The Law of the Few

It might be that Paul Revere’s ride was the first case of successful word-of-mouth advertising in the United States. While both he and William Dawes had midnight rides warning the American colonists that the British were coming to seize munitions in Concord and Lexington, only Paul Revere’s message had an impact.

Imagine what he could have done if Twitter was available.

In his book, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell popularizes The Law of the Few. It contends that converting your message into mass appeal is dependent on a very specific type of individual. Someone with a rare set of social skills. Gladwell calls them Connectors, but we also commonly refer to them as Influencers.

Word-of-mouth advertising (WOMA) is a powerful part of any marketing strategy – especially in the food and hospitality sector.  It’s cheap and doesn’t require a lot of heavy lifting. But solely relying on Word of Mouth advertising can be a perilous journey.

Namely, you have to connect with a lot of Paul Reveres.

That’s why customer engagement, email, text and social media marketing are so important.  Especially as you are ramping up your restaurant business. This will enable you to connect to the “Influencers” in your local community that can spread the word.

According to a Hubspot survey, 71% of consumers are likely to buy products or services based on social media referrals.  Furthermore – according to Zizzi  –  8-35-year-olds spend 5 whole days a year browsing pictures of food on Instagram, and 30% of them would avoid a restaurant if they didn’t have a strong Instagram presence. 

VivaSpot WiFi Marketing helps merchants both capture customer contact information and connect with social media influencers on Instagram and other platforms.  It’s the perfect complement to your word-of-mouth advertising strategy.

Any interest Mr. Dawes? Just email us at sales@vivaspot.com or call our help desk at 1-855-383-4662.