Masterclass in how NOT to engage your potential customers

Here’s a masterclass in how NOT to engage your potential customers.

How NOT to get them to know, like and trust you.

Masterclass in how NOT to engage your potential customers

Let’s start with a positive. 

At least Aviva is trying to use content marketing and social media here to talk to potential customers. Most UK financial services providers aren’t. Most shrug their shoulders at the principles of content marketing and lock themselves in a cupboard with the compliance manager at the mention of social media.

Unlike advertising which tends to interrupt you from something you’re enjoying, content marketing is about creating stuff people might want to read.

Or watch.

Or listen to.

I’m not a fan of complex business speak so here’s my no-nonsense definition of content marketing.

“Making stuff that teaches, entertains, and inspires people to know, like, and trust you enough to do business with you.”

Having done some research on eating habits, Aviva’s put together some fact sheets about how bad take-away food is for us. They say we eat a hell of lot of it.

Fish and chips.

Pizzas.

Curries.

Doner Kebabs.

It seems millennials are the worst culprits for overdosing on crap take-out food.

There’s an infographic for each type of carry out, for example, “Your body after a fish and chips take-away.”

As content goes, it’s good. The message we should all eat healthier and exercise more is one most of us would agree with. And they have put together some useful tips on healthier alternatives.

But have a look at the social media pointing to the content.

Ouch! A bit nanny state?   A tad patronising?

Is it a good way to engage with a potential customer?

What it says to me is, “Hey you naughty millennials. You eat too much rubbish. You might get overweight. We won’t insure you unless you start eating a few more salads.”

It isn’t engaging to make such sweeping generalisations about people based on the year they were born. Let’s talk to real people, not vague socio-economic classifications. Let’s be more human.

Twitter’s already picked up on this campaign.

I know Aviva mean well. And buried beneath the nanny rhetoric, there’s a message humanity as a whole could agree with (yes baby boomers and Gen X as well).

But does this meet the definition of content marketing?

Well, it’s stuff they’ve made. Tick.

Does it teach? Possibly but, for me at least, in an annoying way.

Does it entertain? Well, it’s entertained a good many people on Twitter for the wrong reasons.

Does it inspire? Only if you want to keep Aviva happy, so they won’t rate you when you apply for insurance.

Will it make “millennials” know, like and trust Aviva? I’ll leave you to answer that one.

Now it’s your turn:

What do you think of this campaign? Please leave a comment below or share on social media.

If you have 2 mins, watch my quick video on content marketing.

The Habit: The best crime thriller written by a business person

If you want a crime novel that’ll keep you up late at night until you’ve finished it grab a copy of The Habit by Richard Armour.

Earlier in the week, I published “The biggest ever best business books list post”. Nearly 100 books recommended to you by guests on the Marketing and Finance Podcast.

One book that didn’t appear on the list was The Habit.

The Habit: The best crime thriller written by a business person

It’s not a business book. It’s fiction. A crime thriller.

But author Richard Armour is a business man. In fact, he used to be a stockbroker and knows what makes the financial services industry tick. Including what goes on behind closed boardroom doors and closed bedroom doors.

So here’s a bonus to my earlier post. And a little light relief from business. And hustle. The Habit is the “best crime thriller written by a business person”.

Here’s a quick review.

Centering around the hectic, hedonistic lifestyle of London city stockbroker Roger Hamilton, the author weaves a police hunt for a serial rapist into his story by playing upon Roger’s longstanding friendship with Frank, the police detective sergeant in charge of the case.

We see the story from Roger and Frank’s point of view, but also from that of the rapist. The master stroke in Armour’s narrative is that we discover the rapist’s identity halfway through the novel and that builds the tension as we root for the police to solve the case.

You know when you watch a TV crime show and you end up screaming at the screen because the cops keep missing the clues. I found myself almost screaming at the page here for similar reasons.

Whilst in no way stereotypical, anyone who works in financial services might recognise the characters who work in the City. The “banter” between the heroes of the story, particularly their attitude to women, compare and contrast worryingly with the thoughts and attitude of the rapist.

Armour also uses some interesting narrative techniques I haven’t seen before. Armour writes Roger’s chapters in the 1st person.  He writes the other chapters in the 3rd person except for scenes Roger is in – in which case it shifts to the 1st person.

I’ve never seen this done before and it’s particularly effective.

Highly recommended and a real shame it has never been produced for the TV screen.

The mixture of glitz, sleaze, fear and redemption would have made great crime mini-series.

Check it out: The Habit by Richard Armour

Is it a good idea to outsource social media? Take the pub test and see.

Imagine you’re too busy to go to the pub and socialise with your friends.

Would you send a complete stranger along to socialise with them on your behalf?

Is it a good idea to outsource social media?

You’ll be able to brief the stranger on topics you like to talk about. Tell him about what makes you tick. He might be able to do a good impression of the way you talk. Use your mannerisms. Almost becoming your avatar.

But there’s a problem isn’t there?

He isn’t you. Your friends would know that. Instantly.

The real you

As good as he was at mimicking your personality and style, he’d be a poor substitute for the real you. And your friends might find it a little weird you sent him along in the first place.

If you wouldn’t get a complete stranger to impersonate you in a social setting like a pub, why would you get a complete stranger to impersonate you on social media?

There are companies out there offering such a service.

“Outsource social media to us,” they say. “We’ll tweet on your behalf. Let us post on LinkedIn and put photos up on Instagram.”

So it’s possible to get a complete stranger to do your social media for you but is it a good idea?

The answer depends on what you use social media for. If all you’re doing is promoting your stuff then it doesn’t matter who is pressing the tweet button. If all you do is sell your products and flog your services then who cares who schedules your posts?

But if you’re having real conversations in real-time, asking questions, giving answers, helping people and engaging with people, how can anyone else do that better than you?

It is just like socialising in the pub.

Team you

If you’re a larger company you might have several people trained up and running your social media accounts. They’ll know your strategy, and your brand and how social media is about engagement and not blatant selling. You might even use a bit of automation to send out links to great content.

As long as you keep up the social aspects of your activity it can work. You can keep interacting. It can be engaging. Continuing the pub analogy your friends would recognise your team members and would understand.

And if you do it yourself. Or keep it within your team. Think of how much you’ll learn. How much you’ll grow. It’s so tempting to think “How much money can we save by outsourcing. How much time time can I free up.” Instead of thinking, “How much can we as a team learn?”

If an outsource company approaches you and convinces you they can run your social media for you, just check you’re clear what social media is, and why you are doing it before you hand off your socialising to strangers.

Now it’s your turn:

Do you outsource your social media? Do you still manage to engage with people and have conversations? Or is it mainly promotional?

Would you like help?

I’m not offering to do your social media for you! That’d sound a bit rich after what I’ve just written. But if you want help putting together a social media plan, or if you’d like social media training then let’s chat. Please do get in touch.