Like it or not we are currently in a new and challenging era of communication as if the old way of communication was all that easy!

To communicate with someone, a group of folks, or an entire swath of various audiences, your communication must be sent, received, and understood as the original intent of the message or communique.

To top it all off there may be a generational gap of technology acumen that limits and/or adds to your channels of communication further adding to your challenges.

As with all of the social media platforms that are available the item that plagues them all is the user’s attention span which is getting shorter by the minute. So, you have less than three seconds to grab their attention and hold it for the entirety of what you want to convey (good luck with that).

Typically, your message must be targeted to an audience that really needs to hear what you have to say and wants to learn more about; (could be a small audience) or an entertaining message that a larger audience would like to be exposed to even if its just for the entertainment value but may have cross-over potential.

Now the million-dollar question, quantity or quality?? Not so fast on the quality. I generally like the adage “buy right, buy once”; however, each communique will require a different thought process by asking yourself, “does what I/we have to offer have cross-over value? Or is what I/we have to offer strictly for a targeted audience?”

Once the above has been determined, the cross-over market allows the risk (although a small risk) to get creative in the entertainment arena and value to capture and retain their interest as opposed to a targeted audience. You may want to simply use the features and benefits approach for that targeted audience.

Now how do you know if the message that was sent was received as intended and understood completely? It depends! What type of information is being communicated and what is the desired response? We have available to us analytics on social media sites that gage views and interactions (if set up properly) which is one way to know. If no further actions moving forward is the motive, or frankly to stop a certain behavior the knowing is the results. If in business new positive business engagements is the proof that you’re looking for.

Making slight alterations to your message from time to time and measuring the results is a good indicator if your message is being understood.

Keeping it fresh and innovative is the desired approach. If your audience sees the same message all too often or the same format they’ll get fatigued and tune out or simply discount what you have to say.

People, as we are all learning need interaction with other people and it must be as personal as possible (I am sure we all know where that line is). Social media as well as print media can only go so far with the look and feel of that personal interaction.

The bottom line is, determine your audience, research what your audience wants, give the audience what they want, and make it personal!

Allawos & Company has helped countless individuals and companies alike reach their goals and discover new potential.