Beyond Buzz: The Next Generation of Word-Of-Mouth Marketing

This book is really a great overview with specific tools on implementing conversational marketing. This is not a rehash! I have read Andy's book on Word-of-Mouth marketing which is also a great book. Both, do a wonderful job giving companies and individual structure and implementation tactic, to harness word of mouth and client to client marketing. I am so glad to see someone go past the canned "30 second commercials" or the structure, rule and be ruled type of networking, and it is refreshing to see someone acknowledge that they way we sell, connect and compete for our customers has changed. No longer does the old sales techniques of the "Ben Franklin close" or "Oh, by the way" work! People are more savvy and they can purchase globally via the internet now. No longer are we restricted to doing business only with those in "arms length". Too often people think MARKETING and ADVERTISING are one in the same. This is so not true! Often I see people using the sales techniques from "back in the day" to sell today's consumer. Bad choice! Amongst generations we see a huge difference in the way they think, what they value, they way they communicate and they way they receive information. Now, throw culture into that mix as well and you can see that what worked back then is not working now. Kudos to Lois Kelly for writing a book that really takes us Beyond Buzz. It's what your customers, clients, colleagues and contacts say about you that is reality. Like it or not!

In 1998, during the emerging years of the Internet, Kevin Kelly wrote that "The only factor becoming scarce in a world of abundance is human attention" as part of his seminal work New Rules for the New Economy. His predictions then regarded the ways that connected communications like the Internet would change our lives. Looking back on his predictions, not only was Kevin Kelly correct about the role of technology in changing our society, he also accurately predicted the importance of human interaction and attention in our new networks. Now in 2007, Lois Kelly (presumably no relation to Kevin) extends the ideas of Kevin Kelly to the actual practices of any person responsible for communicating with a public audience. Her primary contention is that communicators must be worthy of and skilled in engaging a public into a conversation. Executives and communication personnel who work in public relations, marketing, sales or politics must acknowledge that their audience is not a waiting receiver of prepackaged messages that are broadcasted in any number of available channels. Kelly writes that communicators must transcend the technology itself to make conversations relevant between senders and receivers. And in any real conversation, there is human attention. Beyond Buzz is a great handbook that outlines the many methods of creating and maintaining useful conversations, including the effects of our Internet technologies. I would recommend this book for any PR, sales, advertising or marketing person who wishes to take the next step beyond the marketing fundamentals of price, product, positioning, etc. Or, to combine the ideas of both Kellys, to engage scarce human attention in today's hyper-connected network world, one must create an interesting conversation as part of a human relationship. I am sure that when we look back on 2007, we will see that Lois was just as prescient as Kevin was in 1998.

This book is an absolute MUST for any marketer who wants their sales reps to make more calls by give them something interesting to talk about! Lois gives you plenty of ideas and questions to ask in the process of turning your organization into a 21st Century marketing machine. A brand is what your customers think it is, not what the company says it is, so marketing's purpose is to help people understand your organization and products in ways that are meaningful to them. And conversational marketing is the way to make that happen!

Beyond Buzz is a a conversational book--about how to achieve influence and business through conversations. Author Lois Kelly seems to be sitting down next to us with a cool drink explaining how the trivialized "word-of-mouth" marketing can be used for powerful and persuasive ends. Most impressively, she talks about true meaning, and passion, and accuracy. This isn't a book about "spin" but one that may cause your head to spin as you consider the vast potential you're probably missing in guiding your customers', clients', and colleagues' discussions and conversations.

So many "business" books are fun to read, illuminating, and tell marvelous stories, but sometimes I wonder what it really means to me, and how I can apply concepts and ideas to my job. Lois manages to do both -- she skillfully uses stories, metaphors, and practical advice to get you thinking about how to stop talking "at" customers, and start meaningful, productive conversations with them instead. She writes about the many-to-many "talk" culture that marketers and leaders need to adopt to attract and keep customers. What better way to stay interested and engaged than through a conversation? This is a big shift for people use to building massive, one-way Web channels, and it's probably terrifying for some. Lois gives examples of how companies and people are adapting, and she can help you make this change too. Start with developing a point-of-view that "sets you apart, speeds understanding, and provokes converstation." She follows this up with introspection -- tapping into core values and beliefs of the company (the CEO can help here), really listening to your customers, uncovering talk-worthy ideas, and much more.