Branding and Creativity Expert Ron Tite recently gave space on his “Thought Catalysts” blog to Brand Innovation Consultant Sally Hogshead, asking Sally for her thoughts on the importance of adding distinct value to your communication style:
Every time you communicate, you’re either adding value, or taking up space.
You might not think of your communication as taking up space. That sounds like spam, right? Most people think of “spam” as a phony business proposal, or an online pop-up ad for discount Rolex watches. And you wouldn’t do that to your customers, right?
Well, not so fast. Today, people expect more value from each communication.
If nobody gets value out of your communication…you’re spam.
People dislike spam in their Inboxes, and, they resent it in their conversations and meetings. If you make a clunky cold call, or waste a customer’s time with self-promotional fluff, you’re viewed as an interruption rather than an asset.
Yet there’s another way to communicate—one that’s based on the way in which your personality is most likely to add value.
The opposite of spam is adding distinct value.
It’s actually not difficult to add distinct value. In fact, there’s one way in which your personality is already naturally adding distinct value.
THE 7 WAYS TO ADD DISTINCT VALUE
In every single piece of marketing, every email, every meeting, there are 7 ways you can stand out and build the relationship. I call these “triggers” because they trigger a positive response in your listener.
POWER: You lead
PASSION: You connect with emotion
MYSTIQUE: You communicate with care
PRESTIGE: You set the standard
ALARM: You protect the details
REBELLION: You bring creativity
TRUST: You build loyalty
You can use your advantage to add more value in every single piece of communication with your customers, clients, and co-workers.
By using these triggers, you increase your listener’s perception of your value. You become most worthy of their attention. And the next time you reach out to them, they’re more likely to listen and take action on what you say.
Your Fascination Advantage is the way in which you are most likely to add distinct value.
Over the course of every day, you’ll create dozens even hundreds of messages. For instance, you’ll email your team, you’ll post on Facebook, and you’ll write a piece of marketing or sales collateral… all before breakfast. You work hard to create these messages, and you can make them work harder for you.
Pick one of these 7 ways to add distinct value.
You use Power when you act as an authority. You use Passion when you quickly connect with customers. You use Mystique when you think through your plan ahead of time. You use Prestige when you earn respect. You use Alarm when you give details so that they act more quickly. You use Rebellion when you surprise customers with a creative approach. And you apply the Trust trigger by establishing dependable track record over time.