What is eWOM?
Before the internet, people used to ask their friends and family for advice when buying something. However, the habit remains the same even after the channel has changed. The connected consumer of today looks for electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) suggestions. One of the most powerful social proof indicators available to organizations today is eWOM.
Electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM)
Electronic word of mouth, or eWOM, is the dissemination of information about a good or service through online reviews, influencer-generated content, and social media recommendations. Search engines like Google and Bing, e-commerce websites like Amazon and eBay, well-known applications like Yelp, Nextdoor, and Tripadvisor, and social media sites like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube are all places where people share information.
Over the past few years, eWOM’s influence has progressively increased, offering multi-location business marketers a plethora of opportunities. A potent link between internet searches and in-person buying activities is eWOM.
What Makes Electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) More important than Traditional WOM
It’s usual for brands to deliver unforgettable customer experiences to stimulate word-of-mouth marketing. Consider IKEA’s lifelike showroom experience, which encourages patrons to redesign their own spaces and share their stories with others. Dropbox’s referral program, which provides 500MB of free space to both the referee and the recommendation, is another example.
Even more so than these wildly successful brand WOM marketing strategies, eWOM has enormous potential.
To begin with, electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) has a wider audience reach than your customer’s direct or recognized network and the local community you serve. The possibility of going viral also lends support to it, particularly if your company is well-known on local social media.
Which eWOM Channels are the Most important for your Business to Succeed?
eWOM comes in several forms. It could be electronic word-of-mouth conveyed by text, images, videos, or star ratings. Making sure you are utilizing all of the available formats is crucial if you are looking to profit from eWOM.
i. Online Reviews
Customer reviews are frequently the most important consideration when making a purchase. However, it is a two-way street! The effectiveness of reviews is influenced by their quantity as well as the answers and solutions your company provides to unhappy clients. If they don’t notice any unfavorable reviews, 95% of customers get skeptical. Interestingly, if you don’t reply to your evaluations, thirty per cent of your present clients might not come back to your business.
ii. Ratings
Star ratings have great eWOM power. Your conversion rates can rise by 25% with just 0.1 stars added to your star rating. Some people only wish to click on the start ratings to share their opinions about a business, as not everyone has the time or energy to write a review. While answering reviews and ratings is just as vital, managing the size of such an enterprise can be challenging. But, there are tools and templates available to assist you in making this process more effective.
iii. Recommendations for Social Media
The local listings themselves may serve as effective channels for spreading your eWOM. Including client testimonials, recommendations, social media feed integration, and reviews on your page will help visitors get a favorable opinion of your company.
iv. Websites
The local listings themselves may serve as effective channels for spreading your eWOM. Including client testimonials, recommendations, social media feed integration, and reviews on your page will help visitors get a favorable opinion of your company.
v. Pictures and Reviews of Videos
The more graphic eWOM formats are closely related to everything mentioned before. Reviews that are supported by images and videos of your company help potential customers get a true sense of what your brand is all about. Approximately 60% of consumers claim that well-imaged search results helped them make a decision.
How Can you Manage eWOM?
eWOM has a significant and enduring impact on how people view your company both now and in the future. You must take charge of the story that is being told about your brand. Even though eWOM is entirely user-generated, there are strategies to avoid situations when it might not be advantageous for you.
i. Analyze Sentiment Analysis
Regardless matter how many locations you have, it is crucial to monitor your reviews to gain a broad sense of how people are feeling about your business. Take note of the prevalent themes of discontent as well as the things that customers find admirable so that you may continue to enhance your offerings. Many firms find it difficult to accomplish this manually with cluttered, information-rich Excel sheets. You can manage and scale these activities across sites with the aid of some tools, though.
ii. Regular Responses
Until you actively address your customers’ inquiries, simply being aware of what they are saying in reviews won’t be helpful. Your answers serve as an indirect form of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), demonstrating to prospective customers that you are attentive to their needs and are available to address problems. One of the best ways to manage the story and perception of your business online is to reply to reviews.
iii. Engaging With your Community
Keeping up with the local community you serve is essential to creating positive electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) about your company. Community involvement for location-based businesses is about bringing offline experiences online. This might be as easy as sharing photos of your team working in the community, hosting a local event at your store, or highlighting an employee of the month for each location on the local Facebook page of that location. Your eWOM will spread more widely if you establish local relationships in each community you serve and foster more genuine, human interactions with your clients.
iv. Is eWOM Trustworthy?
It takes work to create a positive and enduring eWOM, therefore it’s crucial to consider whether the effort is worthwhile. Sixty-six per cent of US consumers believe that the problem of fake reviews is getting worse, according to our survey on review fraud. Recently, the US Federal Trade Corporation has spearheaded several initiatives against companies that were purportedly hiding unfavorable ratings.
Nevertheless, it is also true that 90% of customers look up internet reviews before making an online or in-store purchase. Two-thirds of Facebook users visit a local company page at least once a week, according to another surprising piece of statistics.
This shows how much social media content may affect your local audience. Given that more and more shopping trips start online and end in physical locations, it is reasonable to believe that eWOM will continue to have a significant impact.
Final Words - eWOM
eWOM is essential in forming brand loyalty and engagement in addition to impacting customer behavior and brand perceptions. Customers who are happy with a company and tell their networks about it not only help to build its reputation but also act as brand ambassadors, which promotes organic growth and client acquisition.
Furthermore, eWOM’s real-time nature enables companies to obtain insightful data about customer trends, preferences, and market dynamics. Businesses can spot new opportunities, handle any problems, and stay ahead of the competition by keeping an eye on and analyzing internet comments.
Moreover, electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) is a vital component of authenticity and trust in a world where digital interactions rule. In an ocean of commercials and marketing messaging, sincere referrals from colleagues are significantly more powerful.
FAQs - eWOM
Along with review websites like Yelp and TripAdvisor, social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are popular avenues for producing electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM).
Companies can stimulate good electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) by offering outstanding customer service, rewarding testimonials, and interacting with clients on social media.
Effectively managing negative eWOM entails admitting the problem, expressing regret if required, and providing a fix or compensation to make things right.
Because eWOM is credible and real, research indicates that it frequently has greater influence than traditional advertising.
Influencer marketing uses the reach and power of reliable people to genuinely recommend goods and services, which can enhance electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM).
Metrics that businesses can monitor include website traffic, conversion rates, and sales that are attributable to recommendations from social media mentions and online reviews. Tools for sentiment analysis can also be used to determine the general tenor and attitude of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) surrounding a brand.
By sharing their recommendations and experiences with their followers, online influencers can increase electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM). Businesses can expand their reach and boost brand recognition by partnering with influencers who share their values and appeal to the target audience. This is achieved through the provision of genuine and reliable endorsements.
