I had a really great chat with a friend the other night – who also used to be my boss (and consequently taught me some of the most valuable communications practices).

We were both sharing experiences about companies and brands and the way they interacted with their customers. We felt they were way off the mark and agreed that so often companies insist on speaking to customers the way they think they should be spoken to.

There’s an entrenched belief with a lot of communicators that there’s one voice in which to speak to your customers. The button-up, business minded approach that uses lots of flowery language, and sounds oh-so sincere. This is of course absurd.

On any given communication, you’re dealing with an enormous spectrum of people who learn and receive information differently and with different levels of education. 

So maybe the question should become, what does my audience want to hear?