“Mass advertising can help build brands, but authenticity is what makes them last. If people believe they share values with a company, they will stay loyal to the brand.” – Howard Schultz

John Moore, one of the authors of The Passion Conversation, shared some interesting thoughts about what he calls “Talkable Brands.”  Those are the brands with so much passion in their fans that they talk about them…a lot.

Here are three things he suggests every talkable brand has:

Talkable brands are Original
The more obvious you are, the more talkable you become. Being obvious is about expressing a company’s unique personality, not just for one day, but every day a business is in business.

Talkable brands are Informational
For word of mouth to happen, someone needs to gain some knowledge from either personal experience, or through conversations, or directly from the brand. The best way to deliver word of mouth information is through stories. Three enduring stories that you can use to spark word of mouth are: (1) Improve a Life, (2) Right a Wrong, and (3) Make Good Better.

Talkable brands are Cultural
Company culture starts with your people. It’s people who will make your brand talkable. Competitors can replicate your product, your programs, your services, but they can never replicate your people delivering your product, programs and services.

Your fans are your best avenue to more listeners.  Give them the motivation of compelling, relevant content, and they’ll tell everyone they know.  The biggest challenge isn’t the fans, it’s your understanding of compelling, relevant content.