Tools to Navigate the ‘Constant Conversation’

The digital age has forever changed how we connect with each other. Email, messaging, videoconferencing, social media, to name a few, all not only allow us to communicate in different ways but also to do it around the clock. Add to that, traditional communications vehicles that are now often “enhanced” with technology: face-to-face conversations, group meetings, business presentations, and networking events. We are always “on” — always participating in a continuous stream of communication.

That’s what we at ClearPoint mean by the “constant conversation.”

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And while it may be constant, it’s also highly variable. To be most effective, we have to remember that the medium informs the message. Successfully delivering your message or story requires that you take into consideration your audience and your platform. How do you engage, persuade and/or inform with greatest impact, no matter the medium, whether you are tweeting to a national audience or presenting a 15-minute speech to industry colleagues?

Each purpose, audience, medium and message calls for its unique blend of communications style to help ensure that what we’re saying is clearly and effectively getting across.

Here are four quick tips to help your “constant conversation” with any audience:

1. It’s not just what you say, it’s how you say it. The two must be in harmony to be most effective; whether spoken or written.
2. Know your audience – what they need, what they want. And keep you’re your message as clear and concise as possible to be most effective and avoid confusion.
3. Take note of the message you are sending via your body language. People are watching, whether in person or on screen. They will believe your body language over your words if the two do not agree. Your body language also affects how you sound over the phone – slumping back in a chair/sofa or sitting erect on the edge of your seat while speaking affects how your voice comes across. Don’t let your body language diminish your message.
4. Your voice is a powerful tool — make sure you are using it to sustain your audience’s attention, not to lose it. Avoid the monotone; vary your volume, pace, and pitch. Put energy into your voice. Speak clearly. Use pauses. Speak to be heard. The same goes for the written word — infuse energy, write clearly and concisely.

ClearPoint can help you master your constant conversations, with any audience and through any medium, to help you consistently get your message across in the most effective way.