Why Repetition Matters in Internal Communication

“I’ve explained the power of effective internal communication at my organization, why isn’t it sticking?”

This seems to be a common refrain among IC pros. I’ve certainly heard it (and said it) numerous times throughout my career.

German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus found that if we don’t apply new information within six days of learning it, we’ll forget about 75%. This is why we as IC professionals often find ourselves explaining who we are, what we do, and why it matters over and over. A single communication road show or conversation won’t cut it, particularly if our audiences don’t immediately implement what they’ve learned. Take a moment and let that sink in.

One road show, one conversation won’t cut it.

Insert deep, beleaguered sigh. Or a sip of your preferred beverage. Up to you.

As Seth Godin advises, we must deliver the message in different ways over time. That means we can describe it from different angles. It also means we increase retention and impact.

Here’s what that looks like in practice for IC:

• Take the show on the road
  IC road shows are critical to building awareness, understanding, and buy-in for your function. In my road shows, I like to include: who’s on the team, what people can expect from me, a high-level channel overview, my service model, how my audience can partner with me to further my work, and how to contact me. Anyone who is likely going to be counseled, advised, or directly supported by you as a strategic business partner should experience this road show. Have some leave-behind materials with the key takeaways for reference. And be prepared to revisit the road show content as time goes on.

• Turn tactical conversations into strategic ones

  When someone asks you to “just send something out,” pause and shift the conversation. Ask: “What are your objectives for this?” Another way to think of it is: “What does success look like?” With a few simple follow-up questions, you move IC out of the order-taking business and into a more strategic one.

• Treat bad IC behavior as educational moments
  Behaviors that don’t align with IC best practices can come from any person and any department—even the one you report into. Quite often, these behaviors persist because people honestly don’t know any better. If they’ve never worked with an effective IC pro, they may genuinely believe a 1,000 word email with the call to action buried in paragraph nine is the way to go. No one’s taught them anything different. Assume positive intent and take action to respectfully course correct.

• Toot your own horn
  Sharing your successes is one of the best ways to elevate your expertise. While you shouldn’t be obnoxious about it, you do need to talk about yourself and your achievements. Highlighting your outcome and output measurements is a polite way of tooting your own horn. You can be the messenger, letting the data sing your praises. You can also demonstrate your effectiveness with a problem-solution comparison. Having others recognize you either verbally or in writing (ideally both) also creates more advocates for you and your expertise.

Building effective IC takes persistent effort and a variety of approaches. Remember, persistence and adaptability are key to embedding the value of IC in your corporate culture.