The most effective communicators always tell a compelling story. Communicate to the gut, not the mind. Here’s how:
1- Your set of ideas must fit reality and the marketplace
2- Story has to resonate with deeply held values
3- The person telling the story has to be believable (perceived as genuine and trustworthy)
Do this by painting pictures (make material come alive), giving substance to fuzzy corporate concepts, using reliable quotes from other sources (and attribute it), knowing material and building bridges.
The ability to establish a rapport is the spokesperson trait that journalists rate most highly. In a sample of 250 reporters, it was most consistently the key underlying skill that reporters pointed to when asked “tell me about the most successful interviews you can remember.” The answer almost always came down to things like, “he was a regular guy, so down to earth,” “he made me feel like he was interested in me,” “we had things in common” and “he opened up, let the real person show through.”
Ask yourself: “What company goal am I trying to support with this communication?” Then synch up your daily “to do” list with company priorities. Continually ask yourself, “Is this the most effective approach and am I the right person to do it?”
An October 2006 study by Forrester Research revealed Canadian blogs are viewed by 58.2% of blog readers (highest in world). Of these blog readers, 22% do so at least once a month.
Bloggers DO NOT want to be sold to.
Identify who the poor communicators are in your organisation. Is it knowledge? Attitude? Both? Answering these questions can change behaviour and improve the chance they’ll connect with your target audience.
Communicate with straight talk. In this day and age candour is respected, AND expected – especially as it relates to social media. With open dialogue people give you the benefit of the doubt. It’s about giving an answer even if it’s not what audience wants to hear.
The most powerful predictor of a team’s performance is this question: “At work, do you have the opportunity every day to do what you do best?”
Protect your company’s reputation. It’s extremely difficult to re-establish a positive reputation once it has been damaged.
Generally, too much time is spent trying to improve employee weaknesses. There needs to be a balance between improving weaknesses and enhancing strengths. Ask: What percentage of my day is spent on my strengths-based work?
Three Myths and Truths:
o Myth 1 – As you grow, your personality changes.
o Truth 1 – As you grow, you become more of who you already are.
o Myth 2 – You grow the most in your areas of greatest weakness.
o Truth 2 – You grow the most in your areas of greatest strengths.
o Myth 3 – A great team member puts his strengths aside and does whatever it takes to help the team.
o Truth 3 – A great team member volunteers his strengths to the team most of the time.
The International Association of Business Communicators is the world's largest and most international professional association of communicators. Its membership totals more than 13,000.
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