Jay Baer - Talk Triggers: The Complete Guide to Creating Customers with Word of Mouth

Two years ago, Jay gave us a new way to think about engaging adversaries online. And he did it with a phrase so simple and pithy Im annoyed I didnt think of it myself. Even if you havent read the book (and if you havent, please get on that), just a small portion of its title tells you everything you need to know: Hug Your Haters. Any questions? And if you do need examples and processes that explain how to implement his wisdom, Jays got it. Jay has the ability to convey complex concepts clearly while offering really practical action steps. Were all better off for it.

This is why I was so excited when Jay and Daniel Lemin said they were writing a book on a critical aspect of word-of-mouth marketingthe story shared between consumers. It is the book you are holding now. And it could not have come at a better time.

Back when Fizz pioneered the first word-of-mouth marketing firm in 2001, I was part of a team that was reintroducing Americas stodgiest beer as the signature brand of urban hipsters. Only the nerdiest among us would mix words like influencer into everyday conversation. Now, every YouTuber with five hundred subscribers and an Instagram feed full of interesting lattes is an influencer.

Now that its become the most overusedand, I would argue, least understoodterm in marketing, I often feel the need to correct people. Thats when a plaid-suited angel pops up on my shoulder like some Great Gazoo (look it up), and I hear hug your haters, or another of Jays bons mots. Thats when I take a breath and start again from a place of love. Or at least of mutual understanding.

As the pillars of paid advertisingboth traditional and digitalcontinue to crumble, the marketing establishment is frantically trying to exploit the power of peer-to-peer recommendation, which weve long known to be the dominant force in driving purchase decisions. But recommendations only work when theyre authentic. Rather than do the hard work of identifying actual influencers, many companies are taking the easy route: paying insane amounts of money to disposable social media stars with tons of authenticity but little real-life influence.

Thats a bit like buying a bicycle when what you need is a motorcycle. Yes, they both have two wheels, a seat, and handlebars. But the moment you take a bicycle out on the highway, you know youve made a terrible mistake. The key to influencer marketing: Dont buy the bicycle.

The core of the problem is that most marketers are simply more comfortable dealing with media buyers than they are talking to consumers (you know, people). Decades of disintermediation have left them ill-prepared for the untidiness of word-of-mouth marketing, which isat basethe art of talking to people. Buying a prime-time commercial slot is expensive but easy; sparking a conversation about your brand among a network of loosely connected humans is cheaper but infinitely more complex. It requires patience, faith, and agility, not traits that have traditionally been valued in CMOs.

Its easy to see the lure of social media celebrities to marketers who were raised in this environment. For a couple of bucks, anyone from a Kardashian to a Kewtie Pie will gladly toss up a #sponsored post featuring your product. But any decent word-of-mouth marketer will tell you: Real influencers rarely need to be paid. In fact, most of them cant be bought. Its a failure of our profession that so many marketers still dont get that.

Which brings me back to Jay and Daniel. What we need is someone who can break down the true word-of-mouth process into its basic components and explain it in terms that everyone can grasp. How do you start a conversation about your brand? How do you get closer to your customers? What is the difference between a fan and an advocate, and how do you convert one into the other? And why is an obsession with going viral probably not helpful for your brand? Talk Triggers covers all of that in swift, accessible language.

The power of what we do has become undeniable. Pabst Blue Ribbon, the stodgy beer brand I was referring to earlier, has long been a case study in reinvention. But the success of brands like Slack, CrossFit, Chipotle, Dropbox, Tesla, and Google have proved that word-of-mouth marketing creates not just customers but loyal, passionate advocates. Not surprisingly, marketers want to know more. And they are done being duped by the influencer industrial complex.

They are fortunate to have this book. In the pages ahead, Jay and Daniel will walk you through the first and most vital element of word-of-mouth marketing, the story friends will tell each other about your brand. Godin called it the Purple Cow. I called it the talkable part of your brand. Jay, flexing his talent for pithy phrasing, has dubbed it the Talk Trigger. It could be an unusually large menu, a cookie left on your hotel pillow, a hotline that connects customers directly to the CEO, or funny hold music. Whatever it isand it can be almost anythingyou need it to create word of mouth.

Yes, I wrote a book on word-of-mouth marketing, and yes, it sells very well, but now is a dangerous time for word-of-mouth marketing. On the one hand, our concepts and terminology have never been more mainstream. On the other hand, there have never been so many of the underwhelming laying claim to our craft. This book will help ensure that, when all is said and done, those with true understanding will be the ones left standing.

Tell your friends about it.