You have a website. You diligently collect your mailing list because that’s your forever-platform for your independent author business. How’s your word-of-mouth marketing doing?

Data says that a word from a trusted source triggers up to half of consumer purchases. In other words, in this time of overwhelming choice on the web, who you gonna believe? Who’s whispering where you listen?

Word-of-mouth not only influences shoppers, it’s most likely to steer them from one similar product to another. You know, like books.

“Whatchu readin?” “Hey, check this out, you’ll love it.” Marketers have a name for that — Experiential. From experience. Not much they can do about it except make good stuff.

“Where’d you hear that?” “Where’d you get that?” Marketers call that Consequential. A consequence of something they did or paid for.

“[A celebrity] said it.” Marketers call that Intentional. They intended for you to overhear it. This one doesn’t work well for books unless the celebrity is a writer with a trustworthy fan base of their own.

Although the blogosphere is tragic with trashy — or totally fake — celebrity word-of-mouth, it’s difficult to get a trusted writer to fall for it.

Facebook relies on advertisers paying for all three kinds. Their superpower is knowing who you listen to, and what they talk about. Then their bots fake you both out. Bots also measure you in numbers, and MBA’s love robotic numbers.

At this point in studying word-of-mouth marketing tools, I get nauseous. They’re actually called tools, as if you and I were wayward jalopies in need of a good tune-up.

Wanna know what I like? Ask me. Look at me. Talk like we would over a picnic table. Whisper when it’s important. I hate megaphones.

Unless I signed up for it. And I do sometimes.

“Getting em up” at U.S.Naval Training Camp, Seattle, Washington. Webster & Stevens., ca. 1917 — ca. 1918. NARA’s Still Picture Records Section, U.S. National Archives’ Local Identifier:165-WW-332D(16).

I have big ears already. The web’s my oyster.