One of the most believed misconception is that buzz marketing is completely random. Buzz marketing is more than an art, there is a science behind it. Getting people to talk about your business can be learned and perfected. The way this is achieved it to go further than just letting people know your brand exists, you have to give them something to talk about. Generating Buzz doesn’t have to be hard, but it does require some thinking. Its not just about posting interesting Buzzfeed posts on your Facebook, content that ties your customer’s interests and what you have to offer is how you turn strangers into visitors.

buzz-marketingIn order to generate buzz you need to give consumers something to talk about. Fear not my inter-webs readers, yes, people talk about A LOT of things, but there are some topics we love to talk about, topics that get people riled up and wanting to share.  Mark Hughes, author of Buzz Marketing, identifies the “six buttons of buzz” in his book, which are very effective at creating conversation.

  1. Taboo
  2. Unusual
  3. Remarkable
  4. Outrageous
  5. Hilarious
  6. Secretive

Effective Buzz marketing uses these topics accordingly to create content that is interesting to readers and pushes them to share such acquired knowledge to show others they are in the know, to be a part of or start a trend. Through these topics you can allow your business to stand out by publishing content that is unique and remarkable to readers, which prompts share-ability of your brand and what it does. The more people talk about your brand, the more traffic your site will receive, resulting in higher conversion rates and higher bottom line numbers.

Taboo topics are great conversation starter, and definitely something people love to talk about. Although these topics are “controversial” and we shouldn’t really talk about them because they usually start debates, as humans we can’t help but want to speak and share them. The idea here is to create a topic interestingly enough that stirs something up in people, but it does not create enemies for you. You should take a stance and run with it. people will either love you or hate you and thats the truth. I mean sure we all secretly want to be loved by everyone, but by taking a stance not only are you creating buzz, but you are forming a brand identity and character.

Creating Unusual content should come with the goal of creating content that is unique and stands out from all other content out there. Doing the same thing everyone else is doing will get your brand no where, what are your PODs? what makes you buzz worthy? Highlight these assets and create high value content that is distinctive and enjoyable, whether that is articles, sites, apps, or graphics give something to consumers that they can easily access and share.

Standing out, specially online might seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Remarkable content gets shared, chose something you can relate to your company, a remarkable employees story, success story, product, service. People talk about outcomes that are considerably above average. You want to approach this aspect of your campaign with honesty, a degree of care, and high quality, in order for it to yield you the best results. No one will ever talk about a business that provided “decent” anything. Be exceptional, not normal.

The outrageous, hilarious and secretive buttons will be covered in our next blog post. For more information and helpful tips visit The Pen Crew’s site www.thepencrew.com and discover all the ways you can create unique online buzz.

Buzzing away, your Local Business Blog.