What is your conversation strategy?

Posted November 16, 2009

A couple talking under a huge mural two men

When most businesses and non-profits start using social media, they start with “small talk” with their communities. They politely reply to tweets, express appreciation to donors, respond as quickly as possible to customer support issues, and generally try to add value to their network.

But all to often, they fail to move beyond the “small talk” and create meaningful discussions that their communities are dying to have.

Then, after a few months pass, they express some level of disillusionment about the value of social media for their business, and eventually retreat to passive monitoring and pleasant tweeting with current fans. Meanwhile, the board members wonder why being nice wasn’t enough.

Engaged conversations

My customers are often surprised when I first ask them: “So, what are you going to talk about with your customers?”.

They’ve spent resources building up their profiles and blogs, and have spent a few weeks tweeting and replying to comments. But when I ask this question, they get a little confused. “Well… we’re responding to comments and answering questions that folks have on Twitter. We think we’re being responsive and engaged. Aren’t we?”

More than small talk

I’m seeing organizations starting to understand that there’s more to engagement than simply talking. And that when folks are truly engaged, the community blows the bugel, not the company.

The American Cancer society has a great conversation strategy. They’ve created an entire community around achieving victory over cancer by talking about “creating a world with more birthdays.” These conversations are both engaging and meaningful because they touch on a basic desire we all have: To celebrate a happy life.

Share Our Strength has one of the most passionate communities I’ve met. They care profoundly about the stake that they’ve planted deeply in the ground: End childhood hunger by 2015. This mission is immediate, heartfelt and simply stated. It’s the prime point of their conversation strategy.

Epic Change is about to make history by talking about gratitude – not about their organization and why you should donate.

tweetsgiving What is your conversation strategy?

Creating a conversation strategy

Here are a few thoughts on how folks can create a conversation strategy. Please (and I do mean please) add your ideas in the comments.

  • Understand why they buy. The real reason. The one that has nothing to do with price or product. I have an iPod because it makes me look cool and work smarter.
  • Understand why they tell their friends. I’ve been telling all my friends about @foursquare because I want to be the first.
  • Know what’s engaging the customers of your competition. Is there something they’re saying that’s not being heard?
  • Talk to your employees. Beyond the paycheck and benefits – what’s the real reason they show up everyday at 8:30AM?
  • Talk face to face. Have coffee with some of your customers. Get to know their whole lives, not just the pain points you address with your product.
  • Listen. “It is so crucial to engaged conversations and so easily overlooked in our active, talk-focused society.” – Bonnie Koenig
  • Polarize. Can you sincerely talk about your beliefs to an extreme? Think Greenpeace and the GOP.
  • Use your divining rod. Find bloggers who are already passionate about that you do. How are they talking about it? How engaged are their readers?
  • Plan. Talk often with staff about the business. Listen to each other. Map out why these conversations matter and how you’ll start talking.
  • Be sincere. People can tell if you’re real. Make sincerity a key element in your strategy. And if it turns out that you can’t sincerely have conversations in a particular way, move on. Trashing a half-hearted conversation plan will save everyone headaches.

What else?

Photo by Jess J
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  • Good comment on the blog, your crafting conversation well. It is again and again and again process, everyone always says conversation can not change the world, it can. Whether people are on facebook,or twitter talking about pop stars matters, we have a duty to bring up Haiti. We have duty to drive revenues to these causes, really just like grabbin a coffee in a not-fo-setting, its facetime. Thats important.
  • John! I don't know how you are so able to hit the nail on the head of what I NEED to read at the exact moment I need to read it. We are exactly at the point where we are putting our heads around the "so how do we get past the cocktail party small talk?" How do we have "real" conversations with our peeps? What do does the royal we want to talk about? These are all great questions and your post is helping me pinpoint my new focus as I write this.

    Thanks again for all that you continue to offer to the netizens!
  • Deb - You're welcome. I guess I can hit the nail on the head because I've been a carpenter for years. ;-) If you guys need any extra help - a handy man, if you will - just let me know.
  • Have a few thoughts to share.

    I think it is interesting and appropriate how there are a mix of internal conversations that are shared in the list above such as talking to your staff both directly and in groups along with those with folks outside your organization. There definitely is something intriguing to the impact these conversations can make to help staff, supporters, and those served feel authentically a part of and/or connected to the organization.

    With that in mind, I would add partners/vendors as folks to engage in the conversation with as well in exploring and applying a conversation strategy.

    I also like how much what you describe in terms of the ideas to help define your conversation strategy is similar to the activities that help define a brand. That makes sense and it's neat to merge organizational messaging, social conversation, engagement strategy, and visual communication strategy.

    -Seth
  • Thanks, Seth. Question: At what point do we cut off input from the conversation strategy? When does the planning happen among the key stakeholders?
  • One week :-) ...

    If I follow your question, what strikes me is how much the input for defining the conversation strategy strikes me in itself an application and practice of the same strategy. I have studied a martial art (Aikido) for a little over seven years. From the first day you step on the mat you practice as a beginner with focus and intent learn new movements and execute them and if my training has taught me anything is that we should strive to have that same feeling even when we step on the mat for the thousandth time.

    Okay so another response. I think key stakeholders need to set reasonable expectations depending on their resources and experience level to pull from their qualitative analysis a key theme/goal or two and match that with key implementation practices. So once a theme or two starts to bubble to the surface, it may be time to think about implementation. Then per my comment before, continual reflection and revisiting the strategy is key.

    What do you think?
  • Invitation conversation.

    Invite your customers (and non-customers) to frequent meet and greets (physical and virtual). There's no better way for both parties to understand each other's culture than understanding what happens when the two come together. Then the magic can really begin.
  • That reminds me of an Awards dinner for Share Our Strength I attended in D.C. where raving fans of the organization's mission - both sponsors and volunteers - gathered together in one room. Jeff Weidner commented on the vibrant dialogue as the driving force for SOS's success.
  • mindofandre
    Also - how about being willing to co-create with customers/people with vested interest in your service? Plenty of great initiatives across different fields are bringing in the ideas of others to create or tweak initiatives. In doing so, I think this creates a great opportunity for extended conversation.
  • Andre - Co-creating with customers! Excellent point!
  • mindofandre
    John you consistently come out with great nuggets of wisdom - thanks for putting this together and for those additions in the comments. You are most definitely a valuable add to my readings!
  • John:

    Great dialogue here and what Debra wrote resonates with me--talk about the mission.

    I'll add two more:
    1) Talk about what you're passionate about. Many business owners and nonprofits are really passionate about helping others. They've developed products or services to help others. Sharing that passion can be contagious.

    2) Talk about the stories behind the employees, the Board of Directors, the members, the customers. Storytelling is a powerful medium that most people can identify with in some way. It also engages the emotions which make it memorable. Invite customers and members to share their stories with you and watch what happens. This is a powerful took many nonprofits have mastered.
  • Jeff. Thanks again for stopping by! I often recommend that folks create a sharing culture within their organization - that they share with each other (face to face) what they're passionate about and why they care.

    Storytelling is amazing. That was the prime motivation for me to get behind Epic Change. And I know that, because of Stacey's story, I'll be fighting for the cause year after year.
  • John, One point that I would add is to 'Be Creative'. Also, I would like to add that organizations need to understand the culture of social media first and foremost. It's not enough to have a conversation strategy as I presume many a company individual will have there blogs and tweet streams sounding like a press release. I tell people often you must have a firm grip of the social media culture and be able to marry that with business objectives.
  • And this, my friend is why you and I have so much work! ;-)
  • These are all great reminders to any business owner trying to jump into this scary but fruitful world of social media. I'd probably say they need to "Be Open", not only for new business but also for new ideas. Let your community tell you what needs to be done next and how, instead of having senseless meetings where people just throw away not only time but their book knowledge. --Paul
  • Hi John, I couldn't agree with you MORE that businesses, and nonprofits, need a conversation strategy. Small talk doesn't create avid, enthusiastic fans the way that a conversation - with a strategic end - will. All social media should move people to action, right?

    I think figuring out what the conversation should be about is a big challenge for a business. Nonprofits intimately know - it's their mission. So, taking a cue from nonprofits, I'd suggest including "mission" in the list. A jewelry designer's mission isn't to sell more jewelry, it's to make women feel beautiful wearing it. This fits nicely with your first suggestion, "why they customers buy," but it's up to the company to take that information and make it the company's mission. I think of it as taking the lead, instead of finding out why customers buy.
  • Debra - thanks for the wonderful comments, summing up things better than I could have. Mission is powerful and often the primary driver to get people talking. The challenge is how to START the conversation and have it be sincere and meaningful for everyone involved.
  • John: You might want to pull out "Listen to each other" (which is "embedded" in your "Talk" point) as a separate point. It is so crucial to engaged conversations and so easily overlooked in our active, talk-focused society.
  • Thanks, Bonnie. Making the change now.
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