The last few weeks have shown it’s never been more important to get your message and tone of communications right. Just one word, sentence or point of view can either incite adoration and respect, or be damning and destructive. You could play it safe and say nothing at all, but then you run the risk of sending out the message that you don’t care, have no empathy, or even worse, you don’t exist.
Damned if you do, damned if you don’t? Not necessarily.
A little understanding of human psychology shows that in extreme situations like these people fall into two categories: Fight or Flight. It’s natural human behaviour and according to the circumstances we find ourselves in, we will fall into either one of those categories. So, understanding this psychology and the intention of the messaging you intend to send out, helps a long way towards determining the tone of your communication.
Here are some useful tips to how you can keep on side with the Fighters and Flighters:
Keep your message POSITIVE.
Messages, news and chat on social media will already be adding to their woes, so keep your comms short, informative, helpful and above all positive. Believe it or not, people love to hear good news!
Be EMPATHETIC not Sympathetic:
Your audience are not looking for you to pity them, but for you to understand and engage in their situation. Taking an empathetic route sends out the message that you are willing to engage with them and help find solutions.
Don’t give it the BIG sell:
The last thing anyone wants right now are ‘hard sell’ tactics. Its subjective enough in normal times to employ such tactics, but certainly suicidal these days. That’s why it’s vital to change your messaging to suit the current times and peoples’ psyche.
Be CHARITABLE:
After all this is over you will of course need your customers, but also your suppliers. Reach out, engage with them, ask them what important issues they are experiencing and extend a helping hand. I am sure they have helped you out of some tricky situations in the past, so maybe it’s time to reciprocate.
Keep in Touch:
One blessing is there are lots of easy ways to keep in touch on this digital planet of ours. Make your comms regular, as it makes people feel there is a world outside of isolation. It helps keep us connected in what feels like a disconnected place at the moment.
If you would like some help or advice with how to keep your communications relevant, informative and positive, then feel free to give us a shout.
We are all in this together and we are here to help you.
Keep safe, stay positive and together.
