Lee Hopkins

Communication doesn’t

have to beboring

They say “Communication is a serious business”

I say “But it doesn’t have to be boring!”

They say “We need to get our message out”

I say “But in their language!”If the message is not in the language of the receiver then the transmission is a waste of time and energy – and will annoy them!

They say “We need inkage”

I say “We need linkage!”The new direction of communication is the fusion of offline and online worlds. Column inches and ink are no longer the only metrics – soundbites, bloglinks and google rankings are becoming more important. We need to pay attention.

They say “We need to control the message”

I say “The audience will always control the message!”

They say “Talk to your audience”

I say “Soundbite them first!”We have 7 seconds before they tune out. If they choose to tune in, only then we can engage in a conversation and start to build rapport and a relationship.

They say “Improve and Maintain”

I say “Destroy and Re-Imagine!”People are swamped by over 1 million messages a day. The traditional ‘Interruption Marketing’approach has lost its authority. And is now haemorrhaging advertising/marketing budgets.

We are in the ‘Permission Marketing’ age, where we have to get people’s permission to talk to them first, before they give us their full attention.

— just ask Kryptonite (they lost US$10m by not listening to and engaging in a conversation amongst 20m people)

Transparency and willingness to engage with your audiences are the new ‘musts’ for business

They say “Design is very important”

I say “Design is essential – but only when it supports and underpins the words you use…AND MAKES SENSE TO THE RECEIVER!”

They say “Basic Black”I say “TECHNICOLOUR RULES!”

They say “Communication is about telling a story”

I say “It’s about conversation by sharing stories!”The one-shot, one-way style of communication is no longer enough. Markets are now demandingwe engage in conversation with them.

They say “Communication is about imparting knowledge and ideas”

I say “Communicating is about sharing experiences and passion!”

They say “Print has always worked for us”

I say “There are new communication channels you need to master!”

The new channels of communication won’t go away. We need to be embracing the new, whilst still mining the old.Which is why I blog and podcast – to embrace the new and build competency.

Blog and podcast:leehopkins.net

Why blog?To engage in dialogue with customers and get their views and opinions (and over 32 million people blog daily)

Why podcast?To embrace powerful new channels to constituents; asynchronous communication at their convenience(and we need to be available when they want us to be there, 24/7)

It's natural enough to think of the growth of the blogosphere as a merely technical phenomenon. But it's also a profoundly human phenomenon, a way of expanding and, in some sense, reifying the ephemeral daily conversation that humans engage in. Every day the blogosphere captures a little more of the strange immediacy of the life that is passing before us. Think of it as the global thought bubble of a single voluble species.

In a 367-word editorial dated 5th August the New York Timestold the world that it takes blogs seriously. The underlying message is we all should follow its lead. The editors wrote...

+61 8 8388 5171 / +61 410 642 052

leehopkins.com / leehopkins.netlee@leehopkins.com

• You want someone who can write

• You want someone who can speak in public

• You want someone who understands websites –both internal and external facing

• You want someone who can design employee communication vehicles

• You want someone who can design collateral

• You want an innovative communicator

• You want someone who believes the voice of the employee is a key to a company’s future

• We should probably talk…

Communication must not be left to those who believe they could be ‘doing something better with their time’

+618 8388 5171 / +61 410 642 052

BSc (Hons) Applied Psychology & Sociology

About me• 2 years frontline customer service experience

(call centres)• 5 years communications consultancy experience

(UK and Australia)• 11 years internet communication experience

(Producer, developer, writer, editor)

Cert IV Marketing / Cert IV Small Business

• Great people skills

• Able to meet and exceed KPIs

• Can design strategy and implement tactics

• Is a rapid learner

• Highly motivated and enthusiastic

lee@leehopkins.com / leehopkins.com

Member – International Association of Business Communicators