Why Word of Mouth is a Vital Marketing Stream for your Aesthetic Business (and how to get those referrals!)

By Sara Cheeney on November 7th, 2023

When customers are compelled to share a positive experience off their own backs and without being
prompted to do so, you know they were genuinely thrilled with their experience.


This is without doubt the most powerful Marketing stream a business can have because it’s honest.
People are far more likely to trust the comments of a friend or family member than from a business
themselves because they have no reason to fabricate – 92% more to be exact. (Source:
https://referralrock.com/blog/word-of-mouth-marketing/)


So how do you increase the amount of word-of-mouth referrals you receive? Whilst the ones that
share off their own backs are the most genuine, there are other ways to source word-of-mouth
referrals that can be hugely beneficial too.


No matter how many word-of-mouth referrals you already receive, there is always room for more.
There are two types of WOM Marketing; amplified and organic. So, let’s explore what each look like.
Amplified WOM marketing is directly encouraged by your business and is a more conscious form of
Marketing activity. This can include things like:

  • Referral programs
  • Affiliate programs
  • Brand ambassadors
  • Influencer campaigns


Organic WOM marketing is something that occurs naturally from your business without any conscious
effort from you, like:

  • Social media sharing
  • Customer reviews and comments
  • Natural sharing of a product through conversation and meet-ups


Both are beneficial to your business and add different elements. Whilst the organic referrals are of
course the most genuine and appealing to the everyday-client, influencers with a strong following can
offer a new geographical reach that wouldn’t be possible from a single individual, so don’t rule out
those amplified methods.


Whichever stream you choose to pursue, you need to understand the way that word of mouth
referrals work. The easiest way to do this is to base this on your own experiences, so that you can
then replicate this within your own strategy.


Here’s 4 questions to ask yourself:

  1. What was the last paid product or service you recommended to someone?
  2. On a scale of 1-10 (1 being the worst, 10 being the best) how good did you believe the product or service was when you recommended it?
  3. What motivated you to want to share your feedback? e.g., was it easy to do, did you want to be associated with the product or were you offered a reward?
  4. How many people did you make this referral to and how public was it?

What we are trying to do here is get to the root of what made you want to share a product or service
with somebody else, so that we can look to instill the same motivation in your aesthetic clients.


Perhaps the overall service you offer needs to be made a little more ‘remarkable’ to offer the client
something above and beyond what they expect. When expectations are merely met and not
exceeded, the client is unlikely to feel the level of ‘delight’ needed to motivate a review or referral.


Or it may be that they’re already hugely satisfied with what you offer, but there is no easy way for
them to publicly make this referral. Does your website offer a review service, are you active on social
media? Peoples time is precious so it needs to be easy as possible for people to make a referral.

However and whenever you decide to source more word-of-mouth referrals, the key is remembering
to put yourself in a customers shoes. Keep asking yourself those same 4 questions above to ensure
you’re getting to the root of what motivates someone to make a referral, and then replicate this within
your aesthetic business.


You can never have too many reviews and positive comments about your business, so keep going!
For coaching help with your aesthetic business email sara@clinicsuccess.com

Sara Cheeney

Clinic Success