Here is a good comparison of Blog technologies if you are interested. I started out on Blogger to get moving quickly and because it was more of an experiment.

http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/050714gardner/

I am bringing it up because blogging is becoming an increasingly popular way to stand out on the web and to create buzz.

It is tough to talk with family about what you do sometimes.

I went back to a family reunion today and at first felt that I could have done better. I was not running about talking about the business.

Then I remembered I am not supposed to be selling, just mentioning it. That made it easier. I actually talked with six people about the business. (In front of another ten or so people.)

Will it change the sales figures tomorrow? I doubt it. But it is still mission accomplished.

I would like to pose a new question to the word of mouth and Buzz Marketing community.

Instead of targeting your message to the influential folk (The top 10% of people that the other 90% of people tend to listen to) is it not possible to create some influential people?

Let me explain a bit better. To become influential, you have to believe what you are talking about, not be afraid to tell people about it, and to have an ever-growing circle of people that want to listen to you, at least on the topic that you are a perceived expert on.

So if I look at 100 people, (lets assume employees) and I have regular access to them, can I train and challenge all of them to be (at least) a little more influential and won’t a certain percentage discover how much fun it is and become extremely influential? Now, as employees, you have helped them achieve this state and life is better, and they are now happier with the company, and they have more people that will listed to them. What is the impact on the company? Good to great, I am guessing. And it is a gift that will keep on giving.

What traits would an employee have when they move from less to more influential in their social circles?

• Better attitude and customer service at work
• Feels more included in the company
• Feels more pride and appreciation for the company
• Spreads the word about what a great place it is
• Becomes a more valuable resource to the employer

If you are already familiar with the advocate thinking, consider how a slower, but steady effort to make your entire workstaff move in this direction would effect your company. Please leave your comments.

Buzzoodle will be starting studies to measure this very soon. Contact us if you are interested in participating.

http://www.techweb.com/showPressRelease.jhtml?articleID=X345497

Buzzoodle is about building better word of mouth with your employees and other advocates. If you question how important that is, read the above aricle.

Who would have thought that the oldest form of marketing is a new industry.

I just got back from the WOMMA conference in Chicago and it was a good time. What amazed me most was the fact that this is really a new industry with a lot of opportunity. When we started Buzzoodle, we were just trying to solve our own problem by creating a better way to get our advocates to get out there and start talking. Sometimes an everyday problem propels you into a whole new world.

On another note, I want to thank David Lorenzo for including us on his blog. He created his blog to help businesses grow and he is very passionate about word of mouth. It is fun to meet like minds.

People are immediately interested in getting all their employees building buzz for them.

In many cases, what works best is to create the advocates for buzz first. These are people who get it. Who are already talking about where they work and what they do. They look forward to the challenge of creating more buzz and measuring it.

Get these people trained and then put them in an organizational roll with a team to create buzz. Fellow employees that are excited about buzz and talking about the organization are going to be much more effective than an edict from the management staff.

These employees can then build their buzz team. They can get the group together for lunch or after work get togethers to discuss buzz, and keep it light-hearted and fun. The most effective way to create word of mouth and buzz with your employees is to educate them on it, and have them enjoy doing it.

When writing some of the 260+ default buzzoodle challenges earlier this year, there was something we noticed. The season can really play a big factor (especially in the north) when formulating a Buzz Strategy.

How many different buzz activities take place outside? How many are at events that are held more frequently or better attended in the winter months? How many more people do you meet on vacation or when you start attending school events with your kids again?

Buzz can be done year round. When formulating a strategy it is important to keep the various opportunities in the different seasons in mind.

To get people to talk about your organization you have to make it easy.

A story that is worth repeating or a specialty skill that people need and cannot find easily. People spend a lot of time crafting their 30 second pitch, but what are the things people would spread about you without practice?

Create several of these stories and you will find that you won’t need your elevator pitch as much.

I had a nice talk with the PR person I mentioned in the earlier post.

I have to say I cringed a bit after posting that, but left it as I am very lazy and it was not a lie. Plus it is not bad to mix it up a bit.

As he pointed out to me, he gave me his opinion in confidence and I should not have written about it, as I did. (Especially as he is a reader)

Sorry about that Jim. Next time we will clearly say “Off the blog” or “On the blog”

The problem companies have in not creating effective buzz and word of mouth in most cases stems from a lack of focus and fuzzy goals.

To effectively execute a planned buzz campaign be sure to have the following:

1. Clear Vision
2. Promote one thing, not everything you do.
3. Way to capitalize on buzz
4. Great stories people would want to repeat
5. Know who would be nice to reach such as industry experts
6. Perseverance – You don’t close a business after one month, and you should not give up on buzz after one month.