Brands need love!

trnd infografics - november 2011 - www.trnd.com/company - [email protected] Brands need love! (not just likes) Strong brands need ambassadors who don't just like the brand, but who really love it with all their heart. People who are deeply tied to "their" brand. People who will stand up and root for "their" brand. Word-of-Mouth Marketing can develop such loving relationships. with trnd, for instance. Real LIKE! Word-of-Mouth Marketing (i.e. via trnd) Product test/ Sampling Advertising in Social Networks (i.e. ads or pages) Who are the participants? Ambassadors. Testers. A carefully-selected group of brand ambassadors who, in collaboration with the company, promote "their" Fans. People who click a "Become a fan" or "Like" button. People who like to receive and try out free products. brand. Task for the participants? Testing. People are expected to try and rate products. However, if the dialogue with the brand isn't there, then the approach is much like random sampling in the street. Working together. Brand ambassadors are carefully chosen because they are willing to really invest a certain amount of time per week for a brand, without pay. Clicking. People are expected to click or like, and to then keep up-to-date with the brand's activities. At the end of the day, the mechanism is akin to subscribing to a newsletter. „Sweat Equity!" What are the messages? "Real stories from Advertising stories. Traditional advertising campaigns take centre stage in many product tests and samplings. However, advertising messages will never be as relevant as "good stories shared among friends." real people." The ambassadors take centre stage in WOM marketing. It is all about their experiences and relationships PR stories. Similar to traditional email newslet- ters or customer magazines, where prepared PR content is used. to the brand. The result: Credible and relevant brand messages that have a strong likelihood of being passed on (both on and offline). „Me and the brand!" Marketing budget is being invested in ... People. Product samples. If you invest your advertising budget in a product test or sampling, then you are sponsoring free product samples. As a result, your target group will receive "products for free." If you invest in Word-of-Mouth Mar- keting then you are directly investing in people who love your brand. You are specifically supporting the enthusiasm and passion of your brand ambassadors and helping them to do what they love doing: Online tools. If you invest your advertising budget in "fans" and "likes" then you are contributing to the development of social networking tools. As a result, your target group receives "tools for free." promoting the brand. »Apps for free!" „People are the killer-App!" How sustainable is the campaign? Brand advocates. With Word-of-Mouth Marketing you are directly investing in the develop- ment of brand advocates. In doing this, you achieve a high level of com- mitment and lay the foundations for a movement that can grow and flourish for years to come. Trials. Clicks & likes. Generating trials is good. However, if a one-on-one dialogue with the brand is missing, then the "For Free"-Programme is likely to devaluate the brand, and attract bargain hunters. Traditional eyeball mechanisms are mostly used, you get likes, impressions and clicks, etc. Where should your brand live? In the hearts of people? In a sampling? Online? trnd 2011 - www.trnd.com/company