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100 COMPANIES JOIN WORD OF MOUTH MARKETING ASSOCIATION IN JUST FIVE MONTHS
100 COMPANIES JOIN WORD OF MOUTH MARKETING ASSOCIATION IN JUST FIVE MONTHS
Rapid Association Growth Reflects Emerging New Priorities for Marketers
CHICAGO, March 28, 2005 -- The Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), the official trade association for the word of mouth marketing industry, announced today that it hit the 100 member milestone, only five months after it was founded. Member companies have joined WOMMA to build a prosperous word of mouth industry based on best practices, effective standards, and ethical leadership. This is an extraordinary growth rate for any association.
"WOMMA's growth is exceeding all expectations, and we're delighted to hit the 100 mark on the eve of our Word of Mouth Marketing Summit this week," said WOMMA CEO Andy Sernovitz. "We greatly appreciate the support from our charter members."
More than 350 marketing professionals will assemble in Chicago on Tuesday for the first-ever conference on the topic of word of mouth marketing. Demand was so strong that WOMMA had to shift locations late last week. Information about the summit and audio recordings are available at http://www.womma.org/summit.
Association Focus
"WOMMA's amazing membership growth is proof that word of mouth marketing is more than a fad. When we started WOMMA, we knew we were addressing a new reality for brand stakeholders. It is an important shift that presents both opportunities and challenges for marketers, and this is why WOMMA is critical," said Pete Blackshaw, co-founder of WOMMA and CMO of Intelliseek.
WOMMA members are mastering the art of honest, authentic two-way communications with customers. Blogs, communities, viral marketing, buzz, evangelism, word of mouth, and other new techniques are creating a fundamentally more open relationship between businesses and the people they serve.
"The world of marketing is rapidly changing, again," continued Sernovitz. "But this time, it's not about bits and bytes. It's about learning to talk to each other."
A growing number of marketers are testing and qualifying word of mouth marketing techniques. When WOMMA was founded, it provided an instant home for all of the experts in the field. Many marketers are joining to participate in WOMMA's best practices and standards-setting programs.
“When we founded WOMMA, we knew it would be big -- but not this quickly. There's a growing recognition that if we can speak a common language around critical areas like measurements and ROI, this industry will bloom," said Dave Balter, WOMMA co-founder of WOMMA and CEO of BzzAgent.
Last month, WOMMA published the first draft Ethics Code for word of mouth marketers, and more than 50 companies subsequently joined.
"The first thing WOMMA did was take a strong stand on ethics, and the marketing community has shown its support for ethics by supporting our process," said WOMMA co-founder and BuzzMetrics CEO Jonathan Carson. "We couldn't be more proud that this vital issue is being validated by industry-wide support."
WOMMA Charter Members
Alloy
Arnold Worldwide
Beck Ag Com
BigChampagne
Biggs-Gilmore
Bolt Media
Brand Autopsy
Brandimensions
Buena Vista Home Entertainment
Burson-Marsteller
Buzzmarketing
BuzzMetrics
BzzAgent
The Cartoon Bank
CEI-Star
The Clorox Company
ComBlu
ComScore Networks
Conference Calls Unlimited
Conkling Fiskum & McCormick
CRM Metrix
CTSG and Kintera
Customunity
DDB Issues & Advocacy
Decision Analyst
DEI Worldwide
Dell
Dewey Square Group
Digital Cement
Discovery Communications
EchoDitto
Echopinion
eCRUSH
Edelman
Electric Artists
FanPimp
FieldWorks
Fila Online
Fleishman-Hillard
FreeSuper
Friendster
GasPedal
Genuosity
Ground Force Network
GSD&M
Harvard Business School
Hass MS&L
Intelliseek
Interpret-Her
Intuit
Keith Bates & Associates
Ketchum Communications
Kraft Foods
Lemon Foundation
Liquid Intelligence
M80
Marketing Technology Solutions
Matchstick
Mediaedge:cia UK
MotiveQuest
Motorola
NOP World
Northlich
Omotion
1QuickReferral.Com
OnMessage Communications
Organic
Oslo - Inteligencia de Mercado
Paterno Wines International
Pearson Education
The Phelon Group
Presslaff Interactive Revenue
ProFlowers
Pronto Communication
The Prostate Net
Public Relations Partners
Reach Media
Renegade Marketing Group
Richards/Gravelle
Rowland Communications Worldwide
Ruxton Ventures
S.C. Johnson
Schneider Associates
Slack Barshinger
Soapbox Marketing
Sprint
Starcom MediaVest Group
StartSampling
TaylorMade-adidas Golf
TechSmith Corporation
Texas Arts Marketing Network
Tickle
Trendum
Tribe Networks
The Tweedy Group
The Vandiver Group
VantagePoint Venture Partners
Verizon Wireless
Visible Path
Vocanic
The Well Advertising
Zondervan
About WOMMA
WOMMA is the official trade association for the word of mouth marketing industry. Its members are committed to building a prosperous word of mouth marketing profession based on best practices, effective standards, and ethical leadership. The association has more than 100 corporate members and more than 3,000 active participants in its email discussions. Learn about WOMMA at http://www.womma.org.
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