Communicate!

Helping you win loyal friends through your communications

It’s the Holiday Season Already

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shofar

Child blowing the shofar to mark Rosh Hashanah

Sending holiday greetings to your customers and community is a great way to let them know you’re thinking of them. But not everyone celebrates the same holidays.

This Sunday night, Jews begin the new year, with the Rosh Hashanah holiday. Ten days later comes Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, followed shortly by Sukkot and Simchat Torah.

Wiccans and other pagans celebrate the Autumnal Equinox (Mabon) on Monday, September 21.

Muslims in North America.mark Eid al-Adha on Wednesday evening, September 23, 2015.

And you thought the holiday season was in December!

Sending Greetings to Your Mailing List

How do you wish people well on their holidays when you may have Christians, Jews, pagans, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and atheists on your list?

Ideally, you keep a record of which holiday each person on your list celebrates. Then, you send personalized email to each one.

(It helps a lot if your email list is in a database instead of a spreadsheet and if you use an email service provider like Constant Contact or MailChimp and not just Outlook or Gmail.)

If you haven’t kept records of which holidays are meaningful to which of your contacts, now would be a good time to start!

My Holiday Gift to You

While you are putting together those records, I’ll help you send holiday greetings to all. Here’s how: feel free to cut and paste the second, third, and fourth paragraphs of this message into your email and social media. Add these words: “To all our friends who celebrate these holidays, we send our warmest greetings.”

That’s it for now. Who’s looking forward to Groundhog’s Day?

 

What a Toddler Taught Me about Communicating

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toddlers communicate

What is she saying now?

My nineteen-month-old niece was crying as if her heart would break.

Her heart was fine, actually.  It was her grandfather’s heart that was cracked open for a triple bypass, in a hospital an hour away.  So her mother had gone to the hospital, and I was spending the day taking care of her.  Alone.

“Honey, what do you want?” I pleaded with her.  And I thought, “If only she could tell me what she’s thinking.”

But she could.  She did tell me.  And your audience is telling you too.  Look and listen to what they do online, and you will find out what they want.

How does a toddler tell you what she wants?

Pointing.  My niece knows the milk is in the refrigerator, the bananas are on the table, and the TV remote is on the couch.  If she points at the table, you know she wants to eat a banana.  If she hands you the remote, it’s time for Bubble Guppies or Sesame Street.

Your audience knows where to find what they want online.  If they’re visiting your website or social media pages often, there’s something there they want.  So, find out where they’re pointing!  The pages, posts, or tweets they visit will tell you what will keep them coming back again and again.

Making happy noises.  My niece laughs, squeals, and talks excitedly in full sentences in a language I don’t understand when something makes her happy.

Your audience likes, shares, retweets, or recommends the content they like the best.  So, listen to their communications with other people to find out what kind of content will keep them gurgling with delight.

Keeping to a routine.  My niece gets up around the same time each day.  Five hours later, it’s time for her nap.  If it’s around 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon and she’s rubbing her eyes, I know it’s time to take her to her crib.

Your audience is online at certain times more than others.  Find out their pattern and you’ll know when to post.  They like reading more serious articles at certain hours and they go for distraction at other hours.  Keep track of that and you”ll know what content you should post when.

Oh, my brother-in-law is fine.  Thanks for asking!  And my niece is adorable–and three years old now, with an infant brother.

So I’m back to communicating with my audience: you. I post to the blog on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, at times that you have shown me you’re online. And I hope this message brightened your day a bit. If so, make happy noises: share this post with a friend!

 

Are You Using a Rotary Phone on the Internet?

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rotary phone

How many know what this is?

Does your nonprofit or business use a rotary phone?  Of course not.  Push-button phones are everywhere.  When younger people wonder how to use a rotary phone, they have to look it up.

But are you using a rotary phone on the internet?  The answer is “yes”–if you’re not using social media.

Yes, you have email.  That’s the rotary phone of the 21st century.  You can still use it to get in touch, but it’s slow, and talking to more than one person at a time is awkward.

Yes, you have a website. That’s like being in the phone book.  Most people these days are throwing phone books away as soon as they receive them.  Being listed does you no good if people don’t have a reason to call.

You have a blog?  Good!  A step in the right direction! But it’s a baby step–like putting your phone number in a print ad.  What makes people want to get in touch with you if they don’t know you already?

Social media let you meet people in a relaxed environment.  You get to know each other.  People begin to like you, perhaps even trust you.  They tell you more about themselves.  When it comes time to ask them for something, you know what might appeal to them.  But they might actually approach you first.

That’s why it’s worthwhile using social media and using them well.  Because you don’t want to wait by the phone.

 

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