Breaking Free from the Curse of Knowledge in Marketing

I first encountered the phrase "Curse of Knowledge" in Chip Heath and Dan Heath book, "Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die." This concept was brilliantly illustrated by Elizabeth Newton in 1990 through an intriguing experiment involving "tappers" and "listeners."

In this experiment, there where two groups: "tappers" and "listeners." Each tapper was tasked with selecting a well-known song, such as "Happy Birthday," and tapping out its rhythm on a table. The listeners' challenge was to guess the song. Over the course of the experiment, 120 songs were tapped out.

Can you guess the success ratio?         

It was a mere 3 out of 120, equating to a paltry 2.5% success rate for the listeners.

What's truly remarkable is that before making their guesses, Newton asked the tappers to predict the probability of listeners guessing correctly, and they predicted a staggering 50%. The tappers believed they were conveying the message effectively, when in reality, they succeeded only once in every 40 attempts. So why this enormous gap in perception?

When a tapper taps, it's impossible for them to avoid hearing the tune playing along with their taps. Meanwhile, all the listener can hear is a kind of bizarre Morse code. The tappers were astounded by the effort listeners had to put in to pick up the tune.

Now, let's replace the word "tapper" with "marketing" and "listener" with " sales team" What do you think our success rate would be?

The problem here is that once we know something, like the melody of a song, we find it hard to imagine not knowing it. Our knowledge has "cursed" us. This curse hampers our ability to share our knowledge effectively because we struggle to recreate the state of mind of those who lack that knowledge.

I've personally been cursed by this in my marketing career. As a consultant, I still see it playing out among marketing teams. Fortunately, early in my career, I had bosses who heightened my awareness and ensured that I delivered what was relevant to my customers - our sales team.

Often, as marketers, we become so immersed in analysis and strategy development that we assume our sales team possesses the same level of knowledge. This curse manifests itself in the presentations marketers create for the sales team, which are often laden with data and analysis that isn't relevant to them. The content that marketers use for presenting to their bosses inadvertently gets shared with the sales team. While we can't completely eradicate the Curse of Knowledge, we can certainly minimize its impact.

Here are some steps I've employed in my career and recommend to our clients when communicating with their stakeholders:

1?? Know Your Audience: Start by genuinely understanding your target audience. What are their pain points, desires, and knowledge levels? Tailor your message to meet them where they are.

2?? Simplify Your Message: Instead of overwhelming your audience with technical jargon or excessive information, simplify your message. Use plain language and focus on the benefits and solutions your product/service offers.

3?? Visuals Speak Volumes: Incorporate visuals like infographics, videos, and images to convey complex ideas in an easy-to-digest format. A picture truly is worth a thousand words.

4?? Storytelling: Weave a compelling narrative around your strategy to captivate your audience and make your message more relatable.

5?? Test and Iterate: Don't hesitate to try different approaches. Use analytics to determine what resonates and refine your messaging accordingly.

Breaking free from the Curse of Knowledge in marketing can be a game-changer. When we communicate with clarity, we create stronger connections with our audience, drive better engagement, and ultimately, achieve our marketing goals more effectively.

Ready to break free from the Curse of Knowledge in your marketing?

Contact us at WhiteSpace Consulting & Capability Building , and let's collaborate to simplify your communication strategy, driving stronger connections, and achieving your marketing goals more effectively.

Remember, a strategy is only as good as its execution.