I often ask spokespeople in media training, What kind of spokesperson would you like to be? What qualities would you like to embody? Adjectives they cite include: professional, credible, informed, brief, honest.
Then we look closer. What does professional mean? Trainees say: service oriented, conscientious, knowledgeable, informed, business-like.
I ask, Why do organisations put spokespeople forward? Why don’t they always issue unattributed messages? The main answer is that the media and the public like to see real human beings representing organisations. Direct quotes enliven, inform and personalise stories in any medium.
Many corporations are adept at professionalising their spokespeople. They do this for understandable and valid reasons, including to convey concise and conservative positions and to guard against unruly expression. But this also creates problems. When a person tries to be professional, they often become serious. Serious is fine, except that it’s easy to over-do. It arrives stripped of humanity, cloaked in clipped, drab, monotone and boring responses. It’s safe, but it’s often not very likeable, and there’s not an organisation I can think of that doesn’t depend on being liked by someone. (Aristotle pointed out a long time ago, that logic is only one part of the persuasion equation-other key elements are pathos and ethos.)
Professionalism is admirable and necessary, but being informed and credible need not be an excuse for being boring. Being boring can be useful (e.g. in keeping you OUT of the news), but more often, it’s a communication vandal. It stops people reading, listening, watching…and liking.
One consummate professional and credible communicator who isn’t boring, is investment expert and chair of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett (consistently one of the world’s richest people). The company’s annual report lacks design sizzle, but it’s read because it’s informative and entertaining-it even has a couple of funny (and relevant) jokes.
Another terrific communicator in a so-called boring sector, is the ANZ bank’s chief economist, Saul Eslake. His speeches and presentations prove that credentialed economists can also be in demand writers and speakers.
In summary, don’t let being in business be an excuse for being boring. 🙂
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