Be Real. Connect to Emotion.

I was recently evaluating competitor websites for a client. The client provides technology solutions for organizations that help people and safeguard our world–clothing the hungry, feeding the poor, supporting the natural environment.

I went online at looked at tech websites and in short order, I felt my mind begin to numb from the onslaught of generic images of people in modern-looking offices fake-smiling at each other, promises about turbo-boosting my productivity sprinkled with computer terms I didn’t fully understand, and pop-ups featuring small pictures of photogenic customer service representatives between the ages of 25 and 35 offering to chat with me.

And then I hit a site that grabbed my attention like none of the rest. It said things like, “WE CRACK CODES LIKE DAD JOKES. ONLY NO ONE BEGS US TO STOP CODING.” I could picture a bunch of corny, personable nerds I could relate to. They obviously didn’t take themselves too seriously, yet they worked with some impressive “fancy brands” as they called them.

Clearly, this company was made of real, authentic humans, people who wouldn’t look down their nose at me if I didn’t understand a technology term or if I didn’t represent a particularly “fancy” brand. Had I been looking for a company to hire or partner with, I would have paid double to work with these guys.

Clearly, this company was made of real, authentic humans, people who wouldn’t look down their nose at me if I didn’t understand a technology term or if I didn’t represent a particularly “fancy” brand.

When it comes to communication, it is important to provide some technical details in certain situations, but when we focus on how we want people to feel, it helps us craft communication that uses the most powerful and persuasive force on the planet: human emotion. Rather than trying to impress potential clients, show them how you can help them and treat them with respect. If you can do that and make them laugh, they will love you (and hire you) for it.