Last week, I learned two pieces of wonderful news. My friend Sarah got a new job that came with a major promotion, and another friend, Jim, got approval for a huge project he had been pursuing for years. I learned about Sarah’s new job from a Facebook posting, and Jim called on the phone to tell me his good news.
Sharing good news is one of the great joys of life, and communication technologies like social media and email make it easier than ever to spread our news quickly and conveniently. But good news also provides us with a wonderful opportunity to connect with people on a more personal level. Knowing when to use the reach and convenience a mass communication channel (like a group email or a social media posting) and when to use the personalization of a one-on-one channel (like a face-to-face conversation, a phone call, or an individual email or text message), can help us make the most of the connection opportunity that good news provides.
Three ideas will help you strike a balance between mass and individual (one-on-one) communication channels when sharing good news:
- Use one-on-one channels with your core supporters. A good rule of thumb is to use individual communication channels to share good news with your core supporters and to use mass channels for everyone else. Your core supporters are the most important people in your life, and include your spouse, children, parents, very close family and friends, a key client or two, close work colleagues, and often your boss. Your core supporters also include the people who were instrumental in making the good news come to fruition, like a coworker who recommended you for promotion. Whenever possible, use individual channels to share good news with your core supporters. They’ll appreciate the personal touch, and you’ll be able to use the news as a great “excuse” to connect with the most important people in your life.
- Tell people why you are sending a mass message, if appropriate. My friend Sarah mentioned in her Facebook posting that she was sending a mass announcement because the hiring company had already sent out an organization-wide email immediately after selecting her for the position. Her explanation provided me with a perfectly good reason why she didn’t contact me directly—she needed to get the word out quickly—which eliminated any question in my mind about why I found out about the news in a mass message.
- Apologize (individually) to anyone who says they would have liked a personal message. If you learn that a friend, family member, colleague, or other acquaintance felt like she should have received an individual message, apologize and, if true, tell her that you were pressed for time. The apology will probably be sufficient to smooth over any ruffled feathers, and the external justification (you were pressed for time) offers the other person a face-saving reason for the mass message.
Good news provides a great excuse to strengthen your personal connections to the people who matter most in your life and to reconnect with more distant acquaintances. If you maximize these opportunities by balancing between individual messages for personalization and mass messages for reach, your good news can be twice as nice.
Question: How do you like to share your good news? Please leave a comment to continue the discussion.
Originally posted on mouthpeaceconsulting.com.