Now is the time we should be communicating with our audiences.
Not when this coronavirus crisis is over. Not as we get closer to normal operations. Right now, in this very moment.
I’ve recently been reading Talking to Strangers by Malcom Gladwell, which dives in to the idea of deception and detecting deception, with the basic idea that we all default to truth – it’s called the Truth Default Theory.
The Truth Default Theory
The premise is that we all inherently believe that others are telling the truth until we’ve seen enough evidence that they aren’t. Simply put, you get the benefit of the doubt until you give people enough doubt then they don’t trust that you’re telling the truth anymore.
The Truth Default Theory has been around for a long time, but what does this mean for us in this moment with so much uncertainty and volatility in our lives.
Are people still defaulting to truth, or has this environment turned everyone in to pure skeptics and cynics?
If you’ve worked with me in the past, you know one thing I firmly believe is that people are inherently good, or want to do good things, and that includes looking for the good in people.
Maybe that’s the Truth Default Theory coming full circle?
But I think people are looking for truth, meaning and connections with everything they do right now, and probably more so than ever before. They are searching out a bigger sense of belonging.
The Good News
And the good news for most brands and communicators is that this means that you get the benefit of the doubt.
And that means NOW is the time to communicate with them, but to do it in a way that brings value and meaning to their lives.
Now isn’t the time to stop communicating and lose touch. This is when we build advocates, grow fans, and show that we’re more than just a company that sells products or provides services. But you have to do it in a meaningful way.
I wrote a blog a while back about communicating with a meaningful message, or pandering without purpose, which really gets at the heart of this idea, so check it out.
And as you think through where you’re putting your resources, which is a decisions we’re all facing right now, don’t forget that communicating with your audiences needs to be at the top of that list.
Yes, Public Relations is typically a growth activity in a world where resources continue to diminish, but people are craving the connections that you can provide, and the benefit will be there when we get through this.
But Wait, There’s More
Here are some additional resources for your crisis planning efforts as you adapt to your new worlds:
– Get RADD And Plan For Success Following Coronavirus Crisis
– There’s Still Time To Communicate During the Coronavirus Crisis
– Isolation Is Actually Connecting Us In Meaningful Ways
– Is Pitching Media A Good Idea During COVID-19?
– Internal Communications During A Crisis
– The Art & Science Of Making A Public Apology
– A Meaningful Message, Or Pandering Without Purpose
– Tips For Working From Home As Your New Normal
And here are some additional blogs to help with your strategic communications planning:
– Pitching Media Like The Pros
– 7 Tips for Successful Media Interviews
– Don’t Let Perfect Be The Enemy Of Effective
– Wake Up. Kick Ass. Repeat.
– How to Create Content That Engages Audiences and Builds Brand Trust Quickly
– 7 Tips to Measure Your Strategic Communications Campaigns
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