When you interact with your customers, you’re having a conversation. The trick is to realize what conversation you’re in.
Far too many companies and marketers try to force consumers into the conversation that they, the company, wants to have. The problem is, consumers are self-centered. They don’t want to talk about what you’re talking about. They want to have the conversation they’re already having.
This is lazy marketing. Instead of putting time and energy into honestly listening to others and truly caring about their conversation, it’s much easier to shout at them and hope they talk back.
The key, as made clear in the seminal book on relationships, How to Win Friends and Influence People byDale Carnegie, is to take a geniune interest in other people, not to assume you can get them to care about you. It takes work, and it takes restraint, but it’s the only way to be successful.
So, stop blasting out your messages and hoping people care. They don’t. Find out what they’re talking about and join in the conversation. As soon as you start to try to turn the conversation to your agenda, however, you fail. Be real, be genuine, and you’ll be trusted. When you’re trusted, you win.
