The “Little Piggy” Communications Test

Do you remember the old poem, “This Little Piggy”?

This Little Piggy poem

This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed at home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went…
“Wee wee wee” all the way home…

Well, this can hold one of the keys to good communications with users and clients…

When you communicate with someone, especially if you feel you are doing something that will help them – such as providing gamified solutions, you have to consider what they want and need.  You have to put yourself in their shoes and offer something in a way that resonates with them.

Consider the following two sentences.

We can build you a great solution for XYZ because we have the best developers and we know what you need.

and

You seem to have a problem with XYZ and it must be causing you real headaches. Do you feel that a quality solution would help?

Ok, so these are a little simplistic, but can you see the difference? They are both have the same intent, but different approaches. And this is where the “Little Piggy” test comes in. If you search your communications for the word “We”, does it begin to sound like “Wee Wee Wee…”, if so, you are talking about yourself and not considering the needs of the client or user! Try dojng the same thing but doing replace your company name with “we” and then do the test 😉

The same is true for the I as well. This is the “Captain’s” test.  If you look for the all the times you say “I” and it starts to sound like someone saying “Aye Aye Captain” over and over again, you are talking about yourself more than the user or client.

People who need something are looking for someone who can empathise with them and understand the problem from their perspective. Be the Little Piggy who went to market and came back with roast beef, not the one that went “Wee Wee Wee all the way home” empty-handed.

Right, before I go, if you are interested in seeing me and a load of other amazing speakers in Amsterdam this November – click this link and get your ticket now!  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gamification-europe-2018-tickets-45643177974?aff=GamificationEuropeAffiliate&afu=264188435804

And finally – if you want to ruin “This Little Piggy” forever, click here for a very dark analysis! https://www.quotev.com/story/4263282/Ruining-your-childhood/22 

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