Can't see the Marketing for the Words

We’ve all heard the saying: “Can’t see the forest for the trees,” if not… welcome to Earth.

If you have heard it and not sure why people say something so silly, it means we can get so focused on the details (aka: the trees) we miss the whole picture or the whole issue at hand (aka: the forest). Before you click another article, stay with me… yes, details matter; yet, sometimes the marketing message can get lost when you add too much detail to your messaging.

In this analogy:

• the trees = words used in advertising, articles, presentations and the like
• the forest = the over-arching message that we want to get across to your audience

When you are an expert in your industry, you can make the mistake of using words that you use every day, (this includes acronyms), assuming everyone talks your talk. The key is to know your audience! Who are you talking to? Other experts? General public? End users? Clients? Potential candidates?

Ask yourself, “what is the call to action I want them to do after seeing/hearing my marketing message?” Do you want them to do?

• Buy my product/service
• Visit my website
• Apply for a job at my company
• Buy my book
• Eat at my restaurant
• Shop at my store
• Think of me as an expert in my field

Then, ask yourself why they would want to take that action? How are you helping them?

Let me give you a couple of examples:

Situation 1: Company A is trying to attract potential employees. This is an entry level manufacturing position that most of the skills will be taught on the job. Yet, the job description has a lot of technical words in it and is a page and a half in length.

• Solution: shorten the job description to one page (including the necessary legal jargon). Let the potential candidate know why this position is great for them: paid training, good starting wage, the ‘why’ of what they will be doing is important work, safe work environment, good health insurance and so on. You have only a few seconds to capture their attention so they will continue reading on about the job opening, place most intriguing benefits at the top of the page. Ask yourself: what details can be discussed in the first meeting vs. putting it on the job description?
• Sidebar suggestion: make the application process simple; otherwise, the perception will be you are a company that is difficult to work with.

Situation 2: an organizational development (OD) consultant is doing a presentation to a group of business leaders. The topic is agile project management, (which I know enough about to be dangerous), so I thought I’d expand my knowledge base and sit through his presentation. About 5 slides in I was lost in what exactly he was trying to tell us. The presentation was filled with OD terms that would have made sense to other OD professionals, yet to this room filled with business leaders from all kinds of industries, it didn’t resonate! And I am not the only one who felt this way… several people left halfway through his talk.

• Solution: write as if you are telling a story to a senior in high school. Content is best is story-form that takes the reader through how the problem was found, resolve and how it positively affected the organization. Believe me, if a small business owner would have understood what he said, they don’t need an OD expert… they ARE one! By telling the story of how you helped solve a problem allows the reader to start to trust you and in turn, buy from you. All the finite details between finding the problem and fixing the problem matter to you, it doesn’t always matter to your audience.

How can you make sure your content is right for your audience? Ask for help! If you are writing a job description, ask someone who does that job. If you are writing an article or presentation for small business owners, ask a small business owner to review it before you publish/present it. Marketing is a team sport, (sick of me saying that yet?). Utilize your network to gain insight into your content.

Not sure where to start? I’d love to help! There are benefits to a #rebelmindset. You can reach me at [email protected] or 414.807.4281.

Happy Creating!