Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Communication Glut

In the world of business, when there is too much of a particular good or product on the market, it is often referred to as a glut. The result is either people usually stop buying the product, the cost of it is marked-down dramatically, or stores simply pull it off the shelves and take a loss for that over-saturation. In other words, "gluts" are not viewed as being good things. In their quest to make more money, stores sometimes go too far. In essence, they cross an invisible line of manufacturing too much of what they see as a popular or viable product. When this happens, customers end up turning away from something they were once attracted to. 

With that as an example, is it possible to have a "communication glut?" Is it possible to go too far in putting forth a particular message? Is it possible to have a message that once served as a rallying cry for folks becomes so overused that it causes them to turn away rather than step forward? I believe so. Think of the fable, "The boy who cried wolf." At first, his message brought people together. After awhile, however, they turned away from his cries. More realistically, look no further than how many politicians communicate with prospective voters. At first, the politician blasts away at their opponent. People give a-listen. But if this is the only message the politician has, then often times those would-be supporters simply move on.  

Many professional communicators will agree that if a message is to be successfully communicated to a targeted public, then it must be repeated and reinforced. But this does not necessary mean it should be stated in the exact same way time after time. That core message must be refined, repackaged, perhaps even improved upon. A parrot keeps saying the same thing. After a while, their wanting a cracker becomes pretty annoying. People need variety in how messages are sent to them. Effective packaging can help avoid the occurrence of communication gluts.        

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