RISMEDIA, July 19, 2008-Continuing in our six-part Viewpoints series on communicating with clients, this week, Gary Lombardo, senior vice president, Sales and Marketing at HSA Home Warranty, agrees with our other panel of experts, saying that our fast-paced industry requires consistent evaluation of communication channels. Here, he offers his take on keeping communication not only frequent, but also customized.
Customizing Communication
Gary Lombardo
Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing
HSA Home Warranty
www.onlinehsa.com
We live and work in a fast-paced and ever-changing society that requires constant evaluation of news, strategies and resources for information. When delivering any messages to agents, I am very conscious of three factors: content, frequency and delivery.
Agents today are inundated with messages and advertisements on a daily basis. Decisions are made consciously and subconsciously as to what information they need to read and respect, and what information they can toss aside. As a trusted source for information, we must be sure that the information we present is relevant to our audience. The communication needs to be precise and bring value to their business or to their personal life.
The number of separate communications also plays a vital role in effective communication. We know that it can take up to six forms of communications to make an effective gross impression on a person. We also know that too many communications on the same topic will be viewed as SPAM, a message with no valuable content. Walking the tightrope between too little and too much frequency can be very tricky.
The medium of delivery is just as important as content and frequency. The real estate market today is made up of multiple generations, and each group clearly enjoys communication in a different style. Generational communication is just as important as generational selling. To communicate an important message, we must be prepared to deliver it verbally, in print, as an e-mail and as a text message.
At HSA Home Warranty, we have embraced customizing our customer service and communication with agents and contract holders alike. We understand what content is important to our clients, how often they would like to receive it, and the format that is most convenient for their career development and success.
