Introduction
The consumer's problem: finding vendors that serve their needs well.
Most people can name one, maybe two vendors in any category of business, in spite of the hundreds who advertise to try to get their attention. Of companies they are aware of, there are very few they feel strongly enough about to recommend to others.
People are no longer as naive about advertising as they once were, and company-sponsored messages carry very little weight. To a marketer, the "gold" is getting word-of-mouth referrals. In traditional studies, little attention has been paid to this form of marketing. Hence, this book.