[Welcome back to the You Can Be a Word of Mouth Marketing Supergenius! newsletter. This is text from the great issue all of our email subscribers just received. Sign yourself up using the handy form on the right.]
“Sounds great, but does any of this word of mouth stuff work for BtoB brands?”
That’s one of the most common questions we get. And the answer is not only does it work, but there are several BtoB brands who could teach the BtoC’s a thing or two about how to do it. A few ideas:
1. Take us behind the scenes
2. Create a word of mouth hub
3. Help talkers meet each other
1. Take us behind the scenes
Showing fans the stuff they rarely have access to can be a great way to create conversations — and BtoB brands have a lot of opportunities to do it. A great recent example is what GE is doing with a simple Tumblr blog. With the help of the photo-filtering app Instagram, they’re sharing some amazing photos from their research labs, manufacturing plants, and archives.
2. Create a word of mouth hub
If you’re creating a lot of content, try what Cisco does and create a central hub where people can find it and pass it along. Their Newsroom features white papers, videos, and feeds from Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr. And the best part: They’ve made it really easy to share the content with Facebook Like, Twitter, and email forward buttons everywhere.
3. Help talkers meet each other
One of the best ways to create a bunch of conversations is to connect fans and talkers with other people like them. Few brands have done this with as much success as SAP’s Community Network. Now eight years old, their community brings together more than 2 million customers, employees, and even competitors to meet subject matter experts and share best practices.
