Tom Asacker: Capturing, and keeping, attention in an increasingly noisy world

Capturing, and keeping, attention in an increasingly noisy world

"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." -- Plato

That may have been true 2,400 years ago, but it may not be so true today. In fact, in our always on, desperately seeking stimulation media environment, you have to say something -- and something meaningful and arresting, or at least communicated in an engaging way -- to keep the hungry masses satiated. Else, they'll go somewhere else.

Sometimes it takes smart people a long time to catch on to this new reality (many never do). Sure, they understand that Ali became "The Greatest," Elvis "The King," Gandhi "The Mahatma" et al. through a combination of endowment, passion, and hard work. But they also know, intellectually, that manufactured spectacle played a supremely important role in their progress; spectacle, by the way, that at times both engaged and enraged the masses.

President Barack Obama may be starting to finally see this light. Yes, his plain, simple and to the point speeches project confidence and convey a sense of control. But are they "interesting" enough to engage and mobilize people? Here's what he had to say last night on CBS News/60 Minutes:

"The truth of the matter is that there has been, I think, a coarsening of our political dialogue. I will also say that in the era of 24-hour cable news cycles, that the loudest, shrillest voices get the most attention. And so one of the things that I’m trying to figure out is: How can we make sure that civility is interesting?" (emphasis mine)

"Loud and shrill" are certainly engaging to many people. But, there are just as many people who are attracted to "thoughtful and inclusive." However, they're still human beings. They still want it delivered in a captivating way, and in a way which is simple to understand, easy to share with others, and that makes them feel good about themselves and their beliefs.

The same lesson applies to the super-smart executives running organizations with -- which they obviously believe -- distinctively superior products, services, causes, etc. Yes your people and your constituents are very smart, but they are also human beings. You can not expect to bore them with "the facts" and have them be engaged and motivated. It's simply not the way they're hard-wired.

Note: This is not a political post, so please don't comment in that light. Thanks.

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Comments

Great post Tom!

It may not be political but it IS highly practical.

You touched on what frustrates so many businesses that are trying to market in a way that, they feel, does justice to how they see the value of their product or service. We always see our own offerings as extraordinarily compelling. That makes it hard to stop and see what "first bites" will be interesting to the market. There are also so many others that seem to be winning by just being the loudest or making false promises.

So what is a "civil marketer" to do? If you can deliver the details with some smarts and do it in small engaging doses you will win in the long haul. Slow and steady wins the race,etc... It is much harder to do vs "shrill marketing" but your clients and prospects will end up with the deeper understanding of your offering that provides for lasting relationships and more informed word of mouth.

Posted by: Howard Mann | September 14, 2009 at 08:47 PM