Listen To The Feedback

I read the following quotation this morning and, unsuprisingly, I got me thinking about the importance of listening…

Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force.
The friends who listen to us are the ones we move toward.
When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand.
  ~~ Karl Augustus Menninger, 1893 – 1990

I sometimes think that, as marketers, we become far too self absorbed to really listen to our readers, subscribers and customers. Many marketers seem to place far too much focus on their products and services rather than on what is actually taking place in the market itself.

I received a telephone call earlier this week from a telesales operator who wanted me to upgrade to a service that isn't actually available where I live. But he persisted in telling me all about the benefits that I can't enjoy. His focus was on selling.. not listening. Even when I took the time to "educate" him he still didn't get it. Nor will his employers, they are clearly too focussed on sales targets!