Communication Help From My Friends

My best friends in business are..... the 6 friends of Rudyard Kipling. Not the ones you were thinking of I'm sure! But, there are six reasons why I seek his help on most of my working days. They are: who, what, where, when, why and how.

In business, as in life, we like to ask questions. One question from each of these ‘friends’ should enable you to discover what you need to know.

Just one more word to add that will help you and that is "listen".  Ask a 'best friends' question, especially when you are selling, then listen to what you are being told. Listen well and then use another of the six questions to delve a little deeper.

This is also a good format when communicating to a wide audience, designing PR campaigns, staff briefings, presentations; in fact just about any communication will benefit from my 6 Best Friends!

We've all been on the receiving end of a marketing department product launch announcement which just raises more questions than it gives answers. So next time you are preparing a communication consider six bullet points in your briefing, one for each of the six questions. You shoudl be able to do thsi with just one or two sentences under each heading. This will mean that the communication is informative, valuable and therefore your audience will read it and feel informed and included.

So, try meeting my friends the next time you are in communication mode – see if it works for you.