Trashcan and Buzzkill

More thoughts on reaching the inbox…

My son, James, and his cousin were born six weeks apart. Besides the similarity in their ages, they have nothing in common.

Cousin Cameron was off the charts on appetite, weight and length from the day he was born. James is a slim little dude who can still wear a few of his 18-month-old clothes, even though he’ll be three in a few weeks.

Cameron is a nut, a loud little lunatic who enters a room at a full-on run or in some form of acrobatic stunt. James is a quiet observer who will occasionally flash a sly smile as he zings you with the equivalent of a toddler one-liner.

The family has already identified James as the future quarterback and Cameron as his blocker. Cameron’s stature and James’ evening grouchiness have also earned the duo the nickname “Trashcan and Buzz-Kill.”

As they grow up, I imagine they’ll be good influences on each other—Cameron setting an example for busting out of one’s shell, James being a careful voice of reason.

I think about these two as I write because I see a big opportunity in adding a little Cameron—a bit of “Trashcan” energy—to your emails and other online content.

There’s certainly a great deal of value in being the credible voice of reason, in providing useful content that helps your prospects do their jobs better. And of course it’s important the tone and look of your campaigns are business appropriate. But there is room within those parameters to show some personality, to share some clean humor, to let the information come from a person, instead of always being from The Company.

What if every now and then—instead of it always being “good-for-you” content—your company shared some soul-satisfying fried-chicken type of content?

It would probably take a little more time, but it would also keep people more interested for longer. This is particularly true if you’re buying lists. An article on BtoB’s site projects that this year the average individual will receive 5,000 opted-in emails, a volume that will rise to 9,000 or more by 2013.

If people don’t know your company outside the emails they get from you, they have no loyalty. As soon as they’ve decided (usually unconsciously) they they’ve learned all they think they can from you, they’re going to opt out—unless your messages offer something a little more than valuable content.

It is possible to make something entertaining without offending or undercutting your credibility—and by showing a more human side, it’s a lot easier to engage with all those humans in your market.