The goal for a lot of my clients is to get people invested in their ideas and initiatives. Sometimes that’s an emotional or intellectual investment, sometimes that’s an actual investment (which requires the other two). Securing that investment requires written or spoken communication of some sort. After all, words are the currency of ideas.
The Red Thread
How to stand out? It’s unexpectedly obvious.
My mouth is a dental paradise. Not for me, mind you, but for legions of dentists and orthodontists over the years, whose houses my mouth has helped renovate and whose children I helped put through school.
How to destabilize the status quo
Welcome to the second-and-a-half installment in your step-by-step guide to building The Red Thread® of your message or content.
Why start-ups should start messaging now
First things first: I’m not Tamsen. I’m Alex Denniston. I’m a senior strategist who often works with Tamsen to design messages for our founder and thought leader clients.
Give them something they can’t unhear
Three years ago, when I was mired in the midst of not-writing my last book, I asked my friend Ann Handley for advice. After all, she wrote a book called Everybody Writes.
The best positioning persuades. Does yours?
You probably already know that “positioning” is key to creating any kind of change, whether it’s at the organizational or market level.
The best place to start your message
If you’re trying to figure out the best place to start or anchor your message of change, the answer is always, “start with the question you exist to answer.”
Why your core message comes first
When you’ve got a big change to make—in your organization, in the market, in the world—one question comes up over and over again: Where should you start?
Building a new message? Answer 3 questions first
When you’re building a new idea (or new content, like a pitch or presentation to support it), it can sometimes be hard to figure out where to start.
Is your idea built for buy-in?
It’s new worksheet time! I love me a good worksheet, don’t you? They can make a complicated process clear or get all your ideas together where you can see them—both of which are particularly important when you’re designing a new message or building a new idea.