Creating Talkable Brands | Preview #2
We began the preview of WOMMA’s Talkable Brands Conference (Nov. 18 – 20, Las Vegas) by highlighting a few sessions from the afternoon of Day 1. Highlighting the agenda from Day 2 will take a few posts to spotlight some of the sessions.
Answers from Academics to WOM’s Toughest Questions
[Thurs. | 9:35 – 10:30am]
There is an art and a science to word of mouth marketing. This session will focus more on the science of WOM. Brad Fay from the KellerFay Group will ask Professors (Walter Carl & Jonah Berger) and PhDs (Lezan Aksoy & Barak Libai) important questions about the motivations for why people talk. The differences between how online and offline WOM spreads will no doubt be covered. And, I’m expecting a heated debate about targeting “influentials” versus “influenceables.” Answers from these academics will be steeped in research and deep analysis. Every marketer is sure to learn something new from this session.
True Believers: Turning Skeptical Co-Workers into Progressive WOM Marketers
[Thurs. | 11:00 – 11:45am]
I read the proposal Sean McDonald (Ant’s Eye View) and Sam Decker (Bazzarvoice) sent in for this session and thought this will be the most creative session at the conference. Sean and Sam have outlined all the corporate characters who can derail the success of a WOM marketing plan. We’ll meet the finance guy (”Eddie Excel”) who always cries out for the ROI. “Fanny Facebook” is the marketer manager who thinks all she needs is a Facebook fan page, without any strategy, and WOM will happen. “Freddy Filabuster” shows up to grandstand against a marketer’s plan, but he’s only interested in advancing his career and not advancing the business.
Fun and creative stuff, for sure. But the session will also be helpful in giving us advice on overcoming the objections and misguided approaches from co-workers, thus, paving the way for our WOM marketing plans to succeed.
I’ll post more later about Day 2 happenings at the upcoming Creating Talkable Brands Conference. (BTW, did you know you can save $200 on the registration fee? Learn more here.)
