I hope you are signed up to attend the Word-of-Mouth Basic Training Conference in Orlando this week. If you are signed up, like I am, you’ll get a deeper understanding in the arts and sciences of the most influential medium in a consumer’s purchase decision – WORD-OF-MOUTH.
Late last year, BIGresearch, a consumer behavior market intelligence company, released their newest Simultaneous Media Usage Survey (SIMM VII). 15,000 survey respondents answered questions on the influence various media play in their purchase decisions. The results give increasing credence to the influential power of Word-of-Mouth.
In this study, Word-of-Mouth ranked as the most influential marketing medium. The “Top Ten” most influential marketing mediums, regardless of demographic age group, include:
1 | Word-of-Mouth
2 | TV
3 | Coupons
4 | Newspaper Inserts
5 | Read Article
6 | Direct Mail
7 | Magazines
8 | In-store Promotion
9 | Cable TV
10| Online Advertising
When you break it down demographic age-wise, it gets a little interesting. Word-of-Mouth clearly has greater purchasing decision influence with people aged 18-34 and 35-54 as it relates to their purchases of cars, electronics, and apparel. Purchase decisions in these retail categories from Adults 55+ are still heavily influenced by Word-of-Mouth, but not to the degree of those younger than 55 years old.
To learn more, you’ll have to find a copy of the Simultaneous Media Usage Survey (SIMM VII) from BIGresearch. If you can’t get access to the report, the following bar charts will give you a little more detail in the influential purchasing power of Word-of-Mouth with A18-34, A35-54, and A55+.
