Show Me, Don't Tell Me

I'm a visual person. Most humans are. This is why TV eclipses Radio in popularity, because we able to engage at a deeper level. This is also the concept most companies fail to exhibit in B2B markets.

We, instead, overload people with static images, bland jargon-rich textual content and miss the opportunity to engage. So how do we do that? Well, first understand that engagement isn't measured by website visits, downloads or trade show leads. These are activities. More isn't necessary better.

This is sort of like thinking that if you take a baseball bat with a goal to chop down a tree, you just need more hits. This couldn't be farther from the truth. However, if you use an axe, you'll likely achieve your outcome with less cost, frustration and fewer attempts - chopping down more trees and with more stable predictability and scale.

So, how do we make sure we're not using a baseball bat (engagement level) to knock down trees (acquire customers)? Don't take my word for it. Read and do the research. Video and interactive benefit-driven and customer-led programs work better. No big surprise. This is widely known and quickly forgotten. It's easy to throw together a digital feature pamphlet. We've played treeball for too long in the traditional landscape of selling. Although, the trees are stronger and the bats are heavier.

So, why don't we improve? We are, just like most dramatic shifts, it's slow and getting the old school to recognize the game has changed is hard.

Where do we start?

Well, IMHO, it begins and ends with two aspects that fester into the inefficiency of marketing today in most companies which has to do with two things at the core.

1. People
2. Risk.

Great companies have great people and I believe you can measure people using a more predictive index opposed to the regularly exercised competency matrix. This improved measurement is centered upon the idea that great people are not content with the status quo and shows the ability the change and willingness to grow, learn and adapt quickly. They actively make other people better and challenge themselves constantly.

The second variable, risk, is harder to affect, and sometimes has to do with the ability to act upon conditions that you do not have the leadership to tackle, despite the market conditions, research, product and people.

This element of risk, or the willingness to manage risk, relates directly to our ability to plan and prepare for potential outcomes and recognize symptoms of failure so we can quickly change routes and stay on track or hit the brakes and minimize the fallout. So, adept management and great measurement is increasingly important in more risky conditions.

The digital frontier is risky when you don't know enough and the people and culture you breed is not able to learn and embrace the channels and methods in producing these frameworks.

Go, get an axe and start chopping at your cultural reluctance to create engaging experiences.

Show me. Don't Tell Me.