The Power of WOM

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when my recent research proved that most home-buyers asked their friends and relatives about what they knew about various home-builders before making a decision on which one to choose, for probably the biggest purchase they would ever make. Intuitively it made sense to me, I've asked the same questions of my contacts and recalled what I'd heard during conversations, when in the same position.

Previous research I've also conducted in the sector showed that after making the decision to purchase, it is often many months before they actually get the keys to their new home, and during this period these 'customers' are actively spreading 'word-of-mouth' (WOM) - both positive and negative, telling their friends what is happening regarding the construction of their new home, thus influencing the next wave of potential buyers. What a great untapped resource and opportunity, to get these people to spread positive word-of-mouth and sell to their friends!

If I were critical, I would say that the home-building industry has been pretty one-dimensional regarding how to generate referral sales from satisfied customers - the '£1000 discount voucher if you recommend a friend' is about the limit of most home-builders repartees.

There is so much more that could be done and with the accessibility, scope and power of social media the opportunities are endless ....

Its time to harness the Power of WOM - its not hard, in fact it can and should be be fun. We are all naturally story-tellers, all we need is for someone to provide us the incidents, facts and interesting events and we will tell stories.... And, without knowing it, at the same time we are selling homes to the next wave of customers!