If I could give you some communication advice today, my friend, it would be this:
Please stop making things so clear.
Stop focusing so much on having a single message.
And stop making that one message so dang compelling.
I know your [insert business, organization, nonprofit, church, or bake sale here] has many things going on. Important things. Fascinating things. Yes, we’re all interested in every little thing you have to offer.
Your communication should be like the Cheesecake Factory menu. Overwhelm me. Make me cry. Don’t stop until my eyes glaze over like I just downed the rest of my wife’s tiramisu cheesecake after I’ve already had my own.
Sure, most of us don’t have time for all your things. Nor are we your target audience. In fact, I will probably never go to Sister Mildred’s Quilting Expo. I have never quilted. I do not know Mildred. She isn’t actually my sister. But please give me the full agenda down to every stitch.
And please, tell me how this all got started 75 years ago. I can’t tell you how relevant that is to me. Start at the beginning. Or even earlier. Tell me what Mildred’s grandfather did for a living. Very relevant, indeed.
And no, I don’t need you to think through why I might care. Just throw the details at me without considering that I might ask “so what?” Just blurt them out like a 5-year-old babbling about Minecraft. Yes, I’m still on the edge of my seat 15 minutes into my son’s diatribe about mobs, creepers, and whatever the heck a chicken jockey is.
My kindergartener has mastered communication strategy. I strongly recommend you adopt his methods for your very important business.
Whatever you do, please don’t give me a clear call to action. Heavens, no. If a small spark of interest happens to flicker within me, make me work for it. It should be like a puzzle. People love puzzles.
Signing up for your event should be like the movie National Treasure. But instead of the Declaration of Independence, I’m searching for your online sign-up form.
Please, don’t make any of this seem personal or human. It’ll distract from the details. And do not, under any circumstances, tell a story. Certainly not. You wouldn’t want me to get inspired or motivated or any unseemly thing like that.
Better yet, just give your facts to ChatGPT and let the chatbot tell you what to say. It will give you all the relevant emojis. And, hey, have it create a flyer while you’re at it. You can post it on social media with a QR code.
Sure, I know it’s not super convenient to scan a QR code with your phone’s camera while doomscrolling social media on said phone. And, yes, you can just put your link in the social media caption or “in the bio.” But that’s much too convenient. And the cool kids use QR codes. So, you must certainly have that.
So, if you want to be really, really good at marketing, please stop communicating a clear and compelling message. What does Nike, or Coca-Cola, or Apple know anyway? Amateurs, really. Much too simple. Much too focused. You can do so much better than that.
If you want more pro tips, talk to Mildred’s nephew. His great-grandfather was a bookkeeper. His contact information is somewhere in the monthly newsletter.