Word-of-mouth marketing is perhaps one of the most effective and inexpensive methods of securing new business as well as fostering trust with your current client base. 

Receiving a recommendation about your small business from a peer, friend or acquaintance, can give prospective clients the confidence push they need to purchase from you. 

Small business owners should consider word-of-mouth marketing as free advertising. It’s common for larger corporations to inject millions into advertising campaigns to win over consumers from their competition’s attention. However, small businesses, who commonly don’t have a large budget to spend on marketing can nonetheless generate invaluable brand exposure through the power of word of mouth.

The question you need to ask yourself is, how can you get your customers to be both advocates of your offering and promote it as well? 

Let’s explore 14 low-cost tips that you can implement to push word of mouth marketing for your business.

1. Provide unique and high-quality products and services. The first tip is perhaps the most obvious but nonetheless an important one. Your customers will only be advocates of your virtues if they are happy with the product they’ve purchased and received. 

2. Provide excellent customer service. The secret here is to treat your customers the way you would like to be treated. A few basics to remember are:

• Smile at customers when you talk to them and be polite
• Answer customer’s questions and don’t keep them waiting unnecessarily
• Where possible, have a real person answer the phone
• If customer’s reach voice mail, have the client directed to an announcement that tells them you will call back within 24 hours.
• If you provide a service, make sure the service is completed on time and within the budget
• Keep the customer informed about changes/delays and update them on the status of service delivery
• Never raise your voice, be sarcastic, or speak in a demeaning way to customers.

3. Be kind and friendly. People respond to being remembered, if you know a customer’s name, call them by name either in person or telephonically. Always show interest in how the customer is doing and how you might make life easier for them.

4. Be concise with your answers but also be relatable. If you are selling something technical, aim not to get annoyed if they have trouble understanding what you are saying. Rephrase your answer so that the customer better understands. If there’s some industry news or product information that will be helpful to customers, pass it along to them.

5. Return calls promptly. Don’t let your customer wonder where their delivery or service is. Keep the client informed with status updates periodically. Should a customer try to reach you, make sure you return their call or email as soon as possible.

6. Don’t ever argue with a customer, even if they complain about your product or service. Apologise (regardless of you whether you think the customer may be wrong) and tell them you will find a way to solve their problem by speaking to your manager, if you are the manager, use your discretion, but throwing in a discount or voucher always helps. By handling these kinds of problems quickly and efficiently, you and your employees can turn irate customers into fans and advocates.

7. Keep in touch with customers by email. Using email to communicate regularly with customers who have requested to be on your mailing list, creates brand consistency and keeps you at the top of their mind. If you are regularly providing interesting information, they will brag to their friends, who have similar interests, about the benefits they have received.

8. Be careful not to spam. Offer clients the option to OPT-OUT from marketing text or emails. This will also ensure you comply with the POPI act. Also don’t send too many emails, text messages or newsletters as this will be seen as spam.

9. Be personally visible to your market. Join networking groups that your customers follow and be a regular attendee at meetings and events. Talk to people at meetings to find out what they do and what’s important to them and what challenges they are facing. When you can, give them tips or point them to resources that might be beneficial to them. Your goal is to be seen as a thought leader and problem solver.

10. Be active on social media. Set up Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages for your business. Additionally, be sure to select any other social media channels that are likely to reach your target audience. Encourage your customers to follow, contribute or share. Consider running competitions and special promotions to encourage online participation. A social media “share” is an excellent form of word of mouth about your company as well as paid ads.

11. Provide testimonials. Revealing customer praise to other potential customers provides a sense of surety that encourages interest in your business. 

12. Market your business. Have your logo/information added to vehicles and on your building and if possible, advertise on a billboard of some kind. Make your business phone number visible on every page of your website and other necessary platforms.

13. Refer your business to non-competing businesses. When you refer customers or clients to others, those businesses are more likely to refer business back to you.

14. Thank your customers for their business. Everyone likes to be appreciated, especially when they are spending money. Thank them with a handshake, a call or an email.