What marketing strategies and tactics have you used in the course of your career?
I’ve used:
- Networking
- SEO
- PPC
- Speaking
- Content marketing (e-books, lead magnets, newsletters)
- Paid social
- Cold outreach (direct and email)
- Display banners
- Directory marketing
- Exhibiting
A tactic absent from this list and one I’ve never generated much business through is referrals or “word of mouth.”
This is a tactic that most agencies like mine rely on for work. Because it’s never been a strong channel for us, I’d like to better understand why that is and whether it’s a missed opportunity.
For the next couple of months, I’m going to periodically come back to growth through referrals as a topic to explore.
My aim is to understand how an intentional word of mouth marketing strategy works, what are the benefits and drawbacks, and what components are needed to operate it.
Some initial questions, I have:
Can you generate referrals without dumping time, energy, and attention into networking?
What are the essential elements of a referral?
What kind of business do referrals work well for?
How would you test a referral strategy?
How long should it take to generate referrals?
Know someone who might know something about this? A good book, course, resource? Shoot me an email.
Featured image is Sir Galahad, the Quest for the Holy Grail by Arthur Hughes (1870). Used under Public Domain.