The F-Bomb Successful Manufacturers Are Dropping

Before I start dropping (I mean share) the F-bomb successful manufacturers are dropping, let's take a quick look at one of my heroes in business—Sara Blakely. The founder of?Spanx.

(If you manufacture tools or drywall or something more 'serious,' don't worry, this is so for YOU)

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She was getting ready for a party when she realized she didn’t have the right undergarment to provide a smooth look under white pants.

Armed with scissors and sheer genius, she cut the feet off her control top pantyhose and the SPANX revolution began! With a focus on solving wardrobe woes, SPANX has secured its place in women's hearts and in pop culture with daily mentions everywhere from CNN to SNL.

In March of 2012, Founder Sara was named the world's youngest, self-made female billionaire by Forbes Magazine and one of TIME's 100 Most Influential People.

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One of the things I admire most about this manufacturing trailblazer is that she never lost her sense of humor and fun. Like so many of us tend to do.

?"Humor is so important in business. The best kind of humor typically comes from being vulnerable, and from a willingness to laugh at yourself. It establishes stronger human connections?and makes everything so much more FUN! At?Spanx , we are constantly trying to find the "funny" at work."

–Sara Blakely

?So (seriously) what does Sara's take on humor have to do with you growing your business??Everything!

And, don't just take my word for it. Let's back this up with some juicy facts and research that will surprise you. Oh, and a?blog post ?we did a decade ago that's still relevant.?(been beating this drum for a while now)

In this rare case, the F-bomb I'm dropping is FUN! ??

Because when was the last time you came home from work?(aka walked from the converted bedroom to the living room)?and said out loud, "Damn, today was fun!" or "We infused the big meeting or presentation with humor and our customer said it was actually fun and different than anything else they'd experienced in a long time."

There exists a mistaken belief in today's B2B world that we have to be serious all the time to be taken seriously.

But the research of?Jennifer Aaker ?and?Naomi Bagdonas ?(Lecturer/coach and Professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and authors of?Humor, Seriously ) tells a different story: that humor can be one of the most powerful tools we have for accomplishing serious things.

Humor (and dare I say FUN) is a secret weapon in business and in life. And seriously underleveraged in manufacturing!

1. Humor gets people out of their heads and away from their troubles. Humor can?create?a more spontaneous connection with your customers.
2. Laughter helps people forget judgments, criticisms, and doubts. Humor can?create?a cooperative environment for customers, instead of a defensive one.
3. Fears of holding back and holding on are set aside. Humor can?create?a safe zone for your customer relationships to grow.
4. Deeply felt emotions are allowed to rise to the surface. Humor can?create?an emotional connection with customers based on transparency.

To keep this short, I'll refrain from sharing ALL the statistics and research and dive right into how you can leverage humor to connect with customers better and faster and put the FUN back into manuFacturing to make sales easier!?[CAUTION: if you don't want this, feel free to stop reading] ??

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DROPPING THE F-BOMB INTO YOUR MARKETING

Talk Like a Human?

Cut the bull!

Sterile jargon is dry, generic, and boring. Straight talk that's friendly and relatable is emotionally engaging.

Scientists and linguists believe that words are not only?a window into who we are and how we behave, but they also play a role in shaping these things. Talk like a robot and you (and your team) start acting like robots.

CALLBACKS:?Calling back a shared moment when you and the recipient laughed together.

SPICIER SIGN-OFFS:?Send a subtle signal that infuses emotion or mood; prime real estate for levity.

ADD A P.S.:?90% of people read the P.S. before the letter; make a good first impression.

OOO REPLY:?Craft a memorable Out of Office reply "shifting the entire auto-responder interaction from one of scarcity (nobody's home) to abundance (well, that just made my day)."

SPEAK THEIR LANGUAGE:?Use phrases and expressions only your audience will understand.

MORE YOU, LESS WE:?(had to slip this one in) replace we with you and put the spotlight on them.

GRATITUDE:?Recognize your reader with appreciation and acknowledgment.

SURPRISE AND DELIGHT:?Infuse your brand personality and voice into everything from your corporate video to your email signatures; memorable and different or?just like everyone else?!

The most beloved and successful brands aren't just seen and heard, they're felt. Connecting to the heart of your ideal customer.

?? TAKEAWAY:

Remember, the goal isn't necessarily to tell jokes or even be funny—it's to?make more human connections during everyday (marketing) moments, and to be more productive and effective (not to mention less boring) in the process.

"There is nothing like a gleam of humor to reassure you that a fellow human being is ticking inside a strange face (aka serious brand)." —Eva Hoffman

P.S. (Cause I knew you'd look down here) Go ahead! Infuse some fun into your culture, meetings, marketing, and sales. Seriously! The results will surprise you. And, let's connect ????

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Allison DeFord is the resident Trailblazer and founder of?Felt Marketing , the only marketing retrofit company for manufacturers who want to be seen, heard, and?felt ?to make sales easier. Co-host of?MFG OutLoud ?— the podcast that starts courageous conversations about sales and marketing for manufacturers. And, subject matter expert on?Manufacturing Masters . Connect at 949-662-5777 or email [email protected]. Subscribe and look forward to expert advice, inspiration, knowledge, and know-how delivered straight to your inbox every other Sunday with?WTMFG.