Principle 7. Turn WOM into Buzz

Panos Mourdoukoutas () and George J. Siomkos ()
Additional contact information
Panos Mourdoukoutas: Long Island University
George J. Siomkos: Athens University of Economics & Business

Chapter Chapter 8 in The Seven Principles of WOM and Buzz Marketing, 2009, pp 77-94 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The i-Pod shortage is not an accident, but part of a calculated campaign by its creator Apple Computer, to nurture and foster hype about the product that fuels a contagious, a herd-like behavior that aggregates and speeds WOM, turning it into buzz, accelerating the expected benefits while lowering the expected costs, and helping the product reach its tipping point earlier than later. We are only really excited by what is denied us, by what we cannot posses in full. Your greatest power in seduction is your ability to turn away, to make others come after you, delaying their satisfaction. Most people miscalculate and surrender too soon, worried that the other person will lose interest, or that giving the other what he or she wants will grant the giver a kind of power. The truth is the opposite: once you satisfy someone, you no longer have the initiative, and you open yourself to the possibility that he or she will lose interest at the slightest whim. Human beings are immensely suggestible: their moods will easily spread to the people around them. In fact, seduction depends on mimesis, on the cautious creation of a mood or a feeling that is then reproduced by the other person. But hesitation and awkwardness are also contagious, and are deadly to seduction. I-pod is not Apple’s only innovative product that has followed such a pattern of diffusion. The i-Phone shortage had thousands of fans camping outside Apple Computer stores days ahead of its release, drawing the attention of the mass-media and magnifying consumer hype. In 2006, LeSportsac’s large casual nylon handbags became a trend after fashion stylists first used them in the Tokyo’s fashion district Omotesando, followed by high school girls who soon mimicked them. New clothes, shoes, drinks, toys, game consoles, cell phones, scooters, and automobiles have followed a similar path, creating explosive demand for their products. Beanie Babies, the VW Beetle, the movie The Blair Witch Project, and ICQ (an Internet chat service) were also able to generate WOM hype that resulted in explosive consumer demand. Volkwagen sold 2,000 Reflex Yellow and Vapor Blue Beetles online, and only online.

Keywords: Wall Street Journal; Apple Computer; Fashion Stylist; Everyday People; Orange Slice (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-642-02109-1_8

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/9783642021091

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-02109-1_8

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Springer Books from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().