I've been hearing an advert a lot on the radio recently for the UK census which is due in today.

In it a mum is encouraging her student daughter to complete the census because “it will inform decision-making about your future”.

“Inform decision-making” is the kind of language bureaucrats and advertising executives use. It's not something that would emerge from the mouths of ordinary mums and student daughters in a million years.

It's incredibly easy to get trapped in your own bubble and assume everyone thinks and talks like you. But it's lethal when it comes to marketing.

I've made that mistake many times. I spend so much time reading articles and watching videos aimed at marketing experts it's easy for me to fall into the trap of thinking everyone is motivated by the same things and reacts to the same type of messages.

But it's just not like that in the real world.

Last week we launched my wife Kathy's annual summit for early years practitioners and educators. They're a very different audience and a great reminder of how you need to get inside the head of your clients and talk to them in ways that are natural for them, not you.

The first email we sent out announcing the summit was a bit “rah rah” with emojis in the subject line. 

It did OK.

But the second email we sent out to people who hadn't signed up after the first did way better. The subject line?

“your invitation”

Not only did we get more people signing up (and buying the recordings), we got a whole bunch of replies from people saying how much they'd enjoyed the previous year's summit and thanking Kathy for inviting them this year.

We wrote to them in their language and they responded.

It wasn't massively different to the first email. Just a change in tone really.

But it made a big difference.

I think whenever you've spent a lot of time inside your bubble with people who think and talk like you, you need to remind yourself of what your actual clients are like before marketing to them. 

Read the emails they've sent you or what they post on social media. Recall conversations you've had. Remember what it was like when you were in their situation.

Those small changes could make a big difference for you too.