The Passion Conversation: Understanding, Sparking, and Sustaining Word of Mouth Marketing

CHAPTER TWO

LET'S UN-GEEK A LITTLE SMART RESEARCH TOGETHER

We talked in Chapter 1 about why you must fall in love with the people you serve, and about how you can become famous for the people who love you and the way you love them. We went through some history and word of mouth (WOM) marketing research, and we shared our beliefs and some examples about why finding and uniting people through shared passions and experiences matter so much.

Now we're ready to learn exactly why people talk—the real research-proven reasons. If you understand why people talk, you have a far greater chance of sparking people to talk about how you fit into their lives. And then, you'll have a better chance of knowing how to inspire them to talk.

In addition to the research-proven reasons why people talk, we are also going to include some of our own heartfelt beliefs about the role passion plays in sparking conversations and creating advocacy. We've said it before but we'll say it again: We're all in marketing grad school.

The entire world is actually in one form of grad school or another, whether they know it or not. We're pretty sure you get it; after all, you're reading this book! With technology changing the way we connect and grow businesses daily, we all have to think like students. Not just any students, but those hyper-engaged, eager, wide-eyed students that sit at the front of the classroom—you ...