By Leslie Schmidt
Recently at Engage PR, we participated in a social styles training, which sharpened our interpersonal communication skills by improving our versatility with others. For those who are not familiar with the term “social style,” it is defined as a person’s behaviors when interacting with others. A person usually falls into one of the four social style categories: driver, expressive, analytical or amiable.
To give a quick overview of each style’s qualities:
- A “driver” is known to be a decision maker, dominating, results-oriented and efficient. This social style prefers to hear about the “what” and “when” of a situation.
- The “expressive” style tends to be ambitious, enthusiastic and reacting. People who fall under this style like to know the “why.”
- Someone who is “analytical” is usually orderly, serious, critical and persistent. They want to know it all: Who, what, where, when, why, and how.
- An “amiable” is known for their relationship buildings skills. They of course want to know “who.”
Important Lesson #1: Remember who your audience is and adjust accordingly.
What information do you want presented in a message? You may just want the “what” and “when” like most drivers. But, what information do you give in a message? Most likely you give the same information you would want to receive, but that wouldn’t appeal to the other social styles. So what’s the solution? When speaking to your audience, assess what information they are expecting. Don’t offer what you feel comfortable with, but what will make your audience comfortable.
Important Lesson #2: In today's world, two facts have become clear. First, people are interested in what motivates them. And second, people respond better when they know you are communicating for them and not at them.
Each social style has its own motivators, fears and irritations. Knowing these before a conversation can help you address someone specifically, therefore, communicating for them. When adjusting your communication to address each social style you must do three things: Use motivators to influence, proactively address fears and reduce irritations.
For example, a driver is motivated by getting results and keeping the team looking good. They fear losing control and are irritated by time wasters and too much emotion. So, when communicating with a driver, be sure to give them the control, highlight the results that will be achieved and get to the point, with little extra emotion. This will address their needs and you will get the best possible response.
Important Lesson #3: Take advantage of other social styles in your office – Each style compliments the other to build a complete team.
Within the Engage PR office, we found that we have all four social styles roaming around, which is an extreme advantage for us. We now have the ability to look around the room and assess which person has the missing piece to help our situation.
- Work with a driver? Ask them to make a hard decision.
- What about an analytical? Give them something to edit.
- An amiable in PR is great – They can easily build a relationship with the client!
- Know an expressive? Allow them to get creative.
With these lessons, we are now able to better communicate with not only each other, but our clients as well.
