How do you identify the ideal audience for word of mouth marketing?

By Ted Wright January 27, 2020

How does a story find its ideal audience? This is a very common question and an important one. If you’re trying to activate word of mouth marketing for the first time, what’s the process to identify the ideal audience targeted for your stories?

There is a very old adage in sales and marketing – you need to go fish where the fish are! So if your product story is about diapers and cleanliness, then ask yourself — who really cares about diapers and cleanliness?

Well, if you have somebody in your life that’s under five or over 80, then diapers might be a part of their life. The next step is to brainstorm about the places where you can possibly reach these people and their caregivers. Where do they go hang out?

And then, most important, how do we get into that space, either physically or virtually? And you have to be native to the experience. You can’t interrupt people or interrupt them.

So it’s a process,

I’ll take this opportunity to explain how NOT spread your story to a relevant audience.

C’mon American Express

When I go to an airport, I am almost always accosted by somebody who says, “Excuse me, would you like to sign up for this airline credit card?”

It’s pretty annoying.

I’ve always thought that American Express should hire magicians … Performers who can do close handwork magic. And they’re doing card tricks on the concourse. They make something disappear, and they make something reappear.

They tell you a story of how you can add bonus miles to your card like magic. Instead of avoiding these people, you’ll go watch them and you’ll learn something about their card because generally, we’re bored in airports.

And if you have kids? Oh my gosh. Of course you’re going to hear this story. Probably many times.

And in the end, the guy goes, Okay, that’s my trick. Now, who wants to sign up for this wonderful credit card.

So if I were Delta thinking about this, I’d be concerned about the expense. Would it be more expensive? Probably not much. How many magicians would jump at the chance to work during the day? All of a sudden, you’re providing a valuable dayshift for these performers.

And the first time a reporter walks to an airport gate and sees it, there are going to be news stories about it.

My point in telling this story is that finding your audience is only half the challenge. How do you activate that story in an effective way?

Ted Wright is the founder of Fizz, the world’s leading word of mouth marketing (WOMM) agency. Ted is also an acclaimed WOMM keynote speaker and the author of Fizz: Harness the Power of Word of Mouth Marketing to Drive Brand Growth.

Illustration courtesy Unsplash.com