Taking Control of Word-of-mouth Marketing: the Case of an Entrepreneurial Hotelier

Marketing in entrepreneurial contexts, such as small business, relies heavily on word of mouth (WOM) recommendations for customer acquisition. However we know little about how WOM processes work for small firms, or how owner-managers can influence them. This case study of an entrepreneurial owner of an independent hotel is used to illustrate problems associated with WOM, and potential strategies to overcome them. The ownermanager researched existing hotel customers through face-to-face interviews and a questionnaire. The results confirmed the importance of WOM, but found two sets of dissonance. One was between input WOM types and sources, the other between output WOM content and targets. The owner-manager improved the effectiveness of WOM communications through a variety of interventions. Demonstrating that WOM can be an effective part of a marketing strategy for a small firm. MANAGERIAL AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS • Small and medium sized enterprises (SMES) can influence the informal process of wordof-mouth communication. • The first stage for the entrepreneur is to investigate how WOM process work in the context of the specific business. • Entrepreneurs need to understand the input WOM types and sources, and the output WOM content and targets. They should also examine the relationship between these data looking for potential dissonance.