Make Your Messages Sing
Whether you’re trying to sell a product, convince someone to take advantage of your service, persuade franchisees to take action or influence your employees to change their ways, at some point you’re going to have to deliver a message. Here are some guidelines I always follow when crafting a communications plan. These are easy steps you can leverage to engage your brand with your target audience.
Are You Talking To Me?
Your message should never be about you. It’s always about your audience. Figure out what they want or need and give it to them. Starting with what they want to hear instead of what you want to say is the best way to make your message stick.
Brains. Heart. Courage.
Your message should deliver three things: what you want your audience to know, feel and do. Many times we cover the “know” and “do,” but we miss the “feel.” An emotional connection is the strongest, so make sure your message has heart. Read this blog for more on Brains, Heart and Courage.
I Want To Be Where The People Are
There are lots of awesome, exciting and amazing ways for getting your message out. Where you spend your time may not necessarily be the communications channel where your audience is. Take the time to figure out where they live and play then put your message in that medium. You can’t catch a fish in a coffee cup.
Don’t Put Eight Gallons of Water in a Five Gallon Bucket
Repeat after me, “I will not drown my audience in multiple messages!” Say a few things and be done with it. Less is better and never go over your allotted time. In fact, my biggest fear with this blog is that it’s already too long.
Be A Broken Record
Messages stick more when your audience or customers hear the same thing over and over - especially when it’s from multiple sources and multiple channels. The more they hear it, the more they’ll believe. You might need to tweak the creative after a while to keep it fresh, but your core message should never falter.
Follow The Yellow Brick Road
Take your audience somewhere. Get them to your website. Link to a product page. Everyone loves to go on an adventure. Tell your audience an engaging story that takes them on a journey through you brand.
The Final Thought
Be authentic! If your message is misleading, false or untrue, it will never stick in the long run. Make sure you can deliver what you promise.
Wal Ozello, The Wizard and President of Emerald City Agency, is a life-long storyteller with more than thirty years of experience in Communications and Marketing. His expertise is discovering what brand messages resonate with target audiences, then crafting strategies and content to make them believe and act. Need to speak with The Wizard? Email him: oz@emeraldcityagency.com