From M/Cyclopedia of New Media
- In a traditional sense, word of mouth refers to the passing down of information or messages from individual to individual verbally, possibly resulting in a mutual dialogue. Consumers purchase and experience products or services and include knowledge and information of it when they are conversing with others. However, with the advent of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), word of mouth also includes the spreading of information and messages through online forums, message boards, instant messaging programs, emails and blogs (See Viral Marketing).
Word of Mouth – Value to Marketers
- Word of mouth stands in contrast to communication methods such as mass media, national advertising or mass marketing as it orientates around a more personal way of communicating. This characteristic of word of mouth also means that the message or information passed down contains more credibility as individuals have a higher tendency to believe this personal form of communication as opposed to the more tactical and purposeful promotion carried out by marketing companies. This is also the reason why marketers find that word of mouth is able to help promote their products or services as consumers can become “natural brand advocates�? (Balter, 2004, "The Word on Word of Mouth").
Word of Mouth – Marketing Advantages/Disadvantages – Case Study: The Segway Human Transporter
- Just because information about a product or service or experience has been passed on from individuals to individuals does not necessarily mean that it has been talked about in a positive manner even though there are cases whereby the image of a product or service has been heightened through word of mouth. It also does not mean that marketers can solely rely on word of mouth marketing methods to achieve an increase in sales or popularity of their products or brands.
- An example of a product which was talked a lot about through word of mouth was the The Segway Human Transporter (HT). When the inventor Dean Kamen first developed the idea of the Segway in 2004, people talked about it and passed information about it to others through word of mouth (Balter, 2004, "The Word on Word of Mouth"). Although the product was not out on the market yet, people continued to talk about it even though they did not have any direct experience with it. The word of mouth generated hype about the Segway and eventually when the product was finally out on the market, sales went up (Balter, 2004, "The Word on Word of Mouth"). Although there was a period of time when some Segways were recalled back due to performance problems with the battery, people still purchased the product as the initial word of mouth has already won the popularity of the consumers (Balter, 2004, "The Word on Word of Mouth"). The word of mouth which facilitated the promotion of the Segway reveals how this communication method has the ability to help marketers promote their product without implementing any fixed or controlled strategy.
- However, when negative comments and feedbacks started arising from users of the Segway, the product started to gain a less than desirable image from the public as people started to receive information about it through word of mouth. As word of mouth generated more negative feedback and comments from users to users, the sales of the Segways dropped (Balter, 2004, "The Word on Word of Mouth"). In the Segway case which first had its sales increased initially from word of mouth, the decline of its sales was also due to this very form of communication.
References
--Jamie Tang 00:13, 28 Oct 2005 (EST)
