Peer to Peer Brand Awareness

What is the most effective method for building brand awareness? That, as they say, is the million-dollar question that marketers have pondered for ages. Ironically, the focus has been on the wrong “w” as it’s not the “what” that matters as much as it is the “who”.

So who is the most effective for building brand awareness? The answer is simple; current brand loyalists. Current loyalists are the most powerful entity in building brand awareness because they are viewed as the most credible source. Consider this, according to a global Nielsen survey of 26,486 Internet users in 47 markets; consumer recommendations are the most credible form of advertising among 78% of the study's respondents.

The advent of social medias and peer to peer networks have provided ideal platforms to support consumer generated marketing efforts. When the people lead the charge all other parties follow.

Sounds like an exaggeration, right? Well Susan Boyle didn’t exist two weeks ago, but now is an internet sensation. She is showcased in 14 of the top 23 youtube videos this week, with the most played video receiving 33,273,161 views. This online buzz has garnered so much attention celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey and Rosie O’Donnell are talking about the craze. Susan has even made an appearance on the front page of USA Today. All this within 14 days.

This is a case of peer to peer promotion at its best as it showcases the power of word of mouth marketing. Getting those who know about a brand’s products and services to promote them is the marketer’s utopia.

Today the implications of word of mouth marketing are more significant than ever before. Peer to Peer networks like MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn allow for the dissemination of information through trusted communities. And onsite social medias such as blogs, forums and twitter feeds offer users the ability to communicate back with the brand. It’s all about engaging your consumers and empowering them to engage with others.

Where should one start in fostering a peer to peer brand awareness strategy? Here are a few tips to help get started:

1. Make your online communications social media friendly. Implement a social bookmarking strategy that will allow your communications and other media to be shared conveniently.
2. Use existing peer to peer networks to find the influencers. Convincing industry influencers to be brand advocates will likely result in the influencer promoting the brand to their listeners.
3. Use data tracking mechanisms to identify like-minded consumers and build the systems necessary to connect these consumers with each other.

Building a peer to peer brand awareness strategy will help ensure that brands are measuring up in the one area matters the most; will consumers recommend the brand to others?