Case in point: conversation.
All marketing is or should be conversation -- ways to encourage it, make it more relevant and more comfortable for those engaged (your customers). There are rules, a kind of etiquette, that most follow and expect others to do the same. Over the years, however, marketing has tended to ignore those rules; for example, ads shout at you, dominate the conversation and don't let you get a word in edgewise... a bit like talk radio or your ex-wife and/or know-it-all husband.
Here's the interesting part. The rules of conversational etiquette are universal; they cut across cultural boundaries and have been in play for centuries. Centuries? Is that true?
Yes... have a look at Cicero's rules for pleasant conversation, written in 44 BC. Still as fresh as a newly-opened bottle of 30-year-old single malt and perhaps more relevant than ever in this age that allows for millions of conversations per second worldwide.
Marketers -- pay attention, these rules apply to you all the more, as the conversation you're trying to start is often with a consumer who does not trust or know you.
Cicero's Rules for Good Conversation
- speak clearly
- speak easily, but not too much, give others their turn
- do not interrupt
- be courteous
- deal seriously with serious matters, gracefully with lighter ones
- never criticize people behind their backs
- stick to subjects of general interests
- do not talk about yourself
- never lose your temper
