“Sally is truly an artisan at crafting marketing copy. For more than two years, she has helped me to develop marketing strategies, web site/e-newsletter content, and well-received articles, and this work has helped me attract my ideal clients. Best of all, Sally is a delight to work with – professional, warm, and she delivers on her promises. She is a true wordsmith!”
Audience: the heart of the matter
Are you missing the mark? Are you spending a lot of time wondering how your marketing needs to change in this new environment?
Are you holding on by your fingertips to the idea that you need to "control the message"?
Relax. You don't need to do that. In fact, thinking that you can is wasting valuable time.
Today, I came across a well-reasoned call to communicators in the form of an article by Roger D'Aprix in CW Bulletin, the magazine published by the International Association of Business Communicators (full disclosure: I'm a member.). Roger's talking about the economic crisis, but really what's he's talking about is the very foundation of good communication and strong messaging. It's at the heart of your marketing conversation. Or it should be. He writes:
At the heart of all of this is a fundamental communication principle: Any communication strategy must be based on the communication needs, assumptions and beliefs of the intended audience. The starting point should always be the audience, rather than our need to control the story and potentially deliver messages that miss the mark.
Read the full text of Roger's article here.
Whether you do it through social media outreach, focus groups, market research, surveys, a regular habit of getting out and meeting your clients and customers face-to-face, or by some other means, a solid grasp of who you're talking to is critical to your success.
Yet too many businesses and nonprofits spend more time evaluating their messages-- and the words and vehicles they use to convey them-- from a strictly internal point of view. If you do nothing else in 2009, try starting every project with one assumption:
You-- and the people sitting with you around the table-- are not necessarily your target market.
Think about it.
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Stop talking about yourself
Stop talking about yourself already 642-901. Have you anytime been trapped beyond the table from anyone who is bent to advertise you? Or anyone who shares amaranthine belief about himself 220-701, talking at you instead of to you? How altered it feels if anyone throws out a catechism that blaze acceptable chat a part of others N10-004, or if a being shows 18-carat absorption in you. Writing requires agnate engagement. If you accumulate the focus on yourself,your admirers walks away.
Unfortunately,too many
Unfortunately,too many business owners, executives and even marketing/PR folks— people who are fluent in basic grammar and construction— have a discomfort with writing that puts them at a disadvantage.
Maybe it’s time for a reframe. Think about the last time you attended an industry event or had drinks with colleagues or clients. In these situations, certain rules of the road apply. Many of them are applicable to good business writing as well.
1. Get your head out of the office. When you physically leave the office, you instantly take on a different perspective. You leave behind an internal company focus and see a bigger picture. Starting your writing (or reviewing) with this mindset helps create the distance and perspective that good writing requires. If you need to get up and go somewhere to make the mental shift, do it.
2. Remember, it’s not about you. If you walk into a business lunch more concerned about whether you want to be there and what others think of you, you're not going to connect.When you arrive willing to listen, open up and share something of value, your communication naturally works better. In writing, it's critical to separate your preferences and desires from those of your audience.
3. Loosen up a bit. Think about how you talk with clients or prospective clients about your services. Do you speak formally and continually refer to yourself and your company in third person? Or do you use words like "we" and"our"? Try relaxing your writing the same way. Bringing active,conversational language into your writing helps your message get through.
4. Stop talking about yourself already. Have you ever been trapped across the table from someone who is determined to sell you? Or someone who shares endless stories about himself, talking at you instead of to you? How different it feels when someone throws out a question that sparks good conversation among others, or when a person shows genuine interest in you.
Writing requires similar engagement. When you keep the focus on yourself,your audience walks away.
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