People aren't talking about your ads, marketers, they're talking about what they're friends are talking about. And more disturbingly to advertisers, consumers say their purchasing decisions aren't being driven by the ads they see or hear but instead on the opinions of others whom they trust.

While this might be an accurate conclusion based on the data, there is some room to still argue that traditional advertising has a significant role to play. People often aren't aware of how ads influence them and therefore may not be reporting that impact correctly. For instance, if someone saw an ad for Ford they may have dismissed it but seeing that ad may have spurred a conversation with someone they know who owns a Ford about their car. So while the ad was not the direct motivator it did have a role to play.

That makes the role of continued customer-service and maintenance, regardless of the kind of product being sold, all the more important. If current owners or users aren't happy they're going to relay that discontent when queried on the subject. It's a combination of advertising and current user support that can have a powerful effect on how well an ad campaign works.