Thumbing through the Site library, we came across some nice pointers given by Andy Sernovitz in his Word of Mouth Marketing of 2006:

• Reply and respond.
• Thank people who say nice things about you.
• Fix problems and make people happy.

Puts to mind advice from a marketing trailblazer of another era, Dale Carnegie. First published in 1936, How to Win Friends and Influence People seems as relevant today as ever. Leafing through our – ahem – 1980 print edition, Mr. Carnegie’s advice is spot on for anyone engaged in word of mouth, buzz marketing or social media marketing today:

• Become genuinely interested in other people.
• Give honest, sincere appreciation.
• Be a good listener. Encourage people to talk about themselves.
• Talk in terms of the other people’s interest.
• Make others feel important, and do it sincerely.