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Hey, Have You Noticed Business Is Getting Informal?

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In my first job writing print publications for General Motors I caused a stir by dropping the use of courtesy titles. My, how far we have come since then! If you feel like business communication is much less formal these days, you are right. The trend has only been fueled by the pandemic.

People expect businesses, government, and every organization they interact with to get real, be transparent and have a personality. Regular headlines about consumers calling on businesses to take a stand on a wide range of issues is proof enough. Millennials are famous for wanting to be able to relate to brands, but they are not alone.

Today’s Brands Need a Personality

Authenticity strengthens connections between businesses and people. This impacts everything from what we say to how and where we say it. Expectations for everything to be polished and tight are gone – a video taken with a cell phone can have as much impact as a professionally scripted and  produced commercial.

Your customer expects you to express things your way and to connect with them in a way that is relevant and unique. Being personable is the way to create relationships with your audience.

Be Real

It is time to stop wordsmithing press releases and to put aside jargon. Put away the thesaurus.

Communicate like each person who comes across your content is next to you having a conversation. Use the same words. Reflect your thinking in a way that helps them understand your perspective in big and small contexts.

It’s OK to make announcements on social media. It’s fine to show less-than-polished views inside your business. It’s great to talk about topics because you know they are important to your customer.

In fact, these things are expected. Businesses that meet people in these ways are poised to succeed.

Contact Page Best Practices

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People visit websites to connect with businesses. So, a Contact Us page is an essential element of every website. The right content on this page can improve both customer satisfaction and SEO.

The best practices list starts with having a contact page. This is a basic and critical way you engage with site visitors, signaling that what they want or need is as important as what you want to share.

Make sure it’s clear how they can get in touch. Don’t get fancy with the navigation label – call it “Contact” or “Contact Us.” Add the menu item to your main and/or footer navigation.

A contact page needs to offer more than a form. There will be people that don’t understand the form, who can’t work it from a small screen like a cell phone and/or are just naturally averse to submitting any information online.

Provide more contact options, like an email address, phone number or social media. Only list options that you want people to use and that you will commit to monitoring. Don’t ask people to tweet if you never monitor your account!

Keep the page current. Like all your other web pages, your contact page needs maintenance. Make sure your information is accurate at all times. If you have a form, periodically test it to make sure it still works.

How Not to Be an Email Spammer

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You spend a lot of time composing email marketing. It’s painful when people unsubscribe and even more so when they flag your messages as spam. If that happens too often, you may not be able to send any messages to anyone. That would kill your email marketing strategy.

You need to avoid doing things that can lead you to being labeled as a spammer. Here are some common mistakes that can result in your emails being marked as spam:

Mistake 1: Not asking for permission to add people to your list

No one wants to be added to email lists without their permission. You need to ask people if you can add them to your list. You can do this at the time you get their email, or send an invitation email that lets them make the choice.

Mistake 2: Taking control away from subscribers

You want to keep people on your list, but you can’t hold subscribers hostage. You need to make it easy for them to change subscription preferences and even opt-out completely. People who feel trapped will lash out by reporting your messages as unwanted spam.

Mistake 3: Sending irrelevant content

Make every message valuable to the reader! That’s perhaps the most critical part of keeping your subscribers happy. Great content makes people want more.

Mistake 4: Breaking promises

Make sure you respect the rules you create for your list. Did you promise to only send messages once a month? Then don’t send more. Did you promise not to share emails with others? Then don’t. Set expectations and stick to them.

Mistake 5: Overwhelming your audience

Don’t jam your subscribers’ inboxes. We all struggle to keep up with email messages. If turning off your messages will make a big dent, people will likely unsubscribe. Be judicious in what you sent and make every message valuable to recipients. Be sure all messages are targeted to the right portion of your audience.