Most people do not give much thought to how they communicate on a day to day basis. They’ve unconsciously developed patterns of speech and interaction that they feel pretty comfortable with and let it go at that. Some people know they have communications issues, because it’s been brought to their attention by a boss, friend or co-worker.

As a marketing & communications professional a lot of my time is spent analyzing and assessing communications – not only in the workplace, but in the way that entrepreneurs engage their prospects and clients. I study collateral materials, websites and listen to and make recommendations on elevator pitches, speeches, presentations, email and direct mail outreaches.

If you’re in business – whether you’re pursuing a fast-track career or are the CEO of your own firm – what you say and how you say it can mean the difference between distinguishing yourself ( and your company) in a very positive way, or falling flat on your face!
And since we are a very multicultural world, your messages and communications need to be honed for each particular audience you are seeking to engage and impress. There are many things you can do to boost your performance and get the kind of response you want, but the top three on my list are:

* Knowledge of your topic
* Sensitivity to your audience
* Passion in your presentation

Before I entered the working world I thought I was pretty good at interacting with different people in most conversations. Then I began to work, and learned many lessons about what NOT to say and how NOT to sound, by sticking my foot (or feet) in my mouth, but good!

The bottom line: it’s best to do what you need to, to avoid making a serious faux pas.

My first personal experience with international communications was when I worked in a textile firm that did business with Korea, Taiwan, Japan and India. I’ll always remember my boss patiently explaining certain rules of etiquette, that he felt helped pave the way to successful communications with our varied vendors. His attention to the way we approached our phone and telex communications paid off handsomely.

Yet, all my illusions of what I thought knew from that experience were shattered when our first au pair arrived from Denmark. It was only then that I began to realize how much we Americans use slang, expressions and colloquialisms, pardon the expression – up the whazzoo! Although most times our verbal mishaps actually left us laughing, as the years rolled by and my family culturally exchanged with other girls from Norway, Germany, Austria, Spain and Holland, my husband and I found that we had to really THINK about what we said, before we said it, because sometimes our casual expressions could actually cause hurt or distrust.

When it comes to being an entrepreneur marketing your business, the way you craft your message to the different demographic audiences you serve, will have a huge impact on how effective you are in engaging them. It doesn’t matter if you are trying to engage local clients, regional business associates or global partners, successful communications involves six simple things:

* The right Attitude
* Great Research
* The appropriate Message(s)
* The right Incentive
* Listening to feedback
* Tweaking

The right attitude involves the capacity to see common ground, instead of differences. Consider all the facts: race, religion, family or educational background of your respective market(s). The bottom line is that a friendly, inclusive approach will help to keep things moving forward.

If certain words, colors or visuals can be misconstrued, you need to know about them before you put together a campaign. The way you figure out which path to take, is by doing a bit of research. When you’re sure you’ve got all the fine points covered you can then craft the appropriate messages – messages that will engage, not offend.

When it comes to marketing – we need to be distinctive, to be clear about our firm’s offerings, expertise and benefits, using language that is compelling and meaningful to each particular audience. Incentives within a defined timeframe help persuade your prospects to act.

Listening to any feedback and tweaking your message, will help to keep you on target.

So whether you are a business owner or a career person considering embarking on an entrepreneurial path, in order to be successful great communication is key! More companies are realizing that a lot gets misinterpreted. Misinterpretations can be aggravating at best, and disastrous at the worst. If you don’t want to have a communications breakdown – like what usually happens in the old children’s game of “Telephone,” where the last person on the line spurts out an entirely different message than what was originally said, make sure you pay attention to all the details.

To keep your business running in the pink, give it a robust dose of great communications on all fronts, whether it’s PR, a voice mail, an ad campaign, a direct mail piece, your website, white papers or in a networking venue. Your success depends on it.