Word of mouth marketing with tiki'mee

Nicolas Zumino – Tiki’labs International Business Developer

Word of mouth marketing with Tiki’mee

This original solution was submitted to the $10,000 Innocentive Challenge #9933293 « Change from Curative to Preventive Products : How to Promote Word of Mouth Recommendations? »

and has been awarded the 1st prize by the seeker out of 300+ submissions How to generate engagement and effective word of mouth recommendations around a specific medication? We are taking the case of a medicine that prevent heartburn (PPI). We present a solution based on Tiki’mee that uses a combination of innovative social media technologies to encourage word of mouth recommendations. The main driver of WOM recommendation here is ENGAGEMENT. The idea is to enable users to connect, share, search, ask or tell, about a particular health issue and the solutions that exist to deal with it. The solution presented here is based on a selection of tools and techniques in customer relationship management in order to elicit, collect, edit and share WOM recommendations. Tiki’mee is a Saas platform that can host several web services and info on the The prototype of the solution is available here (http://www.tikimee.com/innocentive-ppi). This document is a guide to use Tiki’mee to create an effective community around your product and establish valuable relationships with the relevant stakeholders.

Reaching users and inf luencers

Here is a diagram showing how the solution is driving the user community to engage and communicate about the PPI medication.


The solution involves creating the medicine’s own web interface. It works as a mini site providing users with information and engagement opportunities. Users access the Tiki’mee via a QR code. The QR code is printed on the medicine’s box and/or on any other relevant support. People access the Tiki’mee PPI interface by scanning the QR code on the box with their smartphone. An average scanning rate is around 2% - 3%.

The Tiki’mee works as an interface between the medicine and all the stakeholders that have an interest in it. Not only does it push information, but it also allows the public at large to get in touch with the manufacturers and access critical information about the drug and the health related issues. They will engage in discussions by asking questions, completing satisfaction forms or leaving a feedback either in writing or by video.

An other important channel is the email signature. A simple clickable email signature that leads to the Tiki’mee is editable in just 3 clicks. It is very easy to include a personalized signature in all outbound corporate emails. The click through rate on such a signature is 20% for the first visit and 2% - 3% on average thereafter.


The Tiki’mee is referenced on Google with the specific keywords that you choose. Try “innocentive PPI” in Google, our Tiki’mee page probably comes up first.

The solut ion itself

All these channels and links lead to the product’s dedicated interface. Go to: http://www.tikimee.com/innocentive-ppi and start navigating to see the prototype that we have put together using Tiki’mee.

Tiki’mee makes it very easy to edit the content that visitors will see. It allows a narrow targeting of a qualified audience, and provides a simple navigating experience completely focused on an issue, a product, a company, or a person. Our solution allows visitors to:

- See video testimonials of other people who advocate the product - Ask questions about the medicine - Search for more information on heartburn and PPI solutions - Interact through social media with the manufacturer - Provide the manufacturer with feedback - Record and send a testimonial video to the manufacturer - Understand how the medicine is prescribed, how it is insured and where to find it - Order it directly (regulations permitting)

The content determines how much engagement will be generated. And the rules are just the same as on any other social media. Here is a description of the selected content composing the “Innocentive PPI” Tiki’mee. VideoGenie In their own words: “VideoGenie make it easy for brands to create dynamic, viral campaigns and user-generated content. Our video recording technology and analytics give marketers a turnkey solution to initiate, control, track and optimize customer-to-potential customer video content. Whether in the form of a product


review, a contest or an interactive ad campaign, customers can easily create and share short-form videos with their friends or the public at large.” Users see what others say about your product. Here, I have used a “LA Fitness” existing page as demonstration. They are encouraged to record their own video directly from the interface. VideoGenie allows you to control this user generated content and publish it exactly how you wish. MyFeelback It is very quick and easy to design feedback and satisfaction forms with MyFeelback. Once completed, all data collected can be managed and analyzed. People are much more comfortable with low level engagement at first. So it makes sense to ask for quick and easy answers or comments. Once they have completed a low level engagement, they are more likely to increase the intensity of their engagement later. Plain and simple information Taking a medicine may require a prescription but even if not, there is a lot of information that is essential for the patient. Dosage, content, symptoms, secondary effects, etc. Health forums Provide access to quality and relevant content, and your audience will engage and value the experience. Any content that is directly connected to the issue in which your audience is interested in adds value to your interaction with them. Social media presence Social media such as Facebook, G+ or Twitter help your audience connect with the content and people that interest them. The more you are able to create and nurture meaningful relationships with your audience, the more spontaneous word of mouth recommendations will be.

Health insurance This page does not exist yet since we are not familiar with the US health care system but still thought it could be interesting to enable your users to :

- search for a physician to get advice or help - get information about how this medicine is covered by their insurance - see the nearest point of sale for this medicine - get all required information about the medicine (composition, doses, etc)

How to generate WOM?

Here are the best rules from experts for word of mouth recommendations. The Tiki’mee solution precisely follows all of these rules:

• Simpl ic ity. Making it simple to give a feedback, testimonials and recommendations.

• Mobil i ty. Customers can post their feedback and testimonials via their mobile devices.

• Incentives. Specific incentives can be introduced in the solution, to provide customers with an offer or opportunity of value upon providing a qualified feedback.

• Depth. Encourage customers to investigate and take specific interest in heartburn, what it is, what to do about it, etc. When time is invested, WOM is 100% more likely.

• Online sales. “There is a high correlation between the share of online sales of a given category and the degree to which consumers seek advice from other consumers online.” (McKinsey iConsumer servey 2011)

• Social. Using your product as an entry to relevant web social media, forums and relevant discussions

between users, physicians, experts. Engaging users on social media increases WOM.

• Ask for i t .


However, it is not all to have this interface to interact with your audience, you need to create and nurture meaningful and long lasting relationships. This is achieved through “community management”. This kind of marketing is producing “earned media” presence.

Earned media

What we are looking for is “earned media”, positive communication that is not paid for but spontaneously shared. Reach and share of voice of the earned media sources (the ones that will talk positively about the product) is not as important as their RELEVANCE. No need to get Charlie Sheen (2.7 million followers) to tweet about responsible drug use! For the message to have the right impact, it has to emanate from relevant, credible, or authoritative source within our field of interest. Finding the right influencers is therefore one the main task of our WOM campaign. Fortunately, many tools exist to help understand, define and reach those influencers. With Trackker, for example, it is possible to narrowly define the topic and find those who matter the most, “from keywords to people”. As they say, URLs don’t influence people, re levant people influence people.

Community management The content of the Tiki’mee can be adapted and changed to reflect what is most important and what your community values most. By curating different but related content, Tiki’mee serves as a hub for people with a similar condition or interest to get noticed, express themselves and also find a “community”. By connecting to each other, people share insights, advice and personal experiences about heartburn and how to deal with this condition. The art of engaging with your stakeholders is really about the content that is produced. It would not pay off to hire a social media specialist to interact with the community without proper understanding and vision about what you want to achieve as an organization. This communication should be as direct as possible. The fewer the intermediaries, the better. It has to be a genuine communication between concerned individuals focused on relieving the health problem.

What about the ROI?

For the financial aspects, a rough estimate of the cost for one year could be about $20,000. A standard click through rate would be 2%. Depending on the level of exposure, the solution could trigger several thousands of clicks per month. A single feedback form completed by a targeted audience could be estimated $2 in value. Online sales generated from the Tiki’mee. The information provided to the customers. The WOM recommendations generated either in writing or even better in video format could each be worth $10. Discounting the click through ratios, a click could be estimated at $1. 20,000 clicks would suffice to make the solution worthwhile. Still, it is difficult to make an assumption about how much revenue could be gained from using social technology tools to get word of mouth recommendations. Here is a graph showing the benefits to be made from social technology solutions. From this you can calculate your total expenses in marketing and sales, multiply it by 19% to 29%, and get the potential value created.


Bibl iography: books that have inspired me for this chal lenge

Enchantment, by Guy Kawazaki This book is all about crating a product or service that is truly magical and that appeal to your stakeholders. It will help you demonstrate that you don’t just churn out drugs, but that essentially, you CARE about providing long lasting relief to heartburn sufferers. The Tao of Twitter, by Mark W. Schaefer A powerful starter’s guide to using Twitter to get results while enjoying the journey. Practical advice intermeshed with clever insights on how and why this social media can be so effective. The social economy: unlocking value and productivity through social technology, by McKinsey Global Institute This report provides insight about the potential gains to be reaped from the use of social technologies. It describes a rapidly evolving environment in which social engagement play a vital role for businesses. It provides advice on how best to harness value for each industry. If you haven’t yet, get it here (http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/mgi/research/technology_and_innovation/the_social_economy) and read from p.59 – p.81 Guide to influencer Marketing, by Traackr This guide gives many hands on advice on how to define your target online conversations and start to reach and use the top influencers that are key to delivering your objectives. You can get this guide here (http://traackr.com/influencer-marketing-guide).