Since Sept. 2006, WOMMA's Action Items newsletter has brought you news both from WOMMA and from your fellow WOMMA member companies. It's been the best source for your weekly "to-do" list of ways to get involved in the industry, take advantage of WOMMA opportunities, and stay abreast of the latest WOM developments. Similarly, since we published its first issue in March 2005, WOMMA's Womnibus Weekly has been bringing its readers examples of word of mouth in action every week. Featuring campaigns and case studies from a wide range of companies, WOMMA's Womnibus newsletter was the foremost source for all things word of mouth.
Both Action Items and the Womnibus Weekly have done their jobs well, bringing word of mouth marketing news to our subscribers' inboxes when no one else was covering our industry. But now, we recognize that the landscape has changed, and we are updating our newsletter format to evolve along with it.
Of course, we're going to continue to promote and publicize WOMMA member news, as well as member opportunities, and word of mouth marketing news stories. You'll get all of this and more in our new blog and newsletter: "The Daily Word."
The Daily Word is launching next week and will lead off with the "WOM Daily Ten," which will feature links to the ten most significant WOM news stories you need to know to be effective as a word of mouth marketer. We will also publish a weekly "top stories" newsletter -- which will give you the option of receiving your dose of WOM news on either a weekly or daily basis. The Daily Word will also be available via blog, where you can get the same great content by subscribing to our RSS feed.
WOMMA's new newsletters will soon feature guest columns from WOM experts, podcasts, polls and surveys on industry developments and trends, along with the WOM Daily Ten and member news. This new format will allow us to serve you better and will help us bring you the information you need to know the same day it happens.
Look for The Daily Word in your inbox starting next week! (As the heir to Action Items and Womnibus Weekly, we will email the Daily Word to all subscribers of those publications. You will have the option to choose a weekly rather than daily email, or to unsubscribe and read the news on the blog. We hope that you will take a look at our initial offerings and understand that we will quickly be adding in new, informative, and exciting features.)
"The most important resource is our on-air promotion, and No. 2 is word of mouth," said Michael Benson, ABC's EVP of marketing. And ABC is opening up the WOM arsenal to get people talking about its new Fall series, "Pushing Daisies," in time for the show's Oct. 3 premiere.
ABC has sponsored a host of public screenings of the show's pilot episode, including a showing at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery -- a location that is all too apropos given the show's premise, in which a man with special powers can reverse death just by touching people. The screenings have generated some online chatter, with people chiming in on blogs and message boards with rave reviews and intentions to tune in.
ABC also did some street-level marketing, passing out thousands of daisies with tags attached -- directing them to tune in to 'Pushing Daisies,' of course -- in major U.S. cities. The company also posted an extended preview of the show on YouTube, giving people with piqued interests a place to go to satisfy some of their curiosity -- and maybe tell a friend -- before the show's debut.
Learn more (The Journal News)
Learn more (SyFyPortal)
Facebook has begun notifying members that they now have the option of allowing the company to make their name and profile picture available when non-users search the site. This is a big move for the social networking giant, which has received criticism in the past for its "walled-garden" approach to social networking.
Since opening its doors to welcome users beyond its original co-ed crowd, Facebook's membership has ballooned to more than 39 million -- up 63% since May. Facebook is hoping that allowing user profiles to be searchable by nonmembers -- and eventually to appear in search engine results -- will boost those numbers even more, but some question whether decreased privacy will, in fact, increase interest in the social networking site.
Users of Facebook will still have to log in to "poke," send messages, or add friends, and can opt out of having their profile made public by adjusting their privacy settings. While these provisions should placate some of those who balk at the idea of having their privacy diminished, some say the move will alienate long-time users.
Learn more (Washington Post)
Learn more (Facebook Blog)
Learn more (Tech News World)
Orbitz recently launched a user-generated tip website offering real-time updates from travelers -- including security line wait times, traffic, parking, taxi lines, air-traffic updates, weather information, the best place to get an airport snack, and more -- as a way to drive traffic to the Orbitz site. Orbitz customers and non-customers alike can access the new "Traveler Update" service, something that Orbitz is hoping will put its brand front and center in travel planning.
According to Orbitz CMO Randy Wagner, the Traveler Update "sprang from our customer insight that people value information from others in the same situation and our business insight that, at any point in time, Orbitz has thousands of customers moving through major airports and travel destinations."
A website like this not only provides valuable information for travelers, but gives airports, airlines, and other travel services a chance to hear what travelers are saying -- both positively and negatively -- about their products and services, as well.
Learn more (Orbitz)
Learn more (TechCrunch)
Learn more (Red Herring)
To promote its new T.V. series "Back to You," Fox Broadcasting sent fake news vans out into the streets of Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York over Labor Day weekend. Staffed with blazer-clad actors who resembled newscasters and passed out promotional materials to curious on-lookers, the vans were emblazoned with the letters "WURG," the call letters for the fictitious "Back to You" news station.
Aside from the efforts on the street, Fox also created a microsite for the show, at http://backtoyouanchorizer.com, where users can upload photos of themselves to create an image that shows them seated at the anchor desk between the show's stars, Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer. The images can be forwarded to friends via email, giving the message viral potential.
Fox also posted an uncensored clip of the premier episode on YouTube, where prospective fans can check it out -- and potentially pass it along to their friends.
Learn more (The New York Times)
Last week, Playtex launched its "Girl Talk" campaign, which includes elements of online word of mouth, to foster discussion of something that the company says women are talking about already: their bras.
"After two years of in-depth research with our consumers, we came to understand how women truly feel and speak about bras and their bodies," said Vicki Seawright, marketing director for Playtex intimate apparel. According to the company, women are witty and irreverent when having conversations about their bras, and that's something Playtex hopes to tap into.
Traditional elements of the Girl Talk campaign, such as T.V. and magazine ads, will focus on driving women to Playtex's microsite, http://playtexfits.com, where they can send e-cards, submit their own bra stories, and read the stories submitted by other women -- all in the hopes of driving word of mouth around the Playtex brand.
Learn more (Press Release)
Learn more (DM News)
WOMMA member company Yahoo! is currently testing and getting feedback on a social networking application called Kickstart that combines that sociability of Facebook and MySpace with the professional, job-seeking functionality of LinkedIn and CareerBuilder.com. According to a recent CNET Web Services Report, Kickstart's most impressive feature is the ability to use social and career connections to help job seekers find an "in" into the job of their dreams. For example, if an employee at a seeker's company of choice is "interested in helping out students" and can be linked to them either by college alumni status, through a mutual friend, or based on common interests, Kickstart makes the connection.
Beyond Kickstart's ability to connect the social dots, job seekers can also post resumes and profiles that closely resemble those hosted by other social networking sites. Whether or not Kickstart's "in" will be enough to get job seekers on board -- and whether or not Yahoo! moves forward with the initiative --remains to be seen.
Learn more (Mashable.com)
Learn more (TechCrunch)
Learn more (CNET)
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