Communication strategists, writers, and visual designers can do much more than just make artifacts of paper and pixels that get “pushed” out into the world.
By listening to and learning from constituents, and by reframing communications as an opportunity for creating and managing dialogues that engage customers, clients, and prospects, they can plan and implement “customized” communication paths and initiatives that build closer relationships—and deliver increased value to their client organizations. They can tell stories, include prospects in their stories, balance “push” and “pull,” and communicate “with” not “at.” While this article was penned before the ascendancy of social media—which, at its best, does encourage dialogue—the principles articulated remain helpful for all those who plan, commission, create, and evaluate communications across media.