In my last post to this blog, I made a number of statements that contradicted the conventional wisdom on how marketing will evolve over the next 12 months.
I did this intentionally.
First, because I believe what I said (that’s critical).
Second, because I wanted to stir things up a bit. To get people thinking. To get people to side with me – or against me.
Why would I do this? Because offering ideas that have a polarizing effect – that get people to side with you or against you – is a great way to command more readership.
People who agree with you will pass your information on to others. “Hey, remember what I was telling you about how I don’t see mobile marketing being a good investment? This guy Serling is saying the same thing!”
But here’s what makes it really interesting. People who disagree with you will also pass your information on. Partially because they disagree, but also because they respect a well thought out argument. “Hey, you won’t believe what this doofus Serling is saying about mobile marketing fizzling out. Check it out though, the guy could be right.”
Either way, your readership increases and people view you as having a fresh and unique take on things. And that can only be good for your business.
So let me dig a bit deeper and give you my four rules on the Art of Polarization. I’ll start by listing them all here, then go into detail on each rule:
Rule #1: Make a controversial statement
Rule #2: Back it up
Rule #3: You only have to be mildly controversial
Rule #4: Don’t take yourself too seriously
Rule #1: Make a controversial statement
One of the statements I made in my last post was, “Social media marketing will work for some and be a total bust for others.”
This completely contradicts all the rosy projections you’re hearing about social media being the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Note too the specific language I’ve used to stir up the controversy, “be a total bust for others”. I didn’t say it won’t work so well. Or it requires more time to tell. Or mince my words in any way. I declared it to be “a total bust”.
Hey, if you’re going to stir up a reaction, you have to make a truly controversial statement.
Rule #2: Back it up
Once you’ve made a controversial statement, you can’t just leave it hanging. You must provide proof that what you’re saying has real substance.
Here’s the proof I provided:
“This isn’t surprising. People use social media to visit, connect with friends, look at pictures, watch goofy videos, waste time when they’re supposed to be working, and rant about their likes and dislikes. So it isn’t any wonder that nearly all marketing messages fall flat in that environment.
The trick, of course, is to engage with people in a way that moves them off of social media and onto your contact list. But that’s no easy task. The few that succeed at this will benefit from social media. All others will be spinning their wheels.”
Now, that didn’t take long. I was able to prove my position in just two paragraphs. All I did was tap into what people already are experiencing in their own efforts to make social media pay off as a marketing vehicle. And one of the best ways to provide proof is to bring to the surface what people already suspect but haven’t yet verbalized.
Rule #3: You only have to be mildly controversial
Here’s the best part. Making crazy or irrational statements is not the way to successfully employ this strategy. If you come across as mean, attack others, or make statements that don’t ring true, you’ll spoil the entire effect of this strategy.
Be sincere, be kind, and state an opposing position you truly believe in. Because so much of what people see and hear is the same old cookie-cutter advice, all you have to do is take a small departure from the conventional wisdom to get the desired result.
Rule #4: Don’t take yourself too seriously
Another component that really helps is not taking yourself too seriously. Have a little fun with your contrarian advice. Poke fun at yourself. It makes you come across as more human and people will appreciate you for it.
For example, in my post, one of my sub-heads was, “6 wild-eyed, raving, possibly even usable predictions”.
You’re not looking to seriously tick people off. Your real goal is to get people thinking. To start a discussion where people feel free to give their own feedback whether they agree with you or not. And to get them to pass your information on to others.
Using a light touch goes a long way. Not only does it make your writing more interesting, but when people view you as being truly human, it contributes significantly in getting them to tell others about your “wild-eyed, raving, possibly even usable” ideas.
Ready, set, stir things up
One final point. The somewhat controversial and polarizing post I wrote got more attention than any other post I’ve put up during the last year.
I got tons of comments and emails. A number of people wrote to ask for permission to reprint the post. And I received multiple requests to write articles for other blogs and ezines.
So give this simple polarization strategy a try. Then let me know how it worked for you.
And feel free to leave a comment below, whether you agree with me or not.
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I enjoyed the articles and the true points they made were sensible too…
I would use those techniques and defy syle and clarity as it may pending on the topic and then use discretion …
But no one does it better than Bob Serling…keep up the creativity in our minds Sir.
TAM
Polarization has been one of my favorite serect strategies when interacting with new prospects and when speaking from the platform. Here’s why. In my experience, those folks who end up identifying and relating to a polarizing statement that I make often end up not only becoming a client, but an IDEAL client, as they tend to get it . The people who run away screaming and scared and do not appreciate my often different viewpoint or are generally people that I wouldn’t enjoy working with anyway. It becomes a self-selecting mechanism.It’s a beautiful thing but as Bob points out, it needs to be done correctly.
I always enjoy reading your posts. But something in particular made me smile in this one. First, you said that “if you’re going to stir up a reaction, you have to make a truly controversial statement.” You then follow it up with “you only have to be mildly controversial.”
I get the meaning of what you’re writing. Just, the way it was written, seemed to make your message even a bit more controversial! 😉
Great stuff… Keep it up!
Zeke
Controversy wakes people up. Being counter intuitive makes them think. Putting your argument in the context of major financial, social and tech trends gives people the big picture with which they understand the WHY…
Interesting post Bob. I always like reiadng another take on how to use controversy to your advantage.I might add being mean, arrogant and outrageous also can be powerful attention grabbers. But you’d have to be comfortable doing it. I know some people who are doing exactly that and getting a ton of traffic as a result.You gave more detail on the Social Media issue than on your two latest traffic videos.I’ve got a question for you and your readers. How much more highly qualified traffic do you think you could get to this post (and your previous one) if you had Facebook like and Twitter buttons on your blog to share it with people?I could have just clicked a button and shared your article easily with my Facebook friends. Some of them might have then seen my post, found it relevant to their interests and decided to check out what you had to say. Personally, I feel you have perfect content for Social Media. It’s controversial and it’s highly informative. It’s really good information and great to pass along.This is the way to take advantage of social media and yet you don’t even pay for Social Media advertising. Just put in a Social Media plugin in your blog and continue making your posts. All of a sudden you have a great new source of interested traffic with no extra time or money once it’s installed. And many of the plugins to do this are absolutely free.I’ve seen this work very well on heavily trafficked websites. I’ve many a time liked something and spread it to my Facebook and Twitter followers. And Facebook traffic (from what I’ve seen in traffic stats) can be very highly targeted.By the way, where can I view your 6 minute subject line video ?Thank you,Roger HaeskeThe 44-Year Old Teanajer
Very insightful, Bob. This is a content formula that could be applied to email, video and social media posts, too.
Polarization has been one of my favorite “secret” strategies when interacting with new prospects and when speaking from the platform. Here’s why. In my experience, those folks who end up identifying and relating to a polarizing statement that I make often end up not only becoming a client, but an IDEAL client, as they tend to “get it”. The people who run away screaming and scared and do not appreciate my often different viewpoint or are generally people that I wouldn’t enjoy working with anyway. It becomes a self-selecting mechanism.
It’s a beautiful thing but as Bob points out, it needs to be done correctly.
Interesting post Bob. I always like reading another take on how to use controversy to your advantage.
I might add being mean, arrogant and outrageous also can be powerful attention grabbers. But you’d have to be comfortable doing it. I know some people who are doing exactly that and getting a ton of traffic as a result.
You gave more detail on the Social Media issue than on your two latest traffic videos.
I’ve got a question for you and your readers.
How much more highly qualified traffic do you think you could get to this post (and your previous one) if you had Facebook like and Twitter buttons on your blog to share it with people?
I could have just clicked a button and shared your article easily with my Facebook friends. Some of them might have then seen my post, found it relevant to their interests and decided to check out what you had to say.
Personally, I feel you have perfect content for Social Media. It’s controversial and it’s highly informative. It’s really good information and great to pass along.
This is the way to take advantage of social media and yet you don’t even pay for Social Media advertising. Just put in a Social Media plugin in your blog and continue making your posts.
All of a sudden you have a great new source of interested traffic with no extra time or money once it’s installed. And many of the plugins to do this are absolutely free.
I’ve seen this work very well on heavily trafficked websites. I’ve many a time liked something and spread it to my Facebook and Twitter followers. And Facebook traffic (from what I’ve seen in traffic stats) can be very highly targeted.
By the way, where can I view your “6 minute subject line video”?
Thank you,
Roger Haeske
The 44-Year Old Teanajer