INSIGHTS
Who is your audience?
How can you help?
Hurricane Irma recently affected many who now seek relief and normalcy. Those severely affected by the storm are looking to immediately relocate and establish temporary offices to avoid gaps in productivity.
It is true that tragedy momentarily unites. It is also true that trauma leaves an indelible mark and sometimes creates a wedge that cannot be removed. What this really means is that challenges pave the way for you to provide service and value to others.
As soon as we learned Irma posed a threat to some of our clients, we followed up with a contingency plan and agreed on a strategy going forward. Interestingly, some wanted to take advantage of the tactics while others decided to forgo the exercise. It always baffles me when professionals pay for counsel that they are not quite ready to hear. However, I will leave that troublesome observation for another day.
The question is how does a brand fulfill its commitment to everyone? Again, the mandate is to provide personalized services while generating value. Under strenuous circumstances, will you be sensitive enough to explain to a client that you will be late for a call? Or go so far as to reschedule a meeting? Perhaps doing so seems selfish but I submit to you that it may be the only viable option.
We had several clients evacuate entire teams to ensure safety and continuity. We had colleagues battle Irma stoically and communicate post-tragedy, explaining the terrible disruption while promising to reopen and regain normalcy ASAP. We are all indeed trying to stay in the zone. While you do that, consider that clients are people and they respect professionals who honor commitments and safeguard values.
The right approach to dealing with a crisis is doing what works for you and yours. If you are not at your optimal capacity, clients will know it. You owe them your best. Sometimes being your best is saying “no.” When you communicate genuinely and succinctly you can ensure trust and consistency. Doing so will give you the foresight to spot opportunities. For example, I am seeing savvy CPA firms rapidly sharing posts about recovery rules, extensions and regulations so that businesses and individuals can carry on.
After all, isn’t that what it’s all about?
Who is your audience? How can you help? Hurricane Irma recently affected many who now seek relief and normalcy. Those severely affected by the storm are looking to immediately relocate and establish temporary offices to avoid gaps in productivity. It is true that tragedy momentarily unites. It is also true that trauma leaves an indelible […]
A survey by Hubspot shows that marketers believe social media success requires visuals. When 300 marketers were asked how integral visual content is to their 2017 strategy, 60.8 percent said it was absolutely necessary. Only 2.6 percent found it somewhat important or irrelevant.
We already knew that posting impactful images gets more people to follow us. But what kinds of images do the best job? That’s a science in itself.
Let’s look into the elements of an “it” still photo that didn’t involve a high-impact stock image. Last month I attended the International Bar Association’s Asset Recovery Subcommittee Meeting run by clients and professional acquaintances. I couldn’t help but feel the vibes of energy and influence at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development building in Paris. The setting was grand and all about diversity in cultures, skills and genders — with experts exploring ideas to advance and promote a meaningful global agenda.
The best image is all about the right scene – the backdrop, your demeanor and your assembled group. As we filed down a corridor to our meeting room, I zeroed in on the OECD’s perfect custom step and repeat backdrop – and in that moment I knew how we could capture and share our commitment and passion for what we do. I shot a few images and then jumped in for the last photo, taken by my favorite Serbian litigator, Tomislav Sunjka. The result: Two corruption fighters and their marketing colleague, happily pursuing awareness and promoting alternatives from different perspectives and parts of the world. So in our element – spontaneous and authentic.
The image clicked big time. My LinkedIn feed registered just under 4,400 views. I wonder what the feed tallies were for Yves Klein and Andrew Bodnar, the two men in the picture with me. What I do know is that our little image walloped my previous post on Artificial Intelligence, which didn’t even reach 100 views.
So next time you’re wondering how to gather a crowd on social media, ask yourself this: How can I best achieve my objective? Is it by writing, by speaking, or by sharing a candid shot?
The answer is all of the above. But you already knew that.
A survey by Hubspot shows that marketers believe social media success requires visuals. When 300 marketers were asked how integral visual content is to their 2017 strategy, 60.8 percent said it was absolutely necessary. Only 2.6 percent found it somewhat important or irrelevant. We already knew that posting impactful images gets more people to follow us. […]
