One of my clients tells me they are sold on using Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) in their marketing campaigns. Here’s an easy way to look at this idea: you craft marketing messages taking into account the theory that people are pre-disposed to respond positively to certain types of language and words. 

In NLP-speak, people are classified as being primarily Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic. I’ll illustrate each type.

• Visual: Visual people get all wide-eyed over phrases like “You can clearly see,” “Picture this scenario”  or “A glowing review.”
• Auditory: Auditory people are in perfect harmony when someone tells them: “I hear you loud and clear.” 
• Kinesthetic: Kinesthetics get all warm and fuzzy when they can “get their arms around” the language. They like to “massage” data to get a “feel” for it.

An Example

Here’s three different ways to describe a house. Each appeals to a different type of person:

• This house is picturesque in appearance and offers spectacular views from all rooms. You have to see it to believe it.
• This house calls to you in subtle and quiet ways, a perfect harmony of form and function. You can quickly tell it has been well cared for.
• This house is not only solidly constructed of exquisite materials, but has a special feel to it as well. Its warmth is conveyed through many unique touches.

Which description appeals most to you? Are you a Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic?

Does This Stuff Work?

NLP has been around a long time in education, business, psychology and elsewhere. A lot of self-help gurus preach it. Its principles are applied to influence, train, motivate, evaluate and counsel people. You can spot NLP techniques in face-to-face meetings, telemarketing, therapy sessions, selling situations and any other scenario where there’s an NLP advocate behind it.

One issue with using NLP in writing is that you typically don’t know if your audience is made up of Visuals, Auditories or Kinesthetics — most likely it’s a combination of all three. How do you know which type to appeal to? 

You have to reach out to all three types very early on in your message (see opening paragraph above), then continue to mix it up throughout. If you’re not careful, your language will spin out of control.

My client looks at every piece I write for them to judge if there’s enough VAK in it (Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic). If not, I hear about it. We’ve tested the same campaign two different ways: VAK and No VAK. The VAK got a better response. It wasn’t a scientific study. At the same time, their business is trending up over the past six months. 

Can their revenue lift all be attributed to this Neuro-Linguistic charm? I’d say it’s a piece of the puzzle. They also know how to articulate their value proposition, invest in marketing and keep their sales people sharp. Their Vice President of Sales, a real veteran with a long record of success, closes all his phone calls by saying, “Bye now.” 

But what does he really mean? “Buy now.” That’s an embedded command — another branch of NLP altogether.