I recently saw a posting for a Marketing Specialist position at Whole Foods. I clicked through to learn more and was left scratching my head because it wasn’t at all what I was expecting. The listing described a job I had back in college – a stocker.
I give Whole Foods credit for wanting to give the lowly stocker a more respectable title. I understand. I was one. You can’t get lower on the grocery store totem pole.
Even though I was a stocker I knew my role was important. Being on 3rd shift, I ended up doing more than stocking shelves. I manned the cash registers, managed the store on weekends, and worked in every department. So, although I was a stocker, I did a lot more than that, but I wouldn’t say I was a marketing specialist.
Will this job posting help Whole Foods acquire the talent they are looking for? I doubt it. If I was looking for a job to stock shelves I wouldn’t read that job posting. I’d see Marketing Specialist and move on.
On the reverse side, I was a little ticked that Whole Foods wasted my time. It’ll make me think twice before I click through any of their other job postings.
How many potentially great candidates ignore Whole Foods because there is no way to tell a real job posting from one of their “distorted” postings?
I don’t want to pick on Whole Foods, there are other companies that don’t communicate well. From what I know about Whole Foods, I can tell their heart is in the right place.
The lesson here is simple – don’t over-complicate communication. So, how do you avoid your message being ignored?
Here are 4 rules for effective communication.
1) Keep things simple. Simple beats complicated every time. Simple is easy to remember and sticks with people. Avoid jargon. Communicate as if you are trying to explain it to a six year old.
2) Be direct. Don’t let anyone doubt what you mean. Don’t leave gray area. Avoid ambiguity. Get to the point.
3) Say what you mean. What message do you want to convey? Don’t dance around the subject – get it out. Don’t leave your communication open for interpretation.
4) Use the correct words. The right words can inspire, motivate, and educate. Words have power. Choose them wisely so your audience can take action.
In the Whole Foods example the listing could have been changed to read: “We need to hire someone to stock our shelves. It’s not glamorous, but we pay a good wage and we treat our employees well, better than most stockers at other grocery stores. In fact, to us you’re a marketing rock star because you will be responsible for making sure our customers have an awesome experience every time they walk through our doors.”
The next time you need to get your message across remember the 4 rules for effective communication. It will ensure you’re understood.
Have you seen examples of over-complicated messaging? What rules do you follow for effective communication?
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