I just finished reading The Power of Moments by Chip and Dan Heath. I found it very interesting and insightful. As a marketing professional, I understand how important a moment can be in driving awareness, perception and conversion in the relationship between a customer and a brand. I had not thought much about how profound that moment could be or how a certain moment can affect other relationships such as the relationship between an employee and employer. This realization is important timing because my organization is on the verge of launching an employee engagement campaign based on our existing mission and values. It’s not a new message but it is the first time we’ve been very deliberate about defining our culture, not to mention placing parameters around how we measure it. I’ve been struggling with how to message this “new” campaign in a way that doesn’t leave employees saying “So what?”
I also had not thought of all of the ways I could make a moment powerful other than the most obvious choice of elevation. Don’t get me wrong, elevating a moment will always be my number one choice because it is the most fun and creative (that is the experiential event planner talking). But according to the authors, I could also create a moment of pride, insight or connection. All are viable ways to engage and change lives. I love the possibilities of stretching minds, practicing courage, deepening ties and most importantly connecting to a common purpose. How exciting is that? I’m inspired.
So, here I sit on a Labor Day evening, trying to come up with a list of everyday moments that I can use to try out some of the ideas in this book. The authors suggest that while you could create a unique powerful moment like a big event it is sometimes better just to upgrade the moments that happen every day. So, I’m starting there. What moments should I try to make more powerful?
Donor moments
- Receiving a thank you email for an online gift
- Visiting our Facebook page
- Receiving a print newsletter
- Searching our website for program information
Employee moments
- Attending employee orientation
- Arriving at work in the morning
- Attending staff meetings
- Marking each work anniversary
Volunteer moments
- Searching our website for volunteer information
- Receiving information about our volunteer program via email
- Attending volunteer training
- After the first volunteer shift
This is just a start. There are literally millions of moments that I could work on making more powerful. How I do this is the next question..and the subject for another article. More to come!
