Think about the last time you walked into a networking event or social gathering and met someone for the first time. After introducing yourself, you probably didn’t spend the next several minutes talking about your career, your accomplishments, or why you’re different from everyone else in the room. You asked questions. You wanted to know who they were, what interested them, and what brought them there. As the conversation evolved, you looked for common ground because that’s how meaningful relationships begin. You establish a connection before you ever tell your story.
For some reason, organizations often forget this principle when they communicate with customers. Instead of looking for common ground, they immediately begin talking about themselves. Their messaging focuses on their products, their services, their history, or the awards they’ve earned. While those things may be important, they’re rarely what an audience cares about first. People are trying to solve problems, make decisions, and navigate challenges in their own businesses and lives. Until they understand how you fit into that picture, your story is simply background noise.
Over the past three decades, I’ve worked with organizations across a wide range of industries, and I’ve seen this happen more times than I can count. It’s an easy trap to fall into. Leadership teams spend every day focused on the business, so it makes sense that they communicate from their own perspective. The challenge is that customers aren’t approaching the conversation from the same place.
They’re thinking about growing revenue, attracting and retaining employees, responding to change, staying ahead of competitors, or finding ways to operate more efficiently. Every decision they make is shaped by those priorities. If your messaging doesn’t acknowledge that reality, it’s difficult to capture their attention, no matter how impressive your organization may be.
The conversation changes when you stop thinking about what you want to say and start thinking about what your audience needs to hear. What challenges are they facing? What questions are they trying to answer? What would success look like from their perspective? Answering those questions first makes it much easier to decide what belongs in your message and just as importantly, what doesn’t.
Consider how many organizations describe themselves by saying they offer integrated solutions, innovative services, or industry-leading expertise. None of those statements are inaccurate, but they don’t give customers a reason to care. Now compare that to messaging that starts with the customer’s challenge and explains how the organization can help. Nothing about the service has changed. The only difference is where the conversation begins.
This distinction is even more important as artificial intelligence becomes part of the content creation process. AI can help write faster, but it doesn’t replace customer conversations. It can’t tell you what’s frustrating your customers, why they’re hesitant to make a decision, or what ultimately gives them confidence to move forward. Those insights still come from listening, asking thoughtful questions, and paying attention to what customers tell you every day.
Most organizations already have plenty to say. The challenge is deciding what their audience actually needs to hear first. Your experience, credentials, and capabilities all matter, but they shouldn’t be the starting point. Customers want to know that you understand their situation before they invest time learning about your organization.
The next time you review your website, a presentation, or even a social media post, read it as if you know nothing about your organization. Ask yourself whether the message helps someone understand why your company matters or whether it simply explains what you do. It’s a useful exercise because it forces you to look at your communications from your audience’s perspective.
In many ways, it’s no different than meeting someone for the first time. The conversations that lead to lasting relationships rarely begin with everything we want to say about ourselves. They begin by taking an interest in the person across from us. Organizations that approach their communications the same way are far more likely to build trust, strengthen relationships, and create messages that resonate with the people they want to reach.
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