10 tips for great communication
Wednesday, February 3, 2010 |
Companies and organizations in today’s global economy work very hard to convey information, capture the audience’s attention and inspire behaviours or attitudes to support their business objectives.
In reaching out to their customers and audiences, however, most organizations are too focused on what they want to say, not what the audience needs to hear. Many employees write from a ‘we’ perspective – ‘we do this’ and ‘we do that.’ And, despite their best efforts, it’s very difficult for employees to change this approach even if they are aware that there is a better way.
Why? Because employees are the organization, and as much as they try to put themselves in their customers’ shoes, they know too much. They have too much background knowledge, and the links and connections that hold meaning inside an organization are meaningless outside. This deep knowledge of the product or service usually leads to them trying to say too much. We call it “telling everybody, everything, all the time.” And it fails every time, because people just don’t care as much as you do about your stuff.
One of the best things writers can do is to turn their perspectives around so that they start with the answer to the question, ‘so what?’ Write interesting, compelling text that provides enough to engage the reader without overwhelming.
Here are some tips to help you communicate what your audiences need to hear:
- Do identify what you are trying to achieve, and tailor your message to the audience.
- Do start with WIIFM – what’s in it for me – from the audience’s perspective, not the company’s. Find out what’s important to your audience and address it first.
- • Do outline the basic information in short, punchy sentences. Avoid long, complicated sentences filled with jargon. Generally, any sentence with more than two commas is probably too long.
- Do write in the third person. Not “We are a Fortune 500 company...” which just begs the question, “who is ‘we?’” Instead, write “ABCDEF Corporation is a Fortune 500 company...”
- Do add some excitement! When writing, ask yourself, “is this something I would want to read?”
- Do include clear steps that the audience can take. Make it easy for your audience to buy/support/donate/whatever... right away.
- Do include charts, graphs, diagrams and other visuals to enhance and support your text. Supporting visuals should add value, not just be a pretty picture to occupy space.
- Don’t get bogged down in the details. Keep information clean, clear and succinct.
- Don’t re-create the history of the project/product/initiative – no one cares. Provide just enough background for context only.
- Don’t leave the reader asking more questions than you’ve answered. Make sure the information is complete and offers a rounded view of the topic.
And, of course, it’s critical to include a link or contact coordinates for more information.
It’s difficult to gain and sustain people’s attention these days. When you do have their eyes, ears and hearts – even for just a few brief moments – be prepared to make the most of the opportunity.
Posted in: communications |
The magic of social media
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 |
So here we are, firmly entrenched in a new age of social media and instant communication. Write a blog, get immediate feedback. Post a tweet and watch it get retweeted far and wide. Tweet using LinkedIn or Facebook. It seems like the possibilities are endless.
The ‘instantness’ of social media connections is very appealing. But because social media is still really in its developmental phase, we can only include its use as part of an overall communications or marketing program. Yes, there are more people tweeting and blogging every day. But are they the right demographic for your topic? Are people using social media for personal reasons, in which case they may not be in the right ‘space’ to deal with your organization’s information.
In many ways, social media is still a shotgun approach. Despite having 300, 3000 or 30000 fans or followers, we are not selecting our audience so much as accepting it. It’s difficult to recruit followers, especially on a scale that would make a difference. Social media is very much a ‘pull’ technology in that people have to find you and your topics interesting in order to want to follow along.
Once you have an audience, it’s tough to imagine that the same group of followers will be interested in the diverse topics you may wish to communicate. Will they be equally enamoured with information about laundry soap, power tools, art galleries, and football? It’s possible, but not probable.
The reality, of course, is that we need to remember social media is just another tool; just another way to reach people and engage them in a dialogue about topics or organizations that matter to them.
Despite all the emerging best practices, worksheets and templates, effective communication still comes down to the same basic questions:
• Who are you trying to reach?
• What do you want them to know or do?
• What is the best way to make this happen?
Yes, social media can play a role. But it isn’t the magic answer to all communications and marketing needs.
Posted in: communications |
Shift in Communication
Monday, October 5, 2009 |
There is an enormous cultural shift going on right now – something that I expect will be chronicled in history as a major turning point in civilization. No, I’m not just talking about Twitter or Facebook; rather, I’m talking about the shift from organization-centric communication to consumer-centric or individual-focused communication.
In the retail setting, today’s consumers know a lot about the products and services they purchase. Sometimes more than the salespeople serving them. They source their own information, seek out opinions and reviews, and custom tailor the products and services to meet their needs. The Internet has opened a whole world of information, available at our fingertips – that’s not new.
What’s new is the ability for customers to read reviews or comment on products and services in the moment using smart phones that have Internet access. With Twitter, for example, bad customer service is regularly reported on the spot via cell phones or smart phones, reaching thousands of people. This is a vast difference from the days when poor customer service was reported to a few friends and family. Consumers are more influenced by peer reviews than advertising, so the impact is significant.
The point is; communication is evolving at breakneck speed. May we live in interesting times...
We’ll talk about this in future posts.
Posted in: communications, Twitter, Social Media |
