The more you communicate with your audience, the more they will communicate with you, as long as you're telling the right story.
We all love a good story, and we're bombarded with them daily. News stories, films, TV programmes, the radio, newspapers, novels, magazines, conversations with neighbours - they're all stories which inform us about what is going on in the world and connect us with the people around us.
Stories are powerful. They can provoke outrage, envy, passion, admiration, joy and respect. They can make us scared, change our perspective, support a cause and rise up to fight for something we believe in. They can help us process our thoughts and emotions as we learn to cope with what is going on in our own lives.
Stories matter. In a world where stories spread across the world at lightening speed, getting our narrative right can make or break a business. Your audience will want to know your story, what you believe in, and what you value.
If you tie your personal and brand values to key issues, and tell that story, your audience will listen. Are you making efforts to be more environmentally friendly? Are you taking action on equality within your organisation? Are you creating opportunities for young people? Are you working with others to change your industry to make it more representative, less wasteful, and supportive of justice?
These are the issues which turn customers into supporters, which will generate loyalty and repeat business.
The Sales Offer
Anyone who subscribes to your newsletter should expect to receive the occasional sales message, but they also expect variety. Letting your clients know about a new product, service, or a special offer is an essential part of any launch or growth strategy, but too many 'sell, sell, sell' messages will make your clients turn off and unsubscribe!
Try combining offers and product launches with news articles about why you created that product in the first place. What was the inspiration for it? Include a blog post where you go into more detail and link to articles which have inspired you or helped you in the creation of the thing you are promoting. This makes it part of a journey, a story, and something your audience can buy into.
Making it personal
Unless you are Amazon, or an equally large corporation, your audience wants to hear from you. At a time of global pandemic they want to know what you are doing to stay safe, to stay in business, and even how you are coping personally. It is an opportunity to be open, honest, and personal about how these changes have impacted you personally. Blog posts are ideal for this, and you can link to them in your social media posts and emails to clients.
Be original, show off your style, and tell your story.
Blogging also gives your site a voice, so let your business’ personality shine through.
If you are a creative agency, go wild with original blog posts about recent projects, cool inspirational ideas, or what your company culture is like. Add images, and videos to really spice it up, and pepper it with slang to keep readers interested.
If you are a programmer of work in financial services, stay on the more technical side by offering weekly tips, tricks, and hacks that show off your knowledge of the industry and how to get the most out of the programmes and systems you use to help clients manage their businesses.
No matter what type of business you have, one thing is for sure - blogging gives your business the opportunity to be heard in a way in a different and unconventional way.
No news can still be good news
Things get cancelled. Global pandemics bring the world to a stop. When plans go wrong your clients will want to know that you're dealing with it. You might not have all the answers straight away, but getting in touch to say "we don't know, but we're working on it", can reassure your clients keep them as supporters.
But, make sure you follow up with updates on decisions you've made, let them know what you're doing to address the situation and you've made decisions on what you are going to do next.
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