Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Is "word-of-mouth" the new form of communication?

So, to sort of keep a theme going (sometimes, perhaps, called "beating a dead horse"), I'm still thinking about some of what I read on our pal Jeff Jarvis' blog (see last week's post). Among other interesting things, he asks (or says) the following in his PowerPoint:
  1. Is advertising replaced by quality and service?
  2. Are the customers the ad agency?
  3. The mass market is dead – long live the mass of niches.

Now, as I said, his focus is on marketing, on advertising. Still, I think that what's behind these three items really speaks to what's at the heart of this class. Think not merely about advertising, but also about language, about communication. What kind of claim do you think he's making about how technology (especially the Interwebs) is in the process of changing how we communicate.

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12 comments:

  1. lajonesFebruary 25, 2009 at 6:53 PM

    I believe he is stating that now in today's society a lot of informal language and personal communication is accepted. I also feel he related money to the quality of marketing a product or service.

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  2. Galynne CarsonFebruary 26, 2009 at 7:08 AM

    Also, I agree with Ms. Jones. I feel that that type of language is acceptable and people are not worried about using the proper form of language. Especially with the popular form of text language!

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  3. Prof. HartFebruary 26, 2009 at 1:22 PM

    LOL, Galynne. Great comments! Keep 'em coming.

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  4. Danica M.March 2, 2009 at 9:34 AM

    I think that he is asking the obvious questions that others either don't really ask, or fail to think about. Yes, advertising really is replaced by quality and service in my opinion. We can see a cute billboard or commercial and merely get a laugh off of it, but that doesn't necessarily mean that we will switch to use that product. Which then ties in with the fact that customers really are the ad agency. Many people are more comforted in knowing that someone wlse has used a product and like it rather than seeing an ad for a product anf testing it out for themself. It is "word of mouth" that entices people to purchase, invest, and switch to other products.

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  5. Prof. HartMarch 2, 2009 at 11:34 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. ReshardmanMarch 3, 2009 at 5:26 AM

    I believe that advertising can be replaced by quality and service. The reason why is because of “word of mouth”. If you do a good job for whatever it is you do, you will be referred by your customers and have good rapport - which is good advertising. This would mean that the customers are the ads, although should not be the main agency (especially when there is a large area that needs to be reached). I don’t believe the mass market is dead. Catering/marketing to the masses helps more than the niches (or at least it is faster and more effective).Not being a business major, I assume it will take longer to spread the word through niches. It seems to be an analogy: advertising is to mass marketing as niches is to quality and service.

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  7. Prof. HartMarch 3, 2009 at 6:31 AM

    From Marion:
    I think that “word of mouth” is still a valid way to advertise with one caveat; “word of mouth” today is different than many years ago. It does still have the elements of personal recommendations and encouragements but now the word-of-mouth activity is done through the social networks such as facebook and myspace.

    For a true campaign is important to have specific goals and a define target market and with that information you can start brainstorming about the possible strategies and tactics to reach the desired market.

    We are bombarded with messages from all points, competition for attention is furious so a good crafted message is key to get a little attention from the audience.

    The best campaign will probably be the one that have a variety of activities with the same message targeting the same group and word-of-mouth is one option among many.

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  8. YolandaMarch 3, 2009 at 6:41 AM

    Receiving information via word of mouth is now an accepted form of advertisement. Many people are critical about the commericals they view and would prefer to receive information about products that have been used by people they trust.

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  9. Darren MosesMarch 5, 2009 at 7:23 AM

    To me word of mouth is the easiest way to pass information about something today. When a friend of yours tells you about something its natural for you to develop an immediate interest to it. Next you will want more knowledge on that particular thing. If its a product then that person has just used the same advertising strategy that a company tries to but in a much more simple way.

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  10. AnonymousMarch 17, 2009 at 6:22 PM

    This link has some interesting information but the video is slow:

    http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=6f2c2eba77f39993d118&page=1&viewtype=&category=

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  11. UnknownMay 2, 2009 at 11:34 PM

    Although technology is an easy way to communicate, I believe the author wants us to see that sharing information by word of mouth probably is more effective when it comes to advertising and marketing because it gives people a feeling of personal comfort.

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  12. UnknownMay 2, 2009 at 11:37 PM

    Although technology is an excellent means for marketing and adverstising, I believe the author wants us to see that sharing information by word of mouth is probably an even better form of communication because there is a personal connection involved.

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