Is Your Website Speaking to the Four Communication Styles?
Evaluating websites on a daily basis I come across many instances of one dimensional messages and copy. They are one dimensional because they speak to only one or two of the communication types. In addition, they fail to contain the one feature that is important to all four groups.
It’s a well established idea that there are four unique communication styles or personalities. Many people in sales know this and are able to recognize them through signature traits and effectively style their communication to fit their listener.
People unfamiliar with this concept, tailor their messages based on what they think would appeal to them or what the they think every visitor to their site wants to hear. The alternate approach is to tailor your website to be inclusive and speak to the four unique communication styles.
The four unique categories are: the Executive, the Thinker, the Relater, and the Social Butterfly. They are often referred to by different names and animal representations, but it’s basically the same idea. Knowing how to effectively communicating to each of these types can prove beneficial in improving many KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) including brand awareness, website traffic, click through rates and close rates.
The Four communication styles
The Relater
The relater likes stories. As do most people. Stories are more remembered than facts and features. The relater will put themselves in the story you weave for them. Fashion stories that seem to speak directly to the relater. With the explosion of video, and the ability to deliver it seamlessly across devices, companies should embrace videos as part of their content strategy. You can tell stories with popular educational animated videos, or use stock photage to put together 1 minute videos. Tastey, one of the most followed pages on social media doesn’t have fancy videos. Just good editing, quality content(delicious food), and a respect for the market’s time. Who wants to read an article or sit through 30 minutes of rambling by a cooking show host just to get to the end product, which are the meal and instructions. Articles can’t be ignored though and should be tailored to tell a story not just spew facts. Testimonials from customers telling their personal stories, with your product or service, are the home runs you should look for.
The Executive:
The Executive wants answers and wants things to get to the point. Videos and content that answer questions and concerns quickly and clearly will win the minds of the executive. The design of your website should be clean, professional, mobile responsive and straight to the point. Branding needs to be mature and sophisticated if your target audience is of the executive side. Hootsuite recently changed it branding to attract more c level clients.
The Executive wants solutions to his/her problems and they want case studies, facts, figures and references. Valuable white papers and professional testimonials will influence the Executive.
The Thinker:
The Thinker needs options. They want to see what all the bells and whistles are. They want to know how you compare with your competition and see testimonials. Comparison of your competition to your products helps keep the thinker from venturing off to comparison shop. The thinker wants to know how each of your features benefits them. They will even evaluate your reviews to weed out ones that seem disingenuous.
The Social Butterfly:
Social Butterflies like fun and interactive things. Interactive infographics, polls, forums, and strong social media is the way to communicate effectively to the social butterfly. Testimonials are also important to social butterflies, since they base their judgment many times on how the market regards your product.
The most important part of the communication equation is the item that occurs in all four communication styles. Testimonials. IF you aren’t able to weave all four communication styles into your website and social channels, then atleast recognize and include the use of testimonials.
When it comes to click through rates, close rates, improved sales, brand awareness, web site traffic, and sales testimonials crush all other types of marketing. And by a very wide margin. Testimonials are the key aspect that connects and is common to all four communication styles. Make sure you are getting feedback from your customers and posting the positive ones and any reviews from third party websites to your site.
Shadi Khattab is owner of Shadi Ranks Digital Marketing, a digital marketing firm specializing in alternative medical practices, vegan restaurants and renewable energy companies.
