Whether we think about it or not, we have a lot of first-time encounters, both in person and online. This can happen in person when you’re meeting with someone for the first time. It could be a first date. It could be being in a meeting with people. It could be being in a lecture or something like that. Online, we have new communication coming in all the time, whether that’s email, social media, or all sorts of communication. And that happens both in the way that we receive it and in what we send out to people as well.
When it comes to creating content, one of the most important things to consider is the first-time encounter or first impression that people have when they come across our work. Whether it’s a blog post, social media post, or video, how people first encounter our content can have a significant impact on whether they engage with it or not. In this blog post, we will explore the measures we can take to ensure our first-time encounters are successful and lead to further engagement.
Let’s break down the steps of what unconsciously happens when we are receiving first-time engagement and encounter.
- Visibility
There needs to be visibility for any first encounter. If we are not visible, we will never be seen, and there is going to be no progression made in a relationship. This entails making certain that our content is visible to our intended audience. This can be accomplished through a variety of means, including search engine optimization, social media promotion, and email marketing. We can increase the likelihood of people finding our content by making it more easily accessible. For instance, on social media, algorithms will determine what content is made available in a news feed. For emails, often people scan email subject lines very quickly to determine if they will take the next step and open it.
- Relevance
The content needs to be relevant for them. People decide within two or three seconds whether they want to continue to engage with this piece and with this encounter, or whether they’re going to switch off or just scroll past it. Once people have discovered our content, we must ensure that it is relevant to their interests or needs. This involves learning about and understanding our target audience and creating content that addresses their concerns or interests. We can increase the likelihood of people engaging with our content and taking further action by doing so.
- Impression
The content needs to make a good impression, at least something that’s going to hook the audience in to decide to continue on. We want to make a good first impression when people come across our content. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways, including the use of eye-catching visuals, the creation of attention-grabbing headlines, and the use of a compelling introduction. We can increase the likelihood of people engaging with our content by making a good first impression.
- Attention
Once we have made a good first impression, we need to keep people’s attention. This can be accomplished through a variety of means, including storytelling, providing value, and instilling a sense of urgency. We can increase the likelihood of people engaging with our content for longer periods if we can keep their attention.
So if they’ve clicked on the email, they want to find out more. If they click the Read More button, they want to find out more. If I’m having a conversation with someone, I want to be able to continue that conversation because I’ve got that attention.
- Connection
After gaining the user’s attention, a genuine connection to the content can be established. Furthermore, a deeper long-going connection can begin to grow between the content creator and the audience. This connection point is the platform where a relationship can begin and trust can be built. Connection is the stage that moves from information to identity, from content to relationship, from the present to the future.
- Invitation
After gaining the user’s attention, then there is an opportunity to provide an invitation. The invitation may be to continue a conversation, reply to an email or a post, to continue the dialogue. We need to invite people to take action after they have engaged with our content. This can be accomplished by soliciting feedback, inviting them to sign up for a newsletter, or encouraging them to share our content with others. We can increase our chances of developing long-term relationships with people by inviting them to take additional action.
- Permission
Permission is given to continue in that relationship and to take that relationship to the next level and that engagement. Trust can continue to grow safely. We need to ensure that we have their permission to continue engaging with them after they have engaged with our content and taken further action. This entails obtaining their contact information or obtaining permission to send them additional content. We can continue to build a relationship with them and provide them with value by obtaining permission.
Finally, successful first-time encounters with our content require visibility, relevance, impression, attention, invitation, and permission. By taking these steps, we can increase the likelihood of people engaging with our content and taking action. Understanding our target audience and creating content that addresses their pain points or interests is critical. We should also focus on making a good first impression and keeping people’s attention, as well as inviting them to take action and obtaining their permission to continue interacting with them. By taking these steps, we can establish a long-term relationship with our audience and provide them with value.
We hope that’s useful for you. Please reach out if we can help you and we can discuss how we can support you to improve your communication for first-time encounters.