“Unmass the Message” applies not only to marketing communications, but also to education, as well. In fact, you could substitute the words “student-centered learning” for “Unmass the Message.”

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard and a number of other universities are trying this not-so-novel approach in the classrooms of their hardest classes. Take Introductory Physics, for example. As noted by the New York Times in January, MIT has reduced their Introductory Physics class from 300 to about 80.  The university has noticed the failure rate dropping and increased attendance.

Could you say that, in this instance, education is learning from industry? I think so. Marketers have long understood that you simply cannot say the same thing to everyone and expect everyone to understand exactly the same way. Innate physical and physiological differences make such a goal completely impossible, no matter how well crafted the message.

Imagine, then, that some in the marketing world still haven’t learned this lesson themselves.  “We’ve got to do it fast, so we can’t spend the time figuring out who exactly we’re talking to. Let’s just get it done.”

Whoa. Really?

Such work may win design awards, but not having focused work wastes money and time. If you’re a client, it’s your money and time. The old saw is true: taking the time to do anything right in the first place prevents you from having to do it again. In this industry, it also means less stress, more revenue and happier clients.

In working with fairly small clients (as measured by the rest of this agency), I find that even just a little bit of thought can help distill exactly who you need to speak to. Knowledge of the client, discussions with clients, internal discussions and familiarity with industry benchmarks make this a simple process. While this process doesn’t replace the value from a more in-depth process to determine your target audience, it certainly does help ensure you’re not wasting your time or money.

Think that unfocused messages don’t happen that often? Here’s a quick test:  What do you remember from the Super Bowl, nary two months ago? You do have first-hand experience with being bombarded with media messages that don’t speak to you. You may have even realized that you were supposed to be engaged by an advertisement or message when you weren’t. It’s not that unusual.

Think about it: when you were in school, you knew when you weren’t understanding something you were supposed to, but you got the benefit of asking questions. “What’s the limit of f(x)? How am I supposed to find that number?” As a consumer, however, you often don’t get the opportunity to ask questions. “Why doesn’t GoDaddy say anything about what they do in their commercials?”

So, take a page from MIT’s book (which I say came from Trone’s book): be student-centered.  Be people-centered. Be consumer-centered: your consumer, not every consumer. Unmass the Message.

Or so says Connie Reece. I agree with her.

That’s right, all you crackberry addicts and other smartphone users. You’re officially old, especially if you’re using it primarily for email. And you probably are using it primarily for email unless you’re an iPhone user who’s downloaded the Facebook app and the Twitter app. (And let’s be honest: anyone with a smartphone who believes they haven’t been conditioned like a Pavlovian dog into grabbing the phone every time the device twitters, buzzes, beeps or rings is lying to themselves.)

Here’s why you’re old (if you fall into the aforementioned group): 92% of adults (those older than 22) rely on email for communication; 16% of teenagers and undergraduates rely on email for communication. In fact, a peer of mine who works at the High Point University School of Communications recently told me that he apologized to his students for emailing them. “I just can’t text all of you,” he said.

While adults have embraced the communication that came of age while we were younger, younger generations will continue to do the same. Given that those younger constituents of our world are communicating through text, IM, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and a host of other social networks, it’s no wonder that there are often disconnects in communication between the generations. If you extrapolate that idea just a bit more, it’s also no wonder that those disconnects appear in marketing discussions between brands and consumers as well.

Knowing your audience–from understanding insight, not just instinct–will help you Unmass the Message, allowing you to communicate effectively and efficiently with your brand’s targets.

For me, that means learning about and participating in social media because, well, I’m old.

I was originally going to pontificate on the need to be cognizant of others in need and the role of corporate social responsibility in this post, but I’ve since changed my mind.

A crisis has happened, you see.

If you’re local to the area, you’re undoubtedly aware that one of our favorite shopping centers, Friendly Shopping Center, had a tragic incident occur on property recently. A Brinks armored truck driver was shot and killed near Old Navy while picking up a deposit for the store.

If there’s anything I’ve learned in crisis communications, it’s that you have to have a plan in place and you have to capitalize upon every opportunity to communicate with your stakeholders. Friendly Center, or more likely its parent company, CBL Properties, has lost almost every opportunity it had to affect this situation positively. (Full disclosure: I was the Assistant Marketing Director at Friendly two years ago.)

A visit to CBL’s  online media center shows no information about the crisis situation at all. No press release. No links to local stories. No statement to the community. Nothing to reassure the shoppers that the center or the company that owns the center is concerned, upset and impacted by the event. Friendly’s website also ignores the crisis that happened, although it does invite you to take a survey about which stores you visit. 

Now, because I did spend some time working at Friendly, I know that a crisis management plan exists. Or that it existed two years ago. However, two years ago, Starmount Company managed Friendly Center, not CBL. Two years ago, I was working with my director to add communications objectives to that plan as well.

CBL has centralized marketing. I would bet good money that CBL has a retained PR firm as well. It’s quite unfortunate that firm’s representatives, based in Chattanooga, TN, haven’t jumped on a plane to come handle the crisis response of Friendly Center and CBL.

On the other hand, the crisis response of the Greensboro Police Department has been absolutely fabulous. The PD has shown that they are involved, active, concerned, working, deliberate, reassuring . . . the list goes on.

Friendly Center? CBL?

(Insert cricket noise here.)