Are ordinary user recommendations more powerful than opinion leader endorsement?

Although the company web site is today probably  the primary source of enquiries and sales leads, there still needs to be some stimulus for prospects to take this route in the first case. They need to have at least an interest in the product or service you offer. This could be prompted either by need or recommendation by a trusted source. The recommendation format provides a personal endorsement that has long been used in marketing. This could be in the form of testimonials and case studies  typically given by recognised and respected opinion leaders.  Of course the recommendation could be more formally expressed in terms of a written specification issued by a consultant. Most marketing programmes recognise the need for favorable reviews and work hard to ensure influential people are on message.  But now just as the Internet offers the promise of a level playing field for small companies, so there is an opportunity for users of products to comment on their experiences. In fact some intermediary sales sites like Amazon invite users to write a review and Trip Advisor has become an important resource for travellers to benefit from the perspective of ordinary people who tend to be less glowing in their reviews than professional travel writers.

Social marketing sites allow companies to conduct a 'conversation' with users who now have the opportunity to comment and indeed exchange views. This has the potential to be a powerful new marketing tool but demands both a level of engagement and commitment of resources that few b-2-b companies have yet recognised.

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