We’re inundated daily with media. Turn on your computer, pick up your phone, even just step outside your door, and you’re pretty much bound to run into someone promoting something. It’s a non-stop onslaught, and most of us have become conditioned to tune out everything but the most compelling messages.
If you’re trying to get people’s attention, to get them interested in your product, your service, or just get them to listen to what you have to say, how do you cut through the noise and be heard? Most people agree, it’s all about how you tell your story.
Make it Personal
Make it something that touches people…something they can relate to in their own lives. Use real stories about real people. Do you have a solution to a challenge people face regularly in their lives or their work? Tell one person’s story – better yet, let them tell the story – about how it helped them. It’s a lot more convincing than just insisting “look at this! It’s awesome!”
Be Consistent
A good campaign doesn’t happen overnight. A well-executed strategy that puts you in front of eyeballs on a regular and recurring basis is what establishes a solid brand foundation. While going viral is great for short-term wins, those campaigns are usually short-lived and quickly evaporate with the next news cycle. Building a sustainable brand takes time, creativity, and a consistent, recurring message. A true overnight success is typically years in the making.
Be Different
We see it happen every day. The debut of a new cool gizmo, a great video, a unique new artist…is followed by a stream of look-alikes, sound-alikes, and knock-offs. While it might be true that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, it’s also the fastest route to dismissal. Today’s hot trend is tomorrow’s eye roll. That doesn’t mean we can’t be inspired by great ideas that have come before us – to quote Salvador Dali, “he who refuses to imitate creates nothing.” But a campaign that just mimics a trend without bringing something unique to the equation is a disservice to you and your customers. Find what you do differently, own it, and make the most of it.
Be Credible
Don’t bullshit your audience. Particularly in the technology world, there’s no shortage of people claiming their shiny new creations do something no one has ever done before. And while the occasional amazing whiz-bang breakthroughs do occur, most new products are more evolutionary than revolutionary. That’s not to say you shouldn’t make the most of promoting what’s great and amazing about what you have to offer. But keeping it real and eschewing the hype and overused cliché-du-jour will gain you a more genuine and loyal following.
Be unique. Be engaging. Be real. Tell a better story, and people will go out of their way to listen.
