Did you know that medical students are drugging visitors in a popular tourist spot and stealing their kidneys? Or that the toilets in a major U.S. airport are teeming with venomous spiders? Or that people don’t read anymore, so you need to keep your copy as short as possible?
YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT
(Please pardon me if I move away from my usual neighborhood and become somewhat political and perhaps a bit strident for a moment or two.)
Yesterday, I read a letter to the editor from a frustrated teenager. She was filing her income taxes for the first time and was aghast that “the government” was “stealing” her money. I’m reasonably certain that she’s not among my three regular readers, but in the chance she happens upon my blog, I’d like to respond.
ARMATURE NIGHT AND OTHER RANDOM THOUGHTS
Rather than go to town on a single topic this time, I thought I’d share a handful of items that either amused, bemused or confused me.
A local “gentlemen’s club” (one wonders how many of the patrons actually deserve the sobriquet) advertises upcoming events on one of those changeable type signs. On more than one occasion, they’ve invited viewers to participate in “Armature Night.” Nothing catches my fancy quite like a nude electric motor shaft.
CONNECTIONS MATTER MORE THAN COOLNESS
“The main thing we want is for this new website to have a cool design.” No, you don’t. “Yes, we do!” Maybe you do, but that’s the wrong place to start. “What do you mean?”
Why do you have the website? “Excuse me?” Why are you investing money in having and redesigning a website? “Oh. Well, we want to get business.” I see, and a cool design is what will get business? “Won’t it?” I don’t know, I’m asking you. After all, you know your customers and prospects better than I do. So they normally do business with people because of cool websites? Since your current website isn’t so cool, why are your current customers doing business with you?”
I’M SO SORRY
When I wrote my recent blog entry, I had no idea that it had the potential to offend someone, and I’m sorry that it did. Clearly, my intent in selecting that topic and writing about it as I did was to inform, not to offend, but I inadvertently managed to do so.
I was a little surprised at the reaction to my innocent slip, but I guess I shouldn’t be. Over time, I’ve learned that nearly everything will offend someone. And I’ve seen that even the slightest perceived offense triggers a response that seems several times larger than the offense. Often, the source of the offense really doesn’t even exist – it was something the reader perceived to be there, and I can’t detect it, no matter how hard I look.
OF LANGUAGE SPEAKING YOU ARE?
No matter how much money a company invests in its advertising and marketing efforts, no matter how hard they try to create and promote a compelling brand, and no matter what they do to get your business, they often lose sight of the fact that their reputation hinges on every employee or representative who has contact with customers and prospects.
Why then do so many companies put people who are unable to communicate clearly in these frontline roles? Whether it’s someone at the counter who can’t deliver a coherent answer to a customer question, or “Bill,” the highly accented voice that tells you he is really sorry you are having this problem, and then offers advice you can’t understand, these poor choices forever tarnish your impression of the organization behind them.