Reminder: There are 4 things that make a message work: When your message is customer-centric, clear, compelling, and controlled. The opposite of these are the 4 ways your message works against you: When it’s vain, vague, dull, and undisciplined.
It means not following best practices or conventions or guidelines. Not doing what’s right. Out of control.
Definitions of undisciplined:
Wiktionary.org:
Being undisciplined in your messaging can be the same as being:
You’ve run into undisciplined people before. People who are sloppy. People who stretch the truth. People who blatantly disregard rules.
How does their undisciplined behavior reflect on them? And what impact does it have on you? Do you trust them?
Sadly undisciplined behavior is even more common in organizations than it is in individuals. (Just look at most of the marcomm out there.)
An undisciplined message makes your audience feel:
Simply put, if you’re undisciplined, you’re not winning anybody over. You might even be turning people away. That’s why vain is one of the 4 ways your message works against you. The good news is, it’s a sin you can avoid.
“A message that lacks discipline can confuse customers, weaken brand identity, and erode trust.”
David Meerman Scott
Undisciplined communication is communication that suffers from a lack of control. Maybe you’ve never thought about it, but you’ve probably witnessed the causes and the effects.
I’m sure you don’t mean to be undisciplined. Nor do your colleagues. Still, be on the listen-out for these Uh-oh Utterances:
“I know we have brand guidelines. But this needs to feel edgy and different.”
“We can’t run this through legal; we don’t have time. We’ll just have to ask for forgiveness.”
“Yeah, it’s not the current logo, but it’s close enough.”
“Just make it up. It’s fine. Nobody’s gonna check up on this stuff.”
“APAC is going to create their own website. Cultural differences, you know.”
“I mean, the color’s a little off, but who’s gonna notice?”
“Let’s just get it out there and we’ll clean it up later.”
“We just need to let the sales reps design their own presentations. It’s more efficient that way.”
“Don’t worry about the brand colors. Use whatever looks good.”
“Just add an asterisk with a disclaimer. No big deal.”
“It’s okay if our website has a different voice than our Instagram. Social is a different animal.”
“Never mind credits and rights. They’re never gonna see our stuff.”
Following are some undisciplined messages… and how a customer might react to them.
Asking your audience a question is inherently customer-centric. Which is good, but you have to anticipate their answer. That’s part of the discipline of copywriting. It’s why you never say things like, “What more could you ask for?” There’s no reason to invite a pessimistic response. You’re trying to overcome cynicism, not stoke it.
This honestly does make me kinda sad. A huge, glaring typo. It’s humiliating. The temperature definitely got turned up on whoever let this one through.
PrettyLittleThing got in trouble for running ads that claimed “50% off everything” with a fat asterisk. That’s sneaky enough, but get this: Sometimes the asterisk didn’t even have a corresponding disclaimer. So you know that something’s excluded, but you can’t find out what it is. That’s not pretty, and it’s not a little thing.
I love a good wordplay as much as anybody, but IMO this one is insensitive. Back issues are serious. Do I really want Dr. Punny Punster here taking a knife to my lumbar? I don’t think so.
Also, this is a superb example of using an overused word (which is both vague and dull). So we’re talking “quality” spine care? I mean, describing something as “quality” had its hipster moment a few years back. But generally, it makes things sound cheap. You know, like “Quality furniture at bargain prices.” The word is used as a modifier here, but it sounds like a noun that’s missing its helper. It’s like saying “resolution display” or “yield investment fund.” So what kind of quality is this spine care? Low quality, I fear.)
A message that’s devoid of discipline is a message that’s out of control. Inconsistent. Insensitive. Off-brand. Unfair. Rudderless. Wrong.
A message that’s undisciplined:
Most copywriters are careful and conscientious. But some aren’t. Either way, it’s always wise to have an editor review everything.
Verbal signs that your message is undisciplined:
It’s easy to get carried away with all the possibilities of design. It’s hard for the conviction of creatives to bend to rules and regulations.
Visual signs that your message is undisciplined:
Rules are made to be broken. That’s what creativity does. So we can’t sit here and preach that you should never do this or never do that. Never say never. And besides, times change. Way back when, it was considered unprofessional for lawyers to advertise. Seen any freeway billboards lately?
Conventionally, an advertising campaign has a theme, and the advertiser sticks to that one theme for the life of the campaign. That’s the way the system works. Anything else would be erratic, right? After all, we don’t want to confuse the consumer.
Well, GEICO gave you a little more credit than that. They started running multiple campaigns with multiple themes all at the same time. A talking gecko. A talking stack of bills. Cave men. Did you get confused? Or did you delight in the surprising ways that they got you to pay attention? Admit it, at least once in your life you’ve said “hump dayyyyyy!”
Come to think of it, insurance used to be a serious topic. And by serious, I mean dullsville. Promising “peace of mind” and such. Yawn. Now we laugh at mayhem and watch emus wearing sunglasses.
Of course, GEICO is multifaceted in their creative, but they are machinelike in their positioning. It always comes back to that 15% claim. Not controlled, but controlled.
Deciding if a message is undisciplined isn’t always easy. There are esoterics and exceptions. Sometimes, you need an expert judgment call. That’s when it’s good to ask for help.
The opposite of an undisciplined message is a message that’s controlled. One that’s consistent and compliant. Controlled is one of the 4 things that make a message work. If you want to know what makes a message effective, find out how to keep your message controlled.
Being undisciplined is the opposite of what makes a message effective. Do you agree or disagree with these assertions? Hit me with your cheers and challenges.
Ready to prove or disprove the notion that undisciplined is a message-strategy nemesis? Send me some examples.
Your input can help me refine the principles of message strategy, which in turn can help others.
Are you creating sales playbooks? An ad campaign? A tagline? How would you rate your own messaging in terms of being undisciplined?
Need to ensure adoption of your sales program, new product offering, or company strategy? Let’s talk.
