Magic Fauxments
Is it him, or me?
From age nine, I was called a miserable cow, so-and-so, ratbag etc.
These appellations stuck and, as a mature businessman, I’m never sure if my world view is jaded or accurate.
So I’ve prepared a simple test.
You be the judge.
Half-Yearly Jubilance
Christmas in July is nearly here! (or is it Christmas in Winter now?)
Amazingly, I haven’t bought any greeting cards.
Despite the proud history and national resonance of this faux festival, I just can’t get into it.
I hope my clients forgive me.
Out of the Blue
I recall seeing my first faux signature in the 70s.
It shone like a beacon in a sea of black type.
It was bright blue, but depthless.
It lay on the surface – unpressed by human hand.
This device has since lost its charm.
Krystmys Karrde
Last Christmas, during the global financial crisis, I got a card from a supplier I hadn’t used for 11 years.
Once I got over the shock of their desperate use of a prehistoric mailing list, I studied the card.
Jeff had written: Stay Safe.
Rick had written: HAVE A GOOD ONE.
And Jason, Lars, Ron, Suri, Dick, Teresa and ‘AJ’ had all made their mark.
This was very nice, except I didn’t know any of them.
Nor had anyone actually written this stuff.
It was all printed.
HUGGZZ!!!
I’d long heard that providing ‘the personal touch’ is the ultimate way to connect with clients.
One contact used to send me beautiful cards for no reason at all.
Their flowing script depicted the loveliest sentiments.
Not only that, they used a different colour for each paragraph!
Not only that, my first name was used at every turn.
Can you imagine how silly I felt when I analysed these cards in light of this post?
They weren’t hand written. It was just a clever font.
There were no pens. It was merely four-colour printing.
It wasn’t personalised. It was simply a mail merge.
Am I?
For me, these tricks have put the ‘oh’ into ‘faux’.
They’ve also eroded my faith in people.
Perhaps I’m a sickly stick in the mud.
Maybe speed and volume (with a paper-thin sentiment veneer) are all we need these days.
Or do you perchance agree that faux is a bogus way to do business?
Tell us what you really think!
Paul Hassing, Founder & Senior Writer, The Feisty Empire
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G’Day Paul,
Anybody who dares to rhyme “oh’ with “faux” deserves a reply. I find that there’s a disarming amount of faux in much so called ‘internet marketing.’ Lots of it is nothing more than old-fashioned, hard-nosed, foot in the door selling.
Yes, it irritates me. But i have ‘trash’ and ‘delete’ keys and I use them with reckless abandon. For instance, the moment some internet marketer starts to go on about mansions, holidays, Ferraris and how web marketing rescued them from penury and made them a millionaire in only 17 weeks, I reach for the delete key and whoosh….It’s such a good feeling.
But the absolutely immutable foundation of business is still……
make sure you have fun.
Regards
Leon
That’s my kind of comment, Leon! I couldn’t agree more with your (genuine) sentiments. Thank you for upping the fun!
You’re asking the tough questions. We all value something we perceive to be authentic. This is especially so in any form of communication.
Does using an ‘authentic voice’ preclude using mail merge, email marketing systems and the like? I don’t think so, as long as these tools are used skilfully.
I think most people understand the need for efficiency in business communications these days, and if there is useful information then it will be used.
Unfortunately, like your example of the card you received off the back of a decade old mailing list, many communications are neither useful or even personal.
I don’t send Christmas cards in July, or December. I aim to please, and that often means to surprise (in a positive way). So that means trying to keep my clients & suppliers well informed of relevant happenings, and also extending a ‘personal touch’ where appropriate. This ‘personal touch’ through a (hand-written) thank you note, a private email or tweet, or (most often) through a simple phone call.
Great question to ask though Paul – it has given me pause for thought, and I’ve immediately thought of several people I need to get in touch with.
Thank You!
You’re giving great answers, Stephen! You never fail to please or surprise me. And I’m not even a client!
It’s easy for me to sit here and ask tough questions. Winston has had his hands full for three years just getting me to pick up the phone!
You raise an interesting point about the medium and the message.
Is a cliche scratched onto cardboard in a supplier’s own blood better or worse than a fair dinkum email composed just for me?
As a writer, I value content over packaging. So your wisdom, though couched in plain old black and white, is pure gold to me.
When I receive mass-produced communications masquerading as personal messages, I put the business in the same category as the real estate agent who wants me to sell my home and leaves “handwritten” messages on the back of his business cards, i.e. they become scum to me. I don’t have a problem with mass-produced communications, just the masquerade. I’d expect my clients to be similarly unimpressed if I did something similar.
The extent to which it’s feasible to be personal depends on the size of your clientele. For me, it’s no problem to drop a handwritten note in every package I ship. I’m not sure how much it achieves, but it’s something. And thanks for the reminder to do a little more personal follow-up with my clients
Thanks for sharing your perspective, Luke.
A recurring theme of this blog has been expectation vs delivery. Disappointment feels so much sharper when it follows a false promise.
Reversing this, using technology to emulate what should be personal seems a real smack in the face.
Ironically, I’ve been sticking a hand-written post-it note in each eBay package I send out. Since I started, my buyer assessments have really warmed up.
I now realise I’ve been taking more care of eBayers than my professional clients! So it’s reminders and wake-ups all round today.
I admit if I receive correspondence I check to see if it is signed by hand. Why? Maybe in this rush rush world it is nice to know that someone took the time and the RSI risk to sign. We still personally sign our business correspondence just because…..of the personal touch and our customers being THAT important to us.
Thank you, Judy; nice to hear from you!
Your RSI comment reminded me of times when a big pile of Christmas cards circulated the office I was in. Everyone had to sign every card, even though many of the recipients were unknown to many of us.
So, even if you have a real live signature, the thought behind it can be lacking. There’s more to this ‘being genuine’ caper than meets the eye!
It’s difficult to perform an authentic mutiny on a planet that yet only dreams of ‘Warp Drive’. And quite frankly, I’m prepared to martyr myself on the shores of ‘constant and never-ending insanity’ without so much as an epitaph, because I would not wish humanity on the rest of the galaxy/universe.
But if you guys were running the show, I would feel eminently confident to send greetings and hand-written space-ships far and wide because of one simple thing that you have all eloquently heralded and demonstrated in a few brief paragraphs – authenticity.
But alas, I fear that like ‘authenticity’ itself, such staunch sentinels of sane sensibility as you few good men (and the fine women that have inspired you), are at the top of the ‘Endangered’ list.
The fabled ‘Tower of Babel’ has evolved…the message lost, that was never to be found within it’s labyrinthine halls. We now exist in the ‘Metropolis of Babble’ where experts on everything prevail for the ‘Common Good’. And as the evidence of the folly of our self-agrandised pursuits cast great shadows across our tallest testaments, our final distraction is to place ‘pretty lights’ in the palms of our hands…dare we not look up, for fear of seeing our ‘actual ‘outcomes’.
Just the other day I saw an advertisement. A ‘reputable’ publication was seeking “Experts needed: How to break down big goals into small steps”. Dear me! Have we come to this?
I’ve said it before…while ever the underlying premises and values of our ways remain discordant with the now well known and scientifically evidenced ‘nature of ourselves and our world’, nature (which is rather large), will continue to be nature, with or without us and our ‘killer apps’.
“We have also analyzed complex instruments in the context of bankruptcy-related litigations involving all types of assets and liabilities including purchased mortgage servicing rights, interest rate swaps, bonds, stocks, leases, real estate, collateralized mortgage obligations, and accounts receivable.”
So relieved that we live on such a ’share’-ing planet.
Happy Armegeddon-outta here
Cheers
Stephen G
Thank you, Stephen. I couldn’t have said it better! One more comment like that and you’ll be on MY Christmas Card List (which is very short indeed … )
Ha!
How ironic…just got this advertisement:
“Promote Yourself Authentically and Passionately
Learn how to ‘Promote Yourself Authentically and Passionately’ with one of Australia’s leading media experts.
Attend a one day hands-on intensive workshop for small business owners, artists, well-being practitioners and life coaches with PR expert (this bit deleted to protect the unauthentic)
Using your own projects, you’ll learn how to represent yourself with clarity and integrity (the ‘what’), where to pitch in the media to attain coverage (the ‘where’), the steps needed to achieve this (the ‘how’), the timing necessary (the ‘when’) and how this fits within your business objectives (the ‘why’).”
I rest my case…
…so long and thanks for all the fish
Cheers
Stephen G
Golly!
That really does sound like a load of ‘intensive, passionate, hands-on self promotion’.
Well it’s a load of intensive hands-on something, that’s for sure! ;-P
Cheers
Stephen G
I’m with you, Paul. I always feels duped when I get a “fake”, mass produced communication. You’ve hit on so many points in one short post:
1) The importance of building quality relationships with your clients
2) Taking short-cuts often backfires
3) Old mailing lists can get you into trouble
4) Transparency is a key feature of business relationships
You’ve given me plenty to chew on here. One last thing this post reminded me about: Only 6 more months until The Sole Trader Christmas Party post can be republished!
MANY thanks for your warm endorsement and kind retweet, Sarah. I love the thought of this post going to all your clever contacts.
I feel very lucky to have such strong support.
Hi Paul,
Two things come to mind is the intent and knowledge. They may have sent it in all good faith, because they read in some blog post for example that this is the latest thing to do and they did it with the best intentions.
Regarding knowledge maybe they do not know the best way to run a customer care program and the best ways to keep in touch with customers.
Sarah also made a great point about old mailing lists, they can get you into so much trouble.
Great points, Susan. You could get on the radio what that sort of analysis! Thank you, once again.