At 360 Marketing, we believe that one of the most powerful tools in your marketing toolbox is already in motion: people talking about your business.

There’s no marketing channel more powerful than someone else saying, “Those guys are great!” That’s the heart of word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM): your customers sharing your story in their own words, with the people they trust most.

What Is Word-of-Mouth Marketing?

Word-of-mouth marketing is any strategy that encourages customers to organically talk about your brand, product, or service. It happens at family dinners, in online groups, through online reviews, and in casual conversations. It can be spontaneous, but great businesses know how to build systems that make it easier to happen often.

WOMM is built on TRUST. According to Nielsen, 83% of consumers completely trust recommendations from their friends and family (Nielsen Global Trust in Advertising Report). That stat alone should make every business ask: are we doing everything we can to encourage those recommendations?

The Evolution of WOMM

In the past, word of mouth happened over the phone, across fence lines, or during face-to-face conversations. Today, it still does—but it also happens on Facebook groups, Google reviews, Instagram stories, and podcasts. Digital tools have amplified traditional word-of-mouth marketing, and small to mid-sized businesses have more opportunities than ever to harness it.

Why It Matters Now

• Referrals influence up to 50% of all purchasing decisions (McKinsey & Company).
• Referred customers have a 37% higher retention rate than those acquired through other channels (InvespCRO).
• Referral leads convert 30% better than leads from other marketing sources (Review42).

In other words, someone else saying you’re good is worth more than you saying it yourself.

Four Ways to Get Third-Party Endorsements

We call these third-party endorsements because they come from people outside your organization. These are the people others trust—your customers, your reviewers, your advocates.

At 360, we help businesses systematize these four powerful ways to earn word-of-mouth attention:

1. Reviews (“The Amazon Effect”)

People trust what others say—even strangers. Think about your own buying habits: how often do you check reviews before making a decision? This is what we call the Amazon Effect. When your business has dozens (or hundreds) of five-star reviews, it builds immediate TRUST. We help you put processes in place to make sure those positive experiences turn into public endorsements.

2. Social Media Groups

Whether it’s local Facebook groups or niche industry forums, people ask for recommendations all the time. The businesses that win are the ones already on the minds of their happy customers. We help you stay top-of-mind by creating content, engagement strategies, and community presence that increases the likelihood you’ll be recommended.

3. Customer Testimonials

Nothing is more compelling than a real story from a real customer. We help you gather and share testimonials that show future customers what it’s like to work with you. These aren’t just for your website—they belong in email campaigns, videos, social content, and sales decks.

4. Referrals

You can’t just hope for referrals—you have to make them easy. Whether that means building out a formal referral program or just offering the right tools and incentives, we help businesses set up simple systems to turn happy customers into active promoters.

Don’t Let a Good Reputation Go to Waste

If people are saying great things about your business—that’s incredible! But if you’re not turning that momentum into new relationships, it’s a missed opportunity. At 360 Marketing, we build custom tools and systems that help small and mid-sized businesses turn word-of-mouth into a powerful growth engine.

Contact us today to learn how to make referral marketing work harder for you.