Word of Mouth (WOM) in the World of Marketing, HARSH ARORA, The Icfai Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 6, No. 4, pp. 51-65, November 2007


The Notion of “word of mouth” is very old itself. Even in the ancient times, people were giving advices to each other about the animals and plants that they could eat. In today’s modern world, this notion still exists and is more powerful that’s for sure. People are giving advices to each other about which product they should buy. In other words, they share their experiences with a particular product. So, sharing is the key word for “word of mouth”. Other than advertisements on television or in newspapers, consumers themselves have a great power to influence each other and they can use this power against or in favor of the product. If a consumer is satisfied with a product, he/she shares this positive experience with his/her friends. Therefore in the world of marketing, this kind of consumers can be called buyer-salesman. They promote a product because they like it and want other people to use it.

Because today’s consumers have a greater awareness and can’t be easily influenced by traditional advertising and other promotional activities, the concept of “word of mouth” is very important for the sellers. Moreover, it’s very useful because it’s costless. There are many researches made in US related to the influence of WOM. For example, according to the E-Marketer, two-thirds of all economic activity in the US is influenced by shared opinions. Another finding is that %15 of all conversations people made include something about a product or brand.

Global Consumers aged 13+ who feel the following sources are very trustworthy for purchase ideas or information:

People / word of mouth : 70%
Advertising : 59%
Editorial : 55%
Online/Internet : 18%
Source: Brand Strategy, 2006

As a conclusion, the concept of word of mouth is very effective today. If the influence of a product is positive it helps businesses to increase their revenues and grow. However, if it’s negative, sooner or later, businesses can not grow and collapse. Because communication between people will be easier and more important, the effectiveness of WOM will increase in the future with no doubt.

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