There are two types of word of mouth; immediate and ongoing. Both types are invaluable to brands but certain types are more important for certain products.
Immediate Word of Mouth
Immediate word of mouth takes place when you pass on information soon after you have learnt it, for example you see an advert for a sale at your favourite shop and you tell colleagues, friends and family about it later that day or in the coming days.
Immediate word of mouth is critical to products that need instant success, i.e. new film releases, new food products, if the buzz isn’t there the cinemas will replace the film with another and supermarkets will stop stocking the product.
Ongoing Word of Mouth
Ongoing word of mouth takes place in the weeks and months after, for example recommending a film you watched last week or a holiday you went on last year.
Ongoing word of mouth is almost always important, if people are talking about products for weeks and months after launch it keeps the buzz and demand high.