Seth Godin is one of the most relevant marketing experts today. I personally read his blog post every day and find tremendous value in his unique perspective and insight.

He just posted a free e-bookthat I highly recommend.

Enjoy

Word of Mouth Marketing – a strategy in which you engage customers and get them talking about your service or products – can quickly grow your business. Here are some tactics for implementing a successful WOMM strategy.

1. Provide excellent customer service. Nothing spreads your name faster than delivering excellent service. One of the best books I ever read on this is Ken Blanchard’s book – Raving Fans

2. Diversify your network. Become visible and active in your community. Make a goal to meet five new people per week and share with them a few key points about you and your business. If you need help with this join a BNI (Business Networking International) group or some other networking group where you have the opportunity to perfect your 60 second commercial.

3. Give people something to talk about. Word of mouth marketing centers on the message you want to spread. Make sure you have something memorable, relevant and timely enough for people to share with others. Did you just help someone solve a unique problem? Are you going to be involved in an upcoming community fundraising event? Do you have a unique insight on the market that is valuable in helping others make more informed decisions?

4. Use technology to move your message. E-mails, blogs, Linked-In, Facebook and Twitter exist for you to be able to spread your message to a large audience quickly. If you have something that is relevant, timely, and scarce to share with people they will talk about you and your business to the friends and associates.

Visit the Word of Mouth Marketing Association website (www.womma.org) to learn more about this very effective marketing strategy.

The other day I was at the gas station filling up my wife’s car when a gentleman asked me how I liked my car. I spoke with him for five minutes about my car and he told me that he was going to buy one for himself. He never asked me who I was or how much I knew about cars, it was enough for him that I owned the car. This got me to thinking about how much faith we put in the opinions of people who have first hand knowledge of a product or service. We trust them much more than all of the industry experts combined.

Don’t underestimate how much people look to you for advice about the products and services you use. It may be even more important to realize that your customers are the ones people will go to for information on how good, or bad, your product or service is. People view the real product experts as the people that use them every day, not the so called experts in the field. Make sure you know what your customers are saying about you because your future customers are sure to find out.

This brings me back to the importance of social media. It offers people a louder voice that is being listened to more. As trust in brands and the experts that promote them erodes, people will continue to place more value on recommendations from friends.

The economic downturn has accelerated the use of social media by people looking for information from you, the expert. So now you know who the real product experts are.

Whenever mortgage rates change, they get a lot of media attention especially if the rates go up or down by more than 1/2 percent. But according to a Harris Interactive survey, potential homebuyers revealed that for the most part, interest rates play only a minor role in the decision to purchase a home. In fact, low rates were the primary motivator in home purchases for a mere four percent (4%) of the respondents who planned on buying a home within the next two years. This is a significant observation considering that the Treasury is considering a plan to push mortgage rates down to 4 1/2 percent. They believe that by forcing down the cost of loans they can help stimulate the economy. Read more on this at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28045659. So is this really the best way to spend tax payer dollars?

I don’t think this is a good idea. My thoughts are that instead of lowering rates we should do more to stimulate the economy by creating more jobs (not just for mortgage professionals like me but for everyone). The Harris survey reveled that the driving force for homebuyers was major life-changing events. Twenty-five percent (25%) said retirement, new baby or divorce were the catalysts for buying a home. Eighteen percent (18%) said they wanted a bigger house or more property. Twelve percent (12%) did not want to rent any longer and sixteen percent (16%) said they wanted to buy for investment reasons. Only seven percent (7%) said that they bought a home for the tax benefits.

While low mortgage rates make a new home more affordable for first time home buyers, they are more likely to have a major impact on refinancing activity rather than new home purchases. Mortgage rates will always rise and fall, but the life events that create the need for homeownership are the steady engines that serve to motivate home shoppers to become buyers.

Sale professionals in every industry rely on testimonials. They are a powerful tool for showcasing the statements of satisfied customers in order to attract new customers. Here are two ways to use testimonials in marketing your business:

Gather the gems. Go to your best customers and get testimonials. All you need is 60 and 90 words that touch on the key value propositions you offer your clients

Show your results. Ask a few satisfied customers if you can take a picture of them in their new home. Put this picture on a flyer or your web site along with their testimonial.

If you’re not visible to your customers, you’re invisible. To create repeat business and future referrals, you need to maintain client relationships. This means always staying in touch.

Keep contact with clients on a regular basis. Make sure your name is always in front of them. Pass on any information that will be useful to them to demonstrate your knowledge of the market. This will position you as a valuable resource to them.