Do you ever wonder how to make a message impactful and persuasive?

As humans, we don’t like to be sold to. Yet, this is a necessary part of our daily lives. You’re being persuasive when you want to call someone at a particular time. Suppose you have kids and want to get them to bed on time. You’re being persuasive. When you are seeking the best deal

Your messaging needs to be persuasive to draw attention. The book Secret Sauce by Harry Mills contains five critical components to a compelling message using the acronym sauce.

S- Simple

A – Appealing

U – Unexpected

C – Credible

E – Emotional

I summarize the book insights, which show us what is needed to make our messages on our website, our ads and any form of content work.

Simple

A message needs one central truth or point of view to be easy to grasp and picture. It needs to be simple, distinct, memorable, yet profound.

Metaphors can help capture the image in our minds.

What’s not simple to your audience?

The opposite of a simple message is a message that has too many points, is difficult to understand, and is difficult to picture.

Questions to ask yourself

• Is your message one point of view?
• Is your message crystal clear and easy to grasp?
• Can you picture it in your mind easily?

Appealing

Your message needs to be different yet valuable and personalized.

Appeal to self-interest.

Messages need to appeal to other people’s self-interest. It should speak to the benefits they want to hear because it serves their interests.

People recall ads with benefits more than a description of the services. Studies have shown that keeping it to three benefits is best. Otherwise, they start to lose trust.

Personalize your message.

Personalized messages are far more likely to get attention and create behaviour change.

Video is much superior to text. Personalized video can even go further. Yes, it will be more work, but studies have shown that you get better results with video than with a blast.

What’s not appealing to your audience?

A message with no appeal will be indifferent, have low perceived value and have generalized benefits.

Questions to ask yourself.

• Is your message highly differentiated?
• Does your offer have a high perceived value?
• Do you highlight specific benefits that your audience wants?

Unexpected

Don’t follow the crowd. Be surprising, intriguing, and seductive.

We are drawn to things that are new and fresh.

Make people convince themselves.

It is easier for people to change their minds if they convince themselves rather than us presenting the facts and logic. You can get people to convince themselves by asking questions, allowing them to come to a conclusion independently. Allow people to finish the ending or come to a decision.

What’s not unexpected to your audience?

Unexpected messages are unremarkable, lack interest and give a hard sell.

Questions to ask yourself.

• Does your message grab your audience’s attention?
• Does your message keep their attention?
• Does your message allow for a self-generated conclusion?

Credible

Bring trust, and be transparent and verifiable in your message.

State the truth.

Don’t exaggerate or make false claims that could be perceived differently by others. Sometimes, it’s okay to make a negative statement about yourself; people trust that more than any positive statement.

Some businesses can get away with branding but not hearing clinics.

Having a brand can build trust. Yet, some businesses don’t need a brand. Businesses where people know what is considered good quality can quickly get people to try without any branding.

However, high-risk purchases and businesses, like selling hearing aids, where quality isn’t easy to identify, require firms to build a brand.

We trust what others are saying.

We trust people like us, friends, experts, acquaintances and review sites more than any information from a marketer.

What’s not credible to your audience?

You don’t have credibility when your messaging is suspicious, secretive and unproven.

Questions to ask yourself.

• Does the message show I am trustworthy?
• Does it show I am open and transparent?
• Can any claim I made be verified?

Emotional

“The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action while reason leads to conclusion”

Canadian neurologist, Donald Caine

Add emotions to your message as well. It should be highly warm, arousing and plot-driven.

Your message should show you are generous, caring, attractive and strong to bring warmth.

Negative or positive messages are not the only drivers to influence action.

Messages can be negative or positive, but don’t generate arousal. Messages that align with what we care about get more reactions and shares.

Mills says it like this: Imagine that feeling you get when your sports team is on the verge of winning a grand final.

That’s the feeling your message needs to have. You can have positive messages that bring awe, excitement, amusement or humour. You can get negative emotions such as anger or anxiety from arousing content.

Storytelling drives attention

Use stories to highlight emotions. Our brains are wired for stories. Use stories to capture attention.

What’s not an emotional message for your audience?

If your messages are cold, do not include any emotions, and include only facts and figures, you will lose the plot. Messages that are content or sad do nothing and don’t generate action.

Questions to ask yourself.

• Are your messages communicated with warmth and engaging?
• Does your message bring high emotional arousal
• Does your message have a storyline?

So, how do you score?

The more you can answer yes to the questions, the more compelling your message. The less it is, the more unconvincing your message is.

Remember, you are not trying to get a yes 100% of the time, but if you answer 90% with a yes, it’s a good indicator that you have a message that would resonate well.