"Look! It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's Superman!"...
Discover the Superhuman Power of Comic Book Communication
There was nothing better than the fresh, crisp pages of a brand new comic book. The characters, the stories, the colors – they were mesmerizing. I hung on every word and couldn’t wait for the next new comic book to come out.
Wouldn’t it be great if employees felt the same way about our written communications?
When I look at how communication is handled in Corporate America, I find absolutely no parallels with comic book magic. Employees are not anxiously anticipating your next memo, they trashed the five pages of policy changes, and they have anything but enthusiasm for yet another broadcast email. And when it comes to employees reading these communications – and identifying and remembering the relevant information – you can fugettaboutit!
Perhaps you think that business communications and comic books shouldn’t have anything in common and that the way to inform and appeal to adults is completely different than with kids. If so, perhaps that’s the problem!
There’s a lot we can learn about effective communication from the comic book genre. Consider the following: In comic books, a lot happens in just a few pages. There is equal emphasis on words and pictures. The goal is to hold the reader’s attention and interest. Color and design are used to engage the reader. The cover sells you on the story, and the story is easy to remember and share with others. The most important scenes are highlighted with bigger boxes or captions, or even an entire page. And finally, comic books are entertaining!
Am I serious? Absolutely! Perhaps if we as leaders would lighten up about communication, our employees might take it more seriously.
How You Doin’?
- Are your communication pieces fresh and innovative, or is every communication the same as the one before in terms of layout, style, emphasis, authorship, etc.?
StreetSavvy Techniques
Put some “Bang!” and “Zowie!” in your communications. If you ratchet it up just a bit, you’ll be a better communicator than most leaders in America.
Think “2.8-second gut grabber.” You only have a few seconds to capture people’s attention and draw them into your communication piece, so openings are critical. Become a master storyteller instead of a rote reporter. As you create each piece, think about how the cover of a comic book grabs the reader’s attention and sets up the story...Lois Lane perilously dangles from a building; Superman withers away as Kryptonite hangs over his head; Batman, tied to a bomb, desperately struggles to free himself.
Work to emulate that technique in your pieces. Create interest or suspense from the get-go. Make certain your subject line points out how employees will be affected or what’s in it for them to continue reading or to click on the link. (Remember that a link to a posting on your intranet is even easier to ignore than a piece of paper in an inbox!)
For example, instead of a subject line that reads, “ABC Company Signs Contract with New Client,” try something like, “ABC Company Gets Revenue Boost.”
If your communication pieces are interesting (or dare I say, entertaining), you will dramatically increase the chances that they’ll be read. Who knows, you might even reach a point when employees eagerly await your next communiqué!
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