Most MLOs communicate with Realtors and Applicants, requiring proficiency in business-to-business dialogue and business-to-consumer interaction.
Effective communication starts with understanding your audience’s unique traits, which vary widely between business professionals and consumers. To make your message resonate, focus on demographic and psychographic characteristics, including age, race, education, and political and religious perspectives. Understanding the audience then helps to guide how you shape your language, tone, and structure. Here’s how to communicate effectively with each audience:
1. Identify Audience Priorities
Professionals value insights that demonstrate efficiency, profitability, and innovation. They seek information that clearly impacts business results and appreciate fact-based, concise communication.
Consumers, however, prioritize personal benefits and hassle avoidance. They’re often driven by convenience, value, and an emotional connection to the product or service. For this group, focus on illustrating how your solution impacts their daily life or meets a personal need.
2. Adjust Language and Tone
When speaking to business professionals, adopt a professional tone with clear, fact-driven language. Industry-specific jargon can add credibility and demonstrate a shared understanding of the field. For consumers, simplicity is key. Use accessible language, avoid technical terms, and leverage relatable stories that help them connect emotionally with the message.
3. Structure Your Message to Match Audience Preferences
Professionals prefer a direct, data-first approach. Lead with the core insight or benefit and use data or metrics to back it up.
A narrative structure often works best for consumers. Start with a story or scenario that resonates with their experiences, then present the solution and emphasize the personal benefits they can expect.
4. Incorporate Visuals and Examples Based on Audience Needs
Visuals can enhance communication, but tailoring them to the audience is essential. Business professionals may appreciate charts, case studies, or graphs that quickly convey information and reinforce your points with data. Consumers, however, respond well to visuals that evoke emotions—such as images showing a product in use or testimonials that highlight personal impact.
5. Focus on Demographics and Psychographics for Deeper Connection
Demographics provide insight into factors like age, experience, and role, while psychographics reveal motivations, values, and lifestyle. For professionals, motivations might include career growth or operational efficiency, so frame your message around how your solution supports these values. For consumers, motivations may align with lifestyle goals or personal values, so emphasize benefits like ease of use, enjoyment, or alignment with their interests.
By considering both demographic and psychographic characteristics, and adjusting your approach accordingly, executives can ensure their message is not only heard but resonates meaningfully with both business professionals and consumers, fostering stronger connections and more effective outcomes.
Comments