Word of mouth: Who are your talkers?

In Andy Sernovitz's new book on Word of Mouth Marketing (and in his old book too) he talks about the 5 T's of Word of Mouth. I thought it might be useful for us to dig into each of them over the next week or two.

If you've been wanting to get a bit more viral and work on your word of mouth efforts — you'll be able to use these posts as a guide to drafting a simple WOM marketing action plan. (download the planning chart)

The first T is Talkers. Talkers are people who spread the gospel about your product or service. They're going to tell their friends, co-workers, and other people about you.

The trick is identifying who your talkers really are. Most people assume it would naturally be their biggest, best customers. But that's not always the case. You need to think about your customers and who has a natural tendency to share their experiences with others.

One of the things I really found myself nodding at was when Andy debunked the myth that talkers had to be "influencers" ala Malcom Gladwell's theories in the Tipping Point. Anyone can be a talker. Ever had your hair cut? Man, are those people plugged into what's going on. Don't think movers and shakers — think natural talkers!

Who might be your talkers? Don't take this list as gospel — but more of a jump start.

Employees
Vendors
Happy customers
Reporters
Bloggers
Social Networkers
Passive "free" customers (like the ones who subscribe to your e-newsletter)
Neighbors
Active networkers (they have to connect their peeps to someone!)

So what do you think….who are your talkers?