WHAT WE LEARNED FROM UNCLE SAM ... (AND THE QUEEN)

A slightly improved  ‘please pay your taxes’ letter netted the U.K. 15 percent in unexpected revenues.

A ten percent cut in military energy expenditures was predicted when processes were changed in mid-air refueling, in vehicle usage, and in equipment handling.

And for many years, experts have stated that highway speeds of 60 mph, reduced from 70 mph, would save 2 percent of all U.S. household energy.

Common sense?  Well, sorta.  Within the relatively new discipline of behavioral science, changes in human actions and reactions can account for some amazing results.  And though in many cases academics rule  this philosophy and these procedures, it’s we as communicators and marketers and designers who make transitions happen.

Think with us here as we expostulate on three of ‘their’ principles:

• Frame the change in language that appeals to the audience.  Hmmm:  Ever send the same message to front-line customer service reps as you would to an R&D organization?
• There’s a bias towards the status quo.  Benefits folks will swear on a stack of comp statements that the choice to opt out of a new program yields a higher number of recruits than making an active choice … or opting in.
• Make it easy.  We favor checklists, fill in the blanks, almost anything that’s a snap to finish and send.

A few years ago, the U.K.’s Behavioral Insights Team, with a budget of a mill or so (in US $$), performed so well that the government now mandates behavioral science as a civil servant course.  Business, take notes!

WORTH [OUR] WHILES

It’s been some time since we heard of value propositions.

Obviously, a business and its strategy are lost without one.  Yet figuring out how to prove that we, denizens of intangibility, deliver value is tough.  And wiser heads than ours haven’t yet cracked the code, seeing as we – marketers, designers, branding gurus, communicators – are usually among the first to be RIFed and our work, eliminated or cut back.

Some of the more apparent extra value options offered by one agency head:

• Generate ideas in new ways.  All well and good (and something we fervently believe in and practice), but where’s the revenue?  Unless, of course, it’s built into your contract … as both consultants and practitioners.
• Go above and beyond.  That got us in pretty hot water years ago; billing software couldn’t account for all the hours expended.  Then again, that premise should be built into mindsets and behaviors … balancing is the key.
• Drive results that make a difference.  Okay, that’s our mission, our mantra, our zeal.  Problem is, many outcomes are anecdotal.  Others rely on squeaky numbers that not everyone buys into.  And still others target changes in behaviors and attitudes, shifts that take a longer time to calculate.

Questions we can ask ourselves in an honest aside:  Do we talk about our services in memorable headlines?  Why do our customers choose us over another Jane and Tom?  Is our language (argh!) accessible … and jargon-less?  Have we strengthened our case with all the usual suspects, from customer testimonials to results, as well as the more unusual benefits?

There’s much more on this topic, trust us.  Watch this space … for a while.

OF SWISS ARMY KNIVES ... AND US

Lately, our conversations have been filled with “whys,” not statements of facts or certainties.

One reason:  (Occasionally) unharnessed curiosity, which leads us to tons of questions, zip answers.  Another, we think, is due to a recent yearning for utility, for function, for concrete actions and behaviors.  Asking why gets us, eventually, to outcomes, to the goals our clients and our companies want to achieve. 

Which, in themselves, are usually aspirational, rather than realizational.  Yet the demands placed on each of us in our worlds, from branding and change to design and communications, are almost always for useful objectives.  Like these: 

“Get more of our targets to ‘like’ us.”

               “Create apps to drive purchases.”

          “Personalize the brand-consumer conversation.”

     “We must be able to measure an increase in engagement – and retention.”

It’s the behaviors that matter today – not only the ultimate buy, but also the universe of buy-ins. 

But will out doings activate useful results?  A few decades ago, former White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater claimed, “The press briefing today I believe has lost much of its usefulness.”  [Sad:  Still true in 2013.]  How many employees understand what HR decisions, from benefits to performance, they need to make – and do so correctly, in their own interests?  Do our campaigns, internal and external, help our constituencies save time, deepen experiences, broaden connections, and/or provide more control?  Will we, in short, be measured against corporate dimensions of usefulness?

Dilbert creator Scott Adams summarizes our dilemma well:  “Be careful that what you write does not offend anybody or cause problems within the company.  The safest approach is to remove all useful information.”