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With all the fuss being made over social media lately, (Don’t tell me you don’t have a Twitter profile?!) it’s important to realize that all of the popular social media outlets aren’t just outlets for people to connect, they’re contributing to some of the best and most immediate word of mouth marketing out there.
In today’s market, brand loyalty just isn’t what it used to be. In 2008, respondents to a Gallup poll said that only 10% of advertisers were trustworthy. With so many products, places and business to choose from, how does one make the most informed choice, especially when advertising trust is slipping further and further?
It’s simple: They ask their “friends!”
According to a 2009 TNS poll, the number one trusted source across all media was “recommendations by friends.” But people don’t just have a few close friends anymore, who they get together with for dinner or a ball game. This friend circle has widened immensely to include Twitter followers, Facebook friends, Linkedin connections and more.
In fact, sites like Yelp, YouTube and Digg have built businesses solely on helping people find the best of the best of everything from restaurants, to doctors, to entertainment, to reading material—all based on ratings and recommendations from peers, most of whom have never met in person.
Word of mouth marketing as defined by the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), is “Giving people a reason to talk about your products and services, and making it easier for that conversation to take place.”
Although you can’t actually control what people are saying about your company, you can help jumpstart the conversation just by creating a presence for yourself in social media. For associations, this is especially critical as participation and donations depend largely on who you’re reaching and how far your reach goes.
Through social media, you can broaden that reach, a little or a lot. It all depends on how much time you’re willing to spend interacting with your audience and how you take their feedback and use it to your benefit.
Here, you’ll find a list of associations that are already present in social media. If you’re not on that list, this is one bandwagon you should consider jumping on.