've all read in our history books. Paul rode to Lexington and spread the word, "the British are coming, the British are coming," to every city he passed along the way. The locals then spread the word like wildfire and soon alarms were going off throughout the entire region. When the British finally began their march toward Lexington they met a well-organized and ready militia. The British were beaten and after that battle the American Revolution was born.
While not all word-of-mouth examples are this extraordinary, it's safe to say this is most influential form of advertising and communication. Think back to the last movie you saw, clothing you recently purchased, or the most recent restaurant you ate at. How many of those cases were your decision based on a friend's recommendation?
So how do you get your customers to talk about your business frequently and positively?
1. Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS)
There are so many blogs and articles that tell you to give more and do more. I disagree. You have to keep it simple. You must focus on your customer service before you add or do anything new. Superb customer service is critical to every businesses success. Focus on the basics such as your greeting, problem solving skills, how to handle customer complaints, and follow up. To get an idea where you stand with your customers, review your surveys, scour the internet for your reviews, sit back and watch your staff/customer interactions, and most importantly, ASK you customers!
2. Do something unexpected
The success of Paul Revere's ride is partly because it was a surprise and no one in those areas expected the British to invade. Another example happened when I was training in Las Vegas. A group of us went to a restaurant, Jaleo, in the Cosmopolitan, where they sold hush puppies. These little fried balls of heaven were so delicious! They literally melted right in your mouth. However, we expected a high quality of food so that wasn't the surprise. It was the delivery. They brought out these amazing hush puppies that were melt in your mouth good in a cone of waxed paper. That waxed paper was then put in a converse shoe and brought to us! I will never forget that unexpected experience and I will always recommend that restaurant because of it.
3. Tie it to an emotion
Obviously Paul Revere's message struck an emotional chord with the towns as the British were coming to arrest two colonels. So how can you tie in with your customer's emotional chord? This past week I spoke to a group and a women, Cindy, came up to me literally in tears of joy because of something that happened nearly a decade ago! She was traveling for work when she received a phone call that her husband was placed in the hospital. A housekeeper at the hotel she was staying at over heard this and took it upon herself to send flowers to her room. Shortly after, she asked Cindy if she needed transportation to the airport. Cindy was so ecstatic that another person actually cared for her and her family that she had chosen to stay at this property whenever she traveled to the area, the price didn't matter. But, the housekeeper didn't stop there! How cool this is, she wrote a letter thanking Cindy for her stay, saying she looks forward to having her as a preferred guest again, and that she would keep her husband and family in her prayers. Let's just say this woman, Cindy, is now an ambassador for this hotel for the rest of her life. Over the course of time, she will bring in thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars through her word-of-mouth advertising that was created by the housekeeper taking the opportunity to meet the emotional needs of a guest.
We know word-of-mouth is the most effective and efficient way to advertise. So How are you making it stick with your customers or guests? Please share your comment on the ehotelier facebook page: facebook.com/ehotelierdotcom/
Chris Langlois
www.extremeEDvantage.com
www.chrislanglois.com
chris@extremeEDvantage.com
