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The Difference between Paid Media, Earned Media and Word of Mouth :

There has been some renewed discussion online lately about the ethics and best practices surrounding the concept of "sponsored conversation." First of all, that name is misleading.It evokes images of a cocktail party where I have supplied the cranberry juice (I sell cranberry juice for a living, let's say) and said "oh, just keep talking about whatever interests you..."

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Brands want Us (bloggers/publishers) to talk positively about them. They want to do this because they know other consumers will read their words/see their video or hear about them and this may influence those consumers. Word of mouth is the most trusted source for information across many categories in many markets around the world. Or some marketers just want to fill up search engine results with as much positive about their brand as possible.
In all of this discussion about whether it is ethical to pay or incent bloggers to write about you, marketers are overlooking the huge difference between paid media and word of mouth marketing.


Quick aside:
the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (member) has had a rock solid ethics policy in place for the past 5 years that established the idea of FULL DISCLOSURE of the relationship between blogger and marketer in this case. That is part of the Honesty ROI which is the foundation of the WOMMA ethics policy. No one except WOMMA has added any better approach to ethics. In WOMMA's case, we are releasing a new ethics policy tomorrow that is the product of online and member discussion to respond to changes in the marketplace. Keep an eye out for that as it will serve as a foundation for all of us going forward.
The New Earned Media :
Word of Mouth Marketing is the new "earned media." That phrase - a cornerstone of the best public relations practices - means what it says - that you have done something to earn the attention and engagement of your media and publics. You cannot buy word of mouth. You can buy media. There is a further difference around what you can do to try and earn the attention of bloggers in this particular discussion. All of this must happen with full disclosure of the marketer and the "advocate" - that blogger who may or may not choose to talk about you.

Cash Doesn't Make Word of Mouth :
Can you outright pay 'cash' to a blogger even if you fully disclose, they "fully" disclose and all parties understand they will say what they will say - positive or negative?
That is not word of mouth marketing. It is not earned media. It is paid media. Is it evil? not really. I don't think it is particularly good marketing. Paying bloggers to write about your product or service is a demonstration of your values. It says that you value "media" and the more positive media units you have in Google search results the better your business will be. It suggests that you do not believe your audience distinguishes or cares about the distinction between authentic word of mouth and media coverage (albeit in this case "new media" coverage). I have to wonder if this approach to paid media may someday infect and undermine the best of word of mouth marketing just as aggresive email marketing and search engine spamming (e.g. link lots, et al) have ultimately weakened those disciplines.
Can we simply let the consumers decide what is valuable and trustworthy information? Sure but let's bend over backward making sure they can easily see the difference between paid media and authentic word of mouth. This requires a rigorous approach to disclosure including how that disclosure is communicated. At the end of the day, a brand must question the value of a blog post or product review emblazoned with a caveat above-the-fold that says. "I was paid by the brand that I am talking about to write something about product X..."
Word of mouth marketing is different.


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