How to be more human in your marketing
The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle famously declared that ‘man is by nature a social animal’, and science has long since backed this assertion.
People thrive on connection, which develops when we interact in a personal and responsive way, building positive emotions and a sense of trust. So, it makes sense that our marketing efforts are more likely to succeed if we can develop this ‘realness’ with our audiences.
There are several ways marketers can achieve this goal. Implement these tips to turn your company from remote to personal:
- Use quotes with images in your social media posts
Recent LinkedIn data shows that quotes can boost click-through rates by 30%. Over time, that could translate to a significant increase in mailing list sign-ups, enquiries and sales.
Interestingly, the LinkedIn data also revealed that posts containing images of people convert 2–4x more than those without. To paraphrase a well-known expression, ‘the eyes have it’ when it comes to their attention-grabbing ability.
- Humanise your email campaigns
Addressing your subscribers by first name helps them build a relationship with you. Follow this up with changing the sender name from a company to a specific person. You can even include a picture of yourself when you sign off at the bottom of the email.
Sales copy can have a reputation for being direct and formulaic, which can stop potential customers or clients from following through.
Think about ways to thread in personality, perhaps by sharing what motivated your company to create this much-needed project or service and how your goals align with the buyer’s. Also swap out stock photos with images of you, your team, and the people providing the testimonials and case studies you’re including.
- Personalise the call-to-action
How can you encourage someone to follow through with an action you want? Placing a picture of a smiling team member next to an action prompt (e.g. ‘Call us today’) can remove psychological blocks, such as fear of the unknown. Once again, the LinkedIn team showed that this simple trick can boost click-through by 40%!
Feeling pressure can also reduce someone’s willingness to take the next step, so consider changing the wording of your CTAs to sound more relaxed.
- Spruce up the About section
An About Us page is an easy way to educate and inform website visitors about your business. More importantly, your visitors want to know about the people behind the company’s polished façade. So capture their attention with real group team shots, use a direct, conversational tone if appropriate, and explain the why behind the what.
Although it can feel overwhelming to ‘put yourself out there’ for public scrutiny, the potential gain in business growth and human connection far outweighs the discomfort, whether fuelled by social anxiety, imposter syndrome, or a preference to stay behind the scenes.
Focusing on what motivates you can reduce feelings of hesitation, and you may even find that forging genuine connections leads to a more fulfilling career, too. After all, you’re only human.
