Fueled by the social web, Word of Mouth has become a billion dollar marketing engine. It even has its own professional organization — the Word of Mouth Marketing Association — with conferences, webinars, tutorials and a strong emphasis on ethics.

If you haven’t visited the WOMMA website yet, it’s worth the time. It offers a number of resources for any level of WOM practitioner. And perhaps in recognition of the overwhelming influence of social media on young people, it has dedicated a branch to higher education.

Spearheaded by DePaul University’s Deborah Maue, WOMMA created the Higher Education Council to help college marketers “use social media to their best advantage.” Mostly, that means helping them recruit Millennials, who have elevated word of mouth to an art form. Young people are inclined to share everything with friends and acquaintances, and the growing stable of social media makes it easy.

That can be good or bad, of course, depending on what kind of experiences your students and prospects are having. And that gets to the heart of WOMMA’s approach to WOM:

“All word of mouth marketing techniques are based on the concepts of customer satisfaction, two-way dialog and transparent communications….WOM is the most honest form of marketing, building upon people’s natural desire to share their experiences with family, friends and colleagues.

“Only honest marketers with confidence in their products dare engage in word of mouth marketing — because it will backfire if the promise of your marketing message isn’t backed up by reality. Once you give people a voice, they will tell the true story of your company, good or bad.”

Most colleges have positive stories to tell. Word of mouth can be a powerful force for communicating them.

Learn more about WOMMA’s Higher Education Council.

Learn how to use social media more effectively at the next Free on Friday Webcast.