Use Word of Mouth to Get More Business

The return on investment from advertising, adwords, and newspapers is dropping. Interrupting people doesn’t work as well as it used to

If you’re not getting the results you want, try word of mouth instead.
It’s a great way to get more business. Instead of spending money on ads to people who don’t know you or your work, why not leverage what you’re already getting? Set up a referral program, encourage, reward the referrals you get. Tell your customers who would be a good referral for you, explain what you’ll do with the information, and how you’ll follow up.

More on this here: Your Customers are Your Most Effective Sales Force.

Don’t Steal This Idea

David Meerman Scott posted about the <a href=”http://www.webinknow.com/2008/09/learning-from-t.html”>3M post-it debacle</a>
a couple of months ago (September 24, 2008). In a nutshell, someone put post-it notes all over a colleague’s car, and posted pictures. It spread virally, 3M found out, and wanted to use the pictures for free. When the creators said no; the company created their own post-it car and stole the idea!

Bottom line, whether it’s online or offline, social media or old media, it’s not OK to steal or lie or cheat. 3M had thousands of dollars worth of publicity, without spending a dime, and they blew it.

Be authentic, share your passion, tell the truth.