You would think that getting your word out in an information age would be as easy as reaching for the phone. But with the power of industrial strength communication tools spewing loads of content in all directions, sometimes it seems like everyone is shouting at once. To help your organization communicate effectively, NCTI suggests 10 Tips to raise your voice above the deafening din.
Get your plan together. You have to have a plan that you can always refer back to. Ask yourself these questions…
The better you know your audience, the better you can serve them. No matter how cold it is, there’s really little point in trying to sell a Arizona Cardinals jacket to a Pittsburg Steelers fan Connect your cause by making your message relevant.
We’ve all heard the saying, “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.” With so many competing initiatives, leading people to you requires some strategy. Market, market, market – Create buzz. Web 2.0 is one strategy, which we’ll talk about soon Create incentives – Making benefits explicit. Satisfying curiosity.
Who doesn’t like a good story? Stories are effective ways to both engage/draw-in your audience and introduce them to your topic. It helps to make it relevant. Personalize a story to make it relevant to your consumer.
This can refer to website and to blog postings.
Think about networking with your friends and colleagues. It’s much easier and more comfortable to ask a favor or get information if you’ve stayed in touch. Of course, you don’t want to be a pest You want to keep people abreast of what you’re doing. You don’t want them to forget about you. If you could get them to interact, that demonstrates engagement, which is even better
This is closely tied to the previous slide. When you create a path to action, you provide a stronger platform for building awareness, interaction, and habit. How can you develop the knowledge-base of your consumer. Do you shove information down there throats or give it to them in small bites? How do you expect people to interact with you. There’s interaction that requires time – seeing people at conferences, stopping by offices, doing lunch. Warm and fuzzy communication feels good, but you’re limited in your reach. How can you facilitate interaction – discussion board? Blog? One question survey? How do you create a habit. Think about the elements of your favorite stores or websites. What keeps you going back?
When online, you can caption your pictures
Can’t judge a book by it’s cover, but many people do (shopping online – I wont give my credit card to non-credible sites) Uncomfortable for extremely modest people, but a necessary step
How do you determine success – go back to your goal/action. What will be your measure of success – for me, it could be as simple as getting feedback on AT issues.
NCTI resources can be found at NationalTechCenter.org