Let’s Take a Step Back #1
A collection of my posts from 2020
Preparation is key for Remote Communication
There are 5 behaviors that help us with effective oral communication:
Choice of words, delivery of words, facial expressions, Eye contact and body language.
The last 3 play a significant role in delivering the emotion content behind our message and connecting to our listeners. They helped us bail out of poor execution of the first 2. Furthermore, we get instant feedback from observing those behaviors of our listeners.
With remote work, body language and eye contact are not in play anymore and facial expressions come into play only when you turn video on.
Which means that for more effective remote communication, we have to rely heavily more on our choice and delivery of words. Which can happen only if we think through and pay more attention to them upfront i.e. prepare well in advance for our calls. For those who are not experienced in presentations, rehearsal and story building will be key.
In the absence of preparation, the rate of ineffective calls and misunderstandings are likely to soar up.
Sell the Value, not the Product
A supreme example of Design Thinking back in the days of single use razor sticks:
Gillette realized that when a customer buys a razor (feature), he actually pays for a shave (benefit). It came up with high quality razor blades, which would not only provide a smooth shaving experience, but also last for multiple shaves. By ensuring that these razors fit only their corresponding handles, Gillette ensured that the customer would return, but only to buy replacement razors.
While the customer would need to pay more for a single combination of a stick and razor compared to its competitors, in the long run the customer would pay much lesser per shave.
The razors still sell today today with the brand name of Mach 3.
The Death of the Monotonous Speaker?
In remote work, the monotonous speaker, who was already ineffective, will find it difficult to survive.
Put some energy and enthusiasm into your voice. Practice voice and tone modulation. Go slow when you are giving a message where each word is relevant. Go fast when you are narrating a story, where only the overall gist is relevant. Go loud to emphasize on key words. Go soft when you want to let it sink in. Mix it up with a surprise fact or a twist in the tale or a light joke to bring back the drifting listener.