Listening the right way can be a very difficult thing to do for anyone, especially strategic communicators.
I recently read an article about listening, and I just had to do a Strategic Thoughts video on it. The author shared 5 key insights from her new book, Listen Like You Mean It: Reclaiming the Lost Art of True Connection.
Those five insights include:
1. Most of us are not really listening.
2. Conversations contain hidden needs.
3. Each of us has a particular filter we tend to listen through. Sometimes it’s the perfect fit, but sometimes it’s not.
4. Asking the right questions can deepen a conversation.
5. Empathetic listening requires self-awareness.
That last point that really piqued my interest, and this is the place where I think a lot of communicators fall short. In fact, it’s where a lot of communications campaigns fall short.
By nature, strategic communicators are problem solvers. We see an issue, or a challenge, and we jump right into solution finding mode to provide answers.
It’s just what we do, and believe me, it creates plenty of issues for us in our own lives.
But for our communications campaigns, part of finding the right solution is listening to your audiences. When you think about your communications campaigns, you have to identify who your target audiences are.
So the question I have is, why identify your audience without understanding their views on particular issues or topics?
The reality is we just don’t know what our audiences are thinking unless we ask them. We can make guesses, or we may think we know, but it’s still just a best guess. That means it’s important that we listen to our audiences. Really listen.
All of us, whether we’re communicators or not, have a lens that we look through, and most of the time we’re unaware it’s affecting how we perceive things.
So, to effectively listen to our audiences, we need to look in the mirror and be real about where our biases are and what lens we look at information with.
And this goes back to that fifth point above – self-awareness.
Sometimes you don’t have the luxury of doing consumer research for your campaigns, or implementing surveys, or polling audiences. Whether it’s a lack of budget or something else, sometimes you just can’t do it.
And there are plenty of ways that you can get audience data and insights without spending a lot, or any, money, but that’s a discussion for another day.
Whether you can do research, or especially if you can’t, you need to know how to be a good listener if you want to execute an effective strategic communications campaign.
The fact, and the strategic thought for the day, is that most of us think we’re good listeners. The other fact is that the chances are most of us are wrong.
What this author has outlined is a great start, and my challenge to you all is to take time to listen to your audiences, whether they’re internal or external, to guide your communications campaigns.
Here are some recent posts to help as you create your Strategic Communications campaigns, including the importance of having a strategic communications plan:
– Do I Really Need A Strategic Communications Plan?
– Tips For Managing Unethical Communications Requests
– A Meaningful Message, Or Pandering Without Purpose
– Pitching Media Like The Pros
– Don’t Let Perfect Be The Enemy Of Effective
– Wake Up. Kick Ass. Repeat.
– How to Create Content That Engages Audiences and Builds Brand Trust Quickly
I’ve also been discussing how you can find success following the Coronavirus crisis through the RADD approach, which is Recognize, Adapt, Develop, and Deploy. Check out our previous posts to see how you can succeed with the RADD process:
– Get RADD And Plan For Success Following Coronavirus Crisis
– Prepare for Success and Get RADD, Part 1: Recognize
– Finding Success By Getting RADD, Part 2: Adapt
– Get RADD, Part 3: Develop Plans For Success
– Deploying Your RADD Communications Plan
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