[00:00:00] Hi, and welcome to Less Chatter, More Matter, a podcast about all things communication without the waffle. I'm your host, Mel Loy and in this show, I will give you short, punchy, practical communication tips and insights. You can start using in your communication practices right away. I'm a former corporate communication executive who happily took a redundancy, started my own business, and never looked back.

[00:00:27] These days, I use my 20 plus years of experience to help guide organisations of all shapes and sizes in how to communicate more effectively. I'm wife to Michael, cat mum to Cookie, auntie to 12 nieces and nephews, a yoga teacher, and a group fitness fanatic. I promise these episodes will always be short, sharp, and helpful, so let's get amongst it.

[00:00:52] Mel: Hey there, friend, and welcome to this week's episode of Less Chatter, More Matter, the podcast where we focus on the practical stuff [00:01:00] you need to be a great communicator and none of the fluff. And it's not just another episode.

[00:01:06] Mel: This week, we've reached a milestone of 50 episodes. Can you believe it? Honestly, I can't. It takes a lot of work to keep this podcast going, let alone a weekly one. So quick shout out here to April on my team, who helps me pull this together every week. And to all of you who keep tuning in, reviewing, sharing your feedback, knowing this podcast is a value to you really encourages me to keep going.

[00:01:31] Mel: So on this auspicious day, I'm going to be sharing some tips for those of you who work in comms or who need to get comm support in for your business or team. So a quick story on this before we begin and kind of the catalyst, I guess, for this episode. A few weeks before Christmas, I was chatting to a potential client about supporting them on a big change project.

[00:01:52] Mel: Now they have hired a change manager for the project, and my contact was looking for someone to do the change communication. And [00:02:00] she mentioned she would have to explain to the C suite why they needed to hire a communication resource, i. e. why the change manager couldn't just do the comms. And it reminded me of these conversations I often had in my previous life around the need to bring in comms people, but also the need to keep them and the value that they offer.

[00:02:20] Mel: And these conversations are often in the context of needing to get resources in to support a big project or to support a new client or to show why the comms team shouldn't be hacked in the next round of restructuring. I don't know if you've been there before, but I have. So today I'm going to share some tips with you on how to do that.

[00:02:39] Mel: And some of which I shared with my potential client recently too. So tip number one, talk about value, not tasks. So if you've been listening to this podcast for a while, then you'll know I bang on about this one all the time. In fact, I mentioned this in episode a couple of weeks ago about applying for jobs.

[00:02:58] Mel: And in the episode [00:03:00] on developing your comms strategy, you need to talk about the value you add to the business, not just list out the tasks that you do. Now, these tasks have a place, right? So they, you do need to show what you do. So people get a sense of what won't be done if you're not there. But the value is where you can speak the language of the C suite.

[00:03:21] Mel: So when you are putting in awesome points together for them, Some of the things you can consider are how does comms contribute to employee attraction, retention, and engagement? How does comms contribute to brand awareness and reputation management? And thirdly, how does comms contribute to customer satisfaction and sales?

[00:03:42] Mel: Now, these are three big business goals that matter to executives, right? So employee attraction, engagement, and retention. Brand awareness and reputation and customer satisfaction and of course, sales. Now, simply saying, Oh, we managed the website and we put out a media release once a week. That doesn't mean anything unless you can demonstrate [00:04:00] business outcomes.

[00:04:01] Mel: So going back to the goals of your business, the strategic goals, and think about how comms contributes to the business, achieving those goals. Even better, find some evidence to support your contribution. So for example, increases in net promoter scores, NPS scores following a campaign, increases in employee engagement scores, particularly on those questions around communication.

[00:04:26] Mel: Any measurement you've done on understanding strategy is going to be really, really helpful for you. Now, it could be that you need to do some comparisons here. So in the example I talked about earlier, the advice I gave to that client was to talk about how change management and communication management are two different roles with two different skill sets.

[00:04:46] Mel: Each of those roles has different responsibilities. Each of them adds value in different ways. So, for example, change managers add value by undertaking change impact assessments to give the project team a better idea of where to [00:05:00] target their efforts so that they can manage their time and resources better.

[00:05:03] Mel: They do a lot of stakeholder engagement, and they'll make sure all the plans are aligned to the project plan. The comms manager will use their advanced communication skills and insights to target effective communication messages through the right channels at the right time to help reduce resistance and build an understanding of what's happening and why; that is not the responsibility of the change manager.

[00:05:27] Mel: So in this example, We're still demonstrating value and we're not denigrating one role in preference of another, but we're simply pointing out what will be missing if you don't hire this role. The other challenge, and I had this a few years ago when I was still in my old corporate job, we went through this process called the business improvement process program, which is basically Tell us why we shouldn't hack your team.

[00:05:51] Mel: And, uh, it got a bit of a reputation because it was, people started referring to it as being bipped. But at that point we actually had to [00:06:00] just fill out this spreadsheet for one of the consultants that they brought in for this program. And essentially list out what we do with time next to it. Now, all of you who work in comms will know that's almost impossible.

[00:06:10] Mel: Day to day, our job is different. And some things that you think are only going to take you five minutes, take you two days and vice versa. So we also need to use value as a metric rather than tasks, because it's almost impossible to demonstrate what we do every day in many roles. Now, tip number two is make it about them, not about you.

[00:06:33] Mel: So what I mean by this is that like all good communication, we need to start with our audience. So in this case, it's usually the C suite or senior leaders. And let's be honest, Ego plays a factor here as well as protecting their own turf and making sure they're achieving their own goals. They want to hit their KPIs too, right?

[00:06:51] Mel: They want to get that bonus. They want to climb the ladder. So when we're talking about the value of comms to these senior executives, it pays to [00:07:00] make it about them. It's that good old Whiffen principle in action. The Whiffen principle being. What's in it for me? The question you want to answer here is what value does communication offer leaders?

[00:07:13] Mel: So, for example, can we help them improve engagement scores in their teams? Can we help them in supporting to build their personal brand internally and externally? Could we set them up as sought after thought leaders in the sector? Importantly, good communication also helps leaders to manage costs on projects by helping to deliver on time because we help to minimise resistance, right, by building understanding and engagement.

[00:07:41] Mel: And effective comms can also help leaders drive or achieve their financial targets in terms of customer leads or sales. It can help to reduce employee turnover and onboarding costs. It can help to promote austerity measures when they need to and all those sorts of things. So like we should always be doing in comms, tailor [00:08:00] your message to your audience, make it about how you provide value for them personally.

[00:08:05] Mel: And when you do that, you should make a case then also for what they'll miss out on if you're not there. Tip number three, speaking of cases, is make a business case for communication. So a business case is really about making a compelling case for why. So if you're making a case for why your business needs to retain or hire more comms people, then think about what evidence you need to support your case.

[00:08:33] Mel: So for example, maybe you've got poor engagement scores in the business, poor NPS metrics, uh, you've got poor engagement and leads through your social media and so on. Maybe there's been some research around your brand reputation and how it needs to be improved. And there are companies that do that for you, like in Australia, uh, RepTrak is the company that most people use.

[00:08:55] Mel: It could also be that use some comparisons here. So how your brand [00:09:00] sales, employee turnover rates, all those metrics compared to your competitors or other like industries. There's also a ton of research out there about the value of effective communication for businesses. So some great sources to check out here are Gallup, Gartner, McKinsey, Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Management Review, any of those big players always publish some really great stats as well.

[00:09:26] Mel: Now here's a few stats I've used recently for various things, just as an example. So the Axios HQ State of the Workplace report in 2023 found that only 46 percent of employees feel that essential communications at their organisations were helpful and relevant. So that's less than half of employees think they can find what they need to help them do their jobs.

[00:09:50] Mel: Again, less than half say they can quickly find the goals, strategies, and directives they need. And the report also showed that ineffective communication costs [00:10:00] US businesses 2 trillion a year. That's just huge. Uh, another report you can look up is for those of you who know Grammarly. It's pretty well known now, but they have partnered with a research firm.

[00:10:11] Mel: And in 2022, they released a state of business communication report. So in that report, they found leaders estimate that teams lose the equivalent of nearly an entire workday every week to poor communication. So imagine if we could help them plug that gap by improving communication and therefore improving productivity.

[00:10:31] Mel: The report also found that employees spent nearly half of a 40 hour workweek on written communication 20 hours. And business leaders, around 88%, and employees, 63%, all wish their company had better tools to communicate effectively. So the vast majority of both leaders and employees want better tools. They want to improve communication.

[00:10:56] Mel: Three in four business leaders, so that's 75%, three [00:11:00] quarters, say they spend too much time and energy resolving miscommunication. And those that grew revenue in the last year are more likely to say their team communicates effectively. So again, we could help them plug a gap. We could help them reduce the time spent on resolving the outcomes of miscommunication by getting communication professionals in, providing training and all those sorts of things.

[00:11:24] Mel: And finally, over nine in 10 business leaders say poor communication impacts productivity, morale, and growth, contributing to increased costs, missed or extended deadlines, and reputational erosion. So again, that's just an example of statistics around the importance of great communication, and great communication doesn't happen if you don't have the people with the knowledge and the skills on board to help you build that.

[00:11:50] Mel: Now, part of making a business case is, of course, talking about cost. So we talked a little bit about that in some of those statistics just now. You need to talk about the potential return on investment of [00:12:00] effective communication when you make a business case. So, for example, can you reduce time or money spent on extending projects?

[00:12:07] Mel: Because they've been extended because of a result of miscommunication. Can you save money that's usually spent on external comms agencies by building capability in house? So this is really about putting your business leader hat on and thinking about what could be important to your business and how can communication help you solve those problems.

[00:12:28] Mel: Okay, tip number four of five. Tip number four is share real life examples. So a great way to show the value of communications to a business is to use real life examples. These could be from your own business or from other case studies that you know of. Now, side note here, if you haven't already started pulling together case studies on where your team or you as an individual have provided business value through your comms, start doing it.

[00:12:55] Mel: Case studies can show situations like where effective comms has [00:13:00] helped a business or project achieve a goal. But you can also have scenarios where things didn't work because a business didn't invest in effective communication. Now, if you don't have any of those off the top of your head, ask around, ask your local network of communicators for any examples that they have that you could share, at least verbally if not written, with the powers that be in your business.

[00:13:23] Mel: You can probably also find some just from a quick Google or AI chat, so hop onto Google Bard and just you know, ask them to find some case studies on effective communication and business results, for example. There's a really great example of how a poor media release resulted, potentially, in the downfall of the Silicon Valley Bank, for example.

[00:13:44] Mel: Just give that a Google. When you read this media release, I'm sure you'll be shocked. It definitely wasn't written by a comms person. Now, the great thing about real life case studies is that they demonstrate real life, tangible implications for investing in communication and the [00:14:00] opportunities that that affords for leaders and their businesses.

[00:14:05] Mel: Okay, tip number five, final tip for today is the barbecue chat. So tip number five is about explaining things simply without the jargon, but it's also where you can use some really nice analogies to explain the role of communication in helping businesses achieve success. So for example, you could say something like, I think of communications experts like.

[00:14:28] Mel: Professional golfers, they've worked a really long time to understand the lay of the land on which they're playing. They're very clear on the goal they need to achieve, and they know exactly which club to use, how to swing and where to aim in order to get that ball in the hole under par. Communicators do that too.

[00:14:45] Mel: They spend a lot of time understanding the context they're communicating in, especially how different people communicate, and they have a clear idea of the business goal, and then they put together a plan for how the communication can help achieve that goal. Now, then you have sports [00:15:00] commentators who are giving their commentary on the golf tournament.

[00:15:03] Mel: Now, to be a commentator, you need to know a little bit about each sport and be able to link different players and statistics together, et cetera. But that doesn't mean you know how to swing the golf club. That's what the change manager's role is. They bring the golfer together along with the caddy and the officials, but they can't do those roles themselves.

[00:15:21] Mel: Okay, look, that might be a bit of a shit analogy, and I really don't know golf. You may have picked that up, but hopefully you get the idea. It's about a touch of storytelling and putting things into a context that your audience would understand. So ask some questions, you know, what are you interested in?

[00:15:35] Mel: If they're interested in basketball, if they're interested in art, think of a way that you could explain what you do and the value of what you do versus other roles using an analogy of something they understand. Okay, it's time for your episode recap, so tune back in with your full attention to get the synopsis.

[00:15:54] Mel: Today, I talked through five tips to help you articulate the value of your comms to your business, [00:16:00] especially senior leaders. The five tips are number one, talk about the value you add, not about the tasks that you do. So how do you contribute to the business achieving its goals? Number two is make it about them, not about you.

[00:16:15] Mel: So don't talk about what you do. So how much you can, but rather talk about how you can support individual leaders. So for example, you can help them build their brand, help them improve engagement, et cetera. And side note, who's going to do that if you're not there. Tip number three was make a business case and I mean this informally have statistics that show the value add or the case for further investment.

[00:16:39] Mel: So, for example, poor engagement scores, poor customer satisfaction scores, stats from research about the value of comms can also be included here. And of course, the cost, the cost of not hiring versus the return on investment of hiring. Tip number four, share real life case studies. So demonstrate both [00:17:00] the successes for businesses who have invested in comms and the failures when they haven't invested.

[00:17:06] Mel: And tip number five, the barbecue chat, explain it simply, use an analogy or a story that makes it tangible for your audience. So for example, as I said, if they're into golf, use the golf analogy. If you know how to talk about golf. Okay, folks, that's all for today. But before I go, I would love it if you could demonstrate the value of this podcast by leaving a review and rating the show, perhaps even sending this episode on to someone who you think would benefit.

[00:17:31] Mel: Don't forget also that you can sign up to my non- spam emailing list. Every fortnight I send out an update with comms related news, learning resources, and more. I'm really particular about that and I want to make sure it just keeps delivering value. You can find the link to that in the show notes or just head to heymelcomms. com. au and click on the freebies menu. Now in the meantime, if you've got any topics you'd love me to cover, please get in touch and keep doing amazing things. Bye for now.[00:18:00]