As a small business or a start-up, word of mouth is your biggest marketing asset. It is generally speaking free and let’s face it you can’t ask for an easier sell, than to somebody who has already been convinced you are the best around by those they trust. So, I ask again, are you making the most of your loyal customers, your brand advocates?

If you are unsure or the answer is an outright no. Then here are a few reasons (and tips) on why and how you should start developing those relationships right now.

First let us understand who your brand advocates are.

Now the definition is out of the way, maybe have a quick think and come up with 3 people and/or companies, that fit the description.

Got them in mind?

Ok, lets now look at some reasons why these brand advocates will be so important and how we can use them.

Brand Advocates create content about brands more than twice as much as non-advocates, and the average person has 155 friends on Facebook alone. Let that sink in for a moment.

That means that on average just one of your brand advocates will be likely to reach at least 155 people with a single post, promoting your brand, for free.

Here’s the best bit, they probably are already doing it, because advocates are not generally in it for the money, they do it because they are passionate about what you do, who you are and your products or service.

If anything you will at least have a whole bunch of free top quality social media content, that is already getting noticed, and you know the owners will be more than happy for you to like, comment and even share on your own page, saving you a lot of effort.

This has been true since the first product was ever sold we are sure of it, the only difference between now and ancient Babylonian times, is that a single person can reach and influence 50,000 people in a single moment, thanks to wonders of the internet and social media.

In the travel and tourism industry, 86% (climbing to 90% for Gen Z and Millennials) of people said that they made decisions of where to go and what to do based on what they saw on social media posted by friends, family or people they trusted.

Wow, why do we even bother paying for sales staff, seems to make more sense to hire your  mum,  let her do all the selling, after all let’s face it she will always be your number 1 fan, and she loves to tell everybody what you doing, even if she doesn’t quite understand it.

It’s kind of in the name, but unlike influencers (don’t get us wrong influencers can be awesome advocates), are not in it for themselves, they are doing it because they love your brand, meaning unlike influencers they are probably unlikely to be posting about multiple brands especially not competing ones anyway. They chose you for a reason and they will shout about you all day long if you look after them and make them feel valued.

Remember, Advocates are Friends NOT Employees.

Here is a simple way to build and grow your brand advocate program:

– Find them – Use social listening tools or look on review sites (TripAdvisor if you are a travel/tourism brand) and contact those who have given amazing reviews.

– Share and comment nice things on their social posts that talk about your products.

– Offer them free products or offers – Although they are not looking for money, they do value recognition above all else, so do this publicly and make them feel valued, it will pay off in the long run.

If you want to find out how Beanstalk Social can help you make the most of your brand advocates, then please drop us a line, we are always happy to chat.