What is word of mouth marketing? Investopedia defines word-of-mouth marketing (or WOMM) as “when a consumer’s interest in a company’s product or service is reflected in daily dialogues.” Word-of-mouth marketing examples include buzz, viral, blogs, emotional testimonials, and social media marketing. In other words, it’s a form of marketing that’s heavily dependent on the consumer.
Why is WOM marketing important? Folks, according to Nielsen, 88% of respondents in a recent survey trust recommendations from people they know. And if you’re selling in North America in Europe, a word-of-mouth marketing strategy is crucial, since trust in advertising is pretty low in these continents. (Luckily, trust in advertising improves in Africa, the Middle East, and in Latin America.)
However, it’s easier said than done to drive word-of-mouth marketing, since it’s continent on consumer sentiment, which any marketing expert will tell you is so intangible. People love to tell their friends about their experiences. A 5-star restaurant with the most amazing customer service can still get a negative review on Yelp, negatively affecting their performance.
Nevertheless, for the eCommerce seller, there are real ways to use word-of-mouth marketing to your advantage. When you expand globally, organic word-of-mouth marketing is an excellent way to spread the word about your business, especially if you’re not yet a household name.
Read on to uncover a strategy that works for Amazon sellers looking to improve their success on the global arena!
We’ve also got tips on organic marketing and influencer marketing strategies for global success!
1. The Role of Word-of-Mouth Marketing (WOMM) in Global Amazon Expansion
It’s impossible to underplay the power of word of mouth marketing when you’re expanding globally. Put it this way: you’re trying to reach a new audience in diverse – and possibly unfamiliar – regions. So, customer acquisition is a big priority for you when you’re selling in new markets. When trying to influence the purchasing decisions of new customers, especially in a language you don’t personally speak and whose culture may be foreign to you, word of mouth marketing can provide the authenticity and trust you need to gain traction. Unlike traditional advertising, which can be met with skepticism, word of mouth recommendations carry more weight, because they come from trusted sources – one’s peers.
In global markets, local consumers often turn to recommendations from people they trust, like friends, family, coworkers, or community members. New customers are more likely to try a product when they hear about it from someone they know and trust – so, get people to talk about your business, and build brand awareness. Essentially, word of mouth marketing is a type of marketing that elevates regular customers into brand ambassadors, when they share their experiences with others. Although the best word of mouth marketing examples use people with a first degree of affinity to your target audience, in the huge world of Amazon this isn’t always realistic, but we’ll get into tangible tactics on how to create a word-of-mouth marketing program a little later.
We must impress upon you first that paid ads can create visibility, but they often struggle to connect with customers in new markets. But when you promote your products through word of mouth marketing tactics, you provide an organic way to reach potential customers where paid strategies may falter. Localized word of mouth marketing spreads naturally, allowing your brand to resonate with the values, preferences, and behavior of the community. Use word of mouth marketing to build a foundation of trust, helping you gain a foothold in diverse markets that paid ads cannot. When your paid marketing comes off as untrustworthy or suspicious (because of human nature, not due to any error on your part!), harness the power of word of mouth marketing.
2. Building Trust Through Localized Word of Mouth Marketing
So, let’s say you’ve successfully expanded your Amazon store to another country. But you’re juggling many balls in the air: cultural nuances, language barriers, the wants and needs of your new customers, and so forth. Even if your SEO strategy is on point, and your images and A+ are designed beautifully, you still need to build trust with your market.
When you invite customers to share their experiences with your brand, you encourage word of mouth marketing. We can’t underscore the power of the product insert enough. People trust online reviews, especially on eCommerce sites, so make sure your marketing team puts energy into getting Amazon product reviews of your business, product, and brand. You’ll definitely want to localize your product insert and packaging to resonate with your new customers, and get people talking about your business.
Now, what if the word of mouth marketing that comes through is negative? Although difficult, it’s not impossible to turn a dissatisfied customer into a happy one. Implement the customer service best practices to turn their experience into a positive one. Although they may not be crazy about your product, genuine concern and a desire to make your customer happy will definitely help turn that negative review around.
3. Tapping Into Local Influencers and Communities for Word-of-Mouth Marketing
So, knowing that consumers trust other consumers, partner with regional influencers to trigger viral marketing and word-of-mouth advertising. We say regional influencers because the success of word of mouth advertising depends on the word of someone your consumers like and trust. If you employ an influencer from another country, there’s a chance that cultural wants and needs won’t be addressed, and the level of trust may go down. No matter how attractive it may sound to get a Kim Kardashian or a Mr. Beast to be part of your marketing campaign, it might be more effective to find a micro influencer (10,000-100,000 followers) on TikTok and other social networks to increase engagement rates with your target audience. These people have built trust with their followers through consistent, relatable content. By partnering with influencers who understand the local culture, you can tap into the power of personal recommendations on a larger scale, therefore amplifying your brand’s reach while delivering authentic, localized endorsements that are more likely to convert new customers.
Nevertheless, don’t pour all your budget into influencer marketing. A survey of 1,000 Americans between 18-60 years old showed that almost 90% of customers don’t trust influencers, and prefer user-generated content instead. That’s not to say you shouldn’t include influencer marketing in your WOMM strategy; just make sure you collaborate with an influencer whose values and content aligns with your brand, and doesn’t come across as salesy. Remember, customers know when they’re being sold to. You’re aiming for influencers that naturally resonate with your target audience, and already advocate for similar products or causes. The authentic connection really helps to build trust and enhances your brand’s credibility.
Here are some examples of word-of-mouth marketing that uses influencers to boost performance in foreign markets.
Anker – the leading electronics brand – worked with influencers in Europe and Asia to promote their product lines. By partnering with trusted tech reviewers and lifestyle influencers in new regions, Anker was able to build credibility and increase brand awareness, ultimately driving sales growth.
Mama Bear – a baby-care brand – collaborated with parenting influencers in various countries to promote the products. The influencers shared personal stories about using the brand’s products, creating a genuine connection with their followers. Note that Mama Bear didn’t choose a celebrity endorser to push marketing efforts; they chose influencers whose content aligns with their products, driving a message of authenticity.
So, it’s established that consumers believe people like them, and are more likely to buy a product if they hear about it from a peer or an influencer they have something in common with (like geographic region, lifestyle, and so forth). Influencer marketing is one of the awesome ways to harness word-of-mouth marketing, but it’s imperative to choose the right influencer – one that aligns with your content, mission, and values – and someone with whom your target market feels at ease.
In other words, is the influencer someone who’d naturally buy your product? Then they’re probably the right one for you.
Then, it’s a snowball effect. The influencer gets their audience to try out your product, and if their audience likes it, they spread the word, resulting in one of the best word-of-mouth marketing strategies that’s easy to implement. You encourage brand loyalty and increase sales, in any country you may be selling in. But choosing a regional influencer is a really good idea, over someone whose connection to your brand and product may be a little farther.
4. Word-of-Mouth Marketing Best Practices for Sellers Expanding Globally
Word-of-mouth marketing happens when happy customers spread the word – and the most obvious place to encourage this is to ask your buyers to leave a customer review.
(Naturally, the first step in the process is to create something worth talking about, so make sure your product development is in tune with the market you plan to sell in. Check out YLT’s Amazon product opportunity report to remove the guess work from your expansion.)
In addition to Amazon product reviews, think about engaging customers through social media presence. Developing a social media community of your own, or even joining a related community where your customers may be interacting with each other, is a great way to get the word out about your product. Social media sites don’t have the restrictions of Amazon, so you’ve got lots more freedom when it comes to addressing customers through social media. You can email them, send them a DM, etc. – just make sure you communicate with them in the spirit of truly wanting to help.
Here’s where you can experiment with referral marketing – or, encouraging current customers to refer a friend, family member, or contact to your business and become new customers in turn. It’s a great way to spread the word about your product or brand in new countries. You could reward referrals with discounts, coupon codes, buy-1-get-1 offers, and so forth.
Dropbox is a prime example of a brand that uses an extremely effective referral program. Early in its growth, Dropbox implemented a simple yet highly successful referral system where both the referrer and the person being referred received additional free storage space when the referral signed up. This “double-sided reward” approach incentivized users to spread the word about Dropbox while also benefiting them directly.
The referral program played a major role in Dropbox’s rapid user growth, helping the company expand globally. By leveraging its existing user base to bring in new customers, Dropbox harnessed word-of-mouth marketing to scale efficiently without relying heavily on traditional advertising. This program is often cited as one of the most successful referral strategies in the tech world, with the company experiencing exponential growth as a result.
Last but not least, consider interactive contests that are targeted at specific markets. Think about Share a Coke, Coca-Cola‘s fantastic marketing campaign, which allowed customers to find bottles labeled with popular local names and share them with friends and family.
The personalization of the product encouraged customers to participate in the campaign by finding and sharing photos of their personalized Coke bottles on social media.
To further engage specific regions, Coca-Cola also launched local contests where people could submit their names or those of loved ones, with the chance to have them printed on bottles. This localized engagement sparked significant word-of-mouth marketing across various countries, as consumers felt a personal connection to the brand through the interactive, community-driven element of the campaign. The result was widespread buzz and an increased sense of brand loyalty in different markets around the world.
Now that’s really effective WOM marketing.
5. How YLT Translations Can Boost Your Global Word of Mouth Marketing Strategy
If we’re cavalier with the 80/20 principle, we’d wager that word of mouth marketing is 80% customer, 20% you. But YLT Translations can help through effective localization.
First of all, professionally translated and culturally adapted Amazon listings can increase customer trust and encourage positive reviews across borders. It’s so important to speak to your customer in the language that they speak in – culturally significant terms, idiomatic expressions, pop culture references, and all. When you communicate to customers in their language, especially if it flows naturally and authentically, you increase the probability that they’ll buy your product – and leave a positive review. Put it this way: they can’t leave a review, and engage in word of mouth marketing, if they don’t even know your product exists. That’s why we stand by the eCommerce best practices in SEO to make sure your product stands in the pathway of your ideal customer.
Secondly, offer real-time customer support. We love the customer service chatbot, because you can program it with FAQs – and translate it into the language of your customers. That way, your customers’ queries get answered in real time – so your Japanese customer gets their answer even while you get your beauty sleep in New Hampshire. Any specific questions that can’t be answered by the chatbot can be addressed by you – or an Amazon virtual assistant – at a later time, but at least the customer knows that they’re being heard and their concerns are registered. That makes a huge impact.
The bottom line here is that customers are more likely to leave a positive review if they’ve enjoyed the experience. Finesse the experience, and the likelihood of word of mouth marketing improves.
Conclusion: Implement a Word-of-Mouth Marketing Strategy and Get People Talking About You!
So, to recap – an excellent way to penetrate marketing channels across the globe, especially for Amazon sellers seeking to increase their international foothold, is through word of mouth marketing. It builds trust, credibility, and loyalty by harnessing authentic recommendations from local consumers, which are particularly impactful in new and diverse markets. WOMM amplifies brand awareness in ways that paid advertising often cannot, especially when cultural nuances and local preferences are key to connecting with customers. By fostering positive word-of-mouth, sellers can not only establish a foothold in new regions but also maintain long-term customer relationships, driving sustained growth.
In short, social proof by way of reviews and testimonials are an incredibly successful marketing tactic. Word of mouth marketing is one of the best ways to increase awareness and sales. Encourage UGC through product reviews, a social media post, and more, and you’ll find that your job as a marketer becomes so much easier. Every business really should learn how to use word of mouth marketing – not only does it benefit your business, but customers feel heard and acknowledged, and that can only result in good stuff at the end of the day.
Don’t forget, YLT Translations can help you optimize your global Amazon presence with expert multilingual support and customer-centric solutions. The best way to encourage word of mouth marketing and user-generated content is to provide your customers with a seamless buying experience, so optimize those listings properly through targeted, accurate, and well-informed localization! Start your journey to global success with YLT Translations; we’re definitely here to help.
You might also be interested in the importance of localizing your external marketing, so check out our blog for some important articles that can help you scale and expand!