Had he been around
today, amidst the cacophonous cascade of social media and marketing information, he might have nodded along with the
sentiments of Jeff Hoffman.
Jeff writes in the
online Inc. magazine that it's advisable to "distill your message to as
few words as possible."
Welcome to the Winter Solstice edition of Not
Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.
Here is an, ahem, abbreviated version of Jeff's
article:
It's
amazing how complex our lives have become. Nothing's simple anymore. Think
about it. Even your Facebook page has a million things going on. The increase
in complexity has led to a decrease in focus. It's hard to know what even
matters anymore.
Everybody's
talking at once, saying so much, that customers can no longer remember what we
started talking about in the first place. Tweets are flying through the
atmosphere as thick as a flock of birds, filling minds with an endless stream
of useless information, and crowding out the few things that were really worth
knowing.
What can
you do about it? Focus on simplicity. To be truly memorable, to be the one
product or service that people remember when the dust settles, you need to
narrow down your message, streamline your sentences, cut out all the fluff, and
deliver one--yes, just one--strong, simple message, and deliver it clearly and
concisely.
One of
the most valuable skills in the world is the ability to explain complex
concepts in simple, easy-to-understand terms. Writing lots of words is easy.
Making your point with an absolute minimum number of words is really hard. Yet
it is so much more effective. Mark Twain once said: "I would have written
that shorter, but I didn't have the time." Find the time.
Imagine
you had a quick minute to tell a potential customer why he should do business
with you. Because in today's world, that's all you have anyway. Write down what
you want to say. Now cross out as many words as you can, each time reading the
sentence again to see if it still delivers the point you want to make. Keep
crossing out words until you have created the shortest sentence you possibly
can.
Keep it brief, straightforward, and clear.
Eliminate any industry-specific jargon. Avoid the noise and clutter.
There is
an elegance in simplicity. Simplicity does not mean removing features,
benefits, or services from your product. It means distilling what's most
important about those features, and explaining them in the fewest words
possible. Go ahead, write yours down, and get busy crossing things out.
(Admittedly,
I probably could have written this column in only two paragraphs.)
Jeff Hoffman, co-founder of ColorJar, is a serial entrepreneur who was on the founding teams of Priceline.com and uBid.com. He is also a frequent public speaker on the topics of innovation, entrepreneurship, and leadership. @colorjar
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Look for a new "Not Your Usual..." newsletter
the first Tuesday of next month.
Going forward, our core subject -- marketing -- will be
different.Artfully different. :)
But hopefully you'll continue to derive some
thought-provoking ideas to help you in your business just the same.
Until then, enjoy a safe and happy holiday season.
Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
LinkedInjoel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
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