I’m always on the lookout for interesting things to share on the Tourism Tribe blog posts and you find inspiration in the strangest places. On Sunday, whilst sitting at the traffic lights I was looking at the bus in front. Nothing particularly exciting about that, we had used this company many times before and always received great service. I noticed a sticker on the back window with 5 stars and “WOMO” and then the lights changed and the bus turned left.
I thought to myself what is “WOMO” and why don’t I know about it?, so I wrote myself a note to investigate and this blog post is what I found.
The importance of “Word of Mouth”
We all know the value of a personal recommendation and the rise of TripAdvisor and the associated positives and negatives that can have on your business. (If you are struggling with negative reviews online you may want to read this post)
There is an element of trust and validity from a peer review that far outweighs any promotional activity a business produces, even if it’s from a complete stranger. So you’d be wise to monitor, respond and act on any reviews about your business.
Did you know – 78% of people trust customer recommendations above ALL other types of advertising and marketing.
(Nielson Global Online Consumer Survey)
So, who and what is WOMO?
WOMO stands for “Word of Mouth Online”
“Word of Mouth is the No 1 business review site in Australia.
It’s a user-generated directory where people share the experiences they have with businesses – both good and bad. Everyday, Word of Mouth helps thousands of people find awesome businesses (and avoid dodgy operators).
As well as helping consumers get better service, Word of Mouth also helps good businesses stand out from the crowd and be recognised for providing great service.
We all know how powerful a recommendation is, but with our busy lives it’s sometimes hard to have that over-the-fence chat with our neighbours to find out where they get their hair cut or their car serviced. But who doesn’t want to hear about a great new restaurant that’s just opened, a fantastic plumber that won’t rip you off, or a dentist that makes the experience pleasant?”
Source : https://www.wordofmouth.com.au/about
What types of businesses do they include?
I found Accommodation, Attractions, Cruises, Tour and Bus operators, so a vast majority of the tourism sector is covered. It also says, listing your business is free!
So it’s not tourism specific and covers a wide variety of businesses, but who’s to say someone desperately needing a plumber might not also need a holiday!!
Additional resources
I found an interesting list of review sites you may like to read about, simply click here and my advice to you is to focus on the ones most relevant to your business. Below is a list of my personal top 4.
TripAdvisor
https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/
Local Works
https://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/local-listings
Google My Business
https://www.google.com/business/
Yelp
Finally
Most importantly, set up your Google alerts to manage what’s being said about your business online, if you see reviews on a new website, investigate and engage.
Apply a common sense approach to Online Reviews, be aware of what is being said, how powerful it is and the impact it can have on your business and act.
