Simple is smart. Simple is big. Just ask Blendtec.

Yesterday I received a message from a reader asking me to provide an example of how word of mouth marketing can be cultivated. I was thinking about which example would be best suited for this purpose while waiting in line at my local Starbucks. Then suddenly I noticed something behind the counter that immediately solved my dilemma. So, what did I see? A blender, but not just any blender—the Blendtec Blenderthe blender used in the now famous Will it Blend? You Tube videos.

“…consider the ease with which Tom Dickson, founder and CEO of small U.S. blender manufacturer Blendtec, uses social media, writes Soumitra Dutta in the Harvard Business Review. “Until 2006, few people had heard of Dickson; today, there aren’t many business owners who haven’t. That’s because Dickson is the star of the Will it Blend? series of YouTube videos, in which he subjects a host of objects (marbles, computer games, an iPod, an iPhone, an iPad) to the sharp blades of his products. Thanks to the campaign’s popularity (the iPhone-blending video has been viewed more than 9 million times), Blendtec’s sales have increased sevenfold in the past three years–impressive when you consider that each video lasts only about two minutes and is produced for a few hundred dollars.”

Was Starbucks always using the Blendtec Blenders? I’m not sure.
The next time you think about purchasing a blender, will you consider the Blendtec Blenders?
It’s possible to nudge your story into everyday conversations.
But don’t take my word for it. Just ask Tom Dickson.

(This video received 9,835,769 views as of May 26 2011.)