Dueling Perfumes

It was a typical Saturday afternoon at the mall. On this cold day, there were lots of folks of all ages milling around. Some making purchases while many others seemed content to simply give the various pieces of merchandise before a good look-see. In one particular department store, directly across from each other, were two salespersons trying to sell their brands of perfume. Each was young, nicely dressed, and very engaging. They were also both happy to comply with any request from potential customers wishing to sample the fragrance of their product. Neither seemed to lack for interest.

It was, if nothing else, competition at its most direct. Two entrepreneurs trying to attract customers from the other. Other than their specific brand, their strategies seemed interchangeable. So, too, did their specific messages. From my unscientific observation, neither seemed to be getting the best of this duel. Yet each carried on as if all was going smoothly. I could not help but wonder how exactly they measured their success for a day's work. Amount of sales is the obvious answered, of course. Anything else? Going into their day, what expectations did these salespeople have? Any thought about reviewing their message? What about customer feedback? Return business?

This scenario seemed typical of one we all face in our world of message bombardment. Lots of words. Similar themes. Urges for us to chose one over another. How are we to do it? More to the point here, what can the message senders do to make their communiques standout from the rest? That question hits to the heart of any communication effort: what can one do to be heard and how best can a message be framed to generate the kind of action by the receiver desired by the sender? These questions point to the importance that so much of our communicating should be driven by thought and with the receiver in-mind. In the context of those two perfume salespeople, I am not all that certain that was on display.