There are five critical characteristics that affect the rate at which a new idea gets adopted broadly in the marketplace. Know the five — and how to address them in your marketing efforts — and you have a powerful key not only for your own success, but also for helping professional conflict management and resolution gain traction broadly. More work for any good mediator means, ultimately, more work for all mediators.

Alan AtKisson, environmental sustainability expert, the powerhouse behind the Sustainable Seattle project, and writer on the “diffusion of innovation,” says this about spreading innovation:

Researchers have discovered that the adoption of an innovation in any given population follows a fairly predictable pattern. An innovation starts with an innovator, often a single individual with a new idea. (”New” here means unknown to the culture, even if the idea is very old.) After its conception, an innovation spreads slowly at first — usually through the work of change agents, who actively promote it — then picks up speed as more and more people adopt it. Eventually it reaches a saturation level, where virtually everyone who is going to adopt the innovation has done so.

AtKisson identifies five critical characteristics for increasing the rate at which a “new” idea — like professional mediation — gets adopted by the mainstream. I’ve described each and how it’s relevant to your mediation marketing.

Characteristic 1: Relative Advantage

An innovation will spread more quickly if it’s perceived as better than the status quo – that is, its advantage relative to the status quo is quite clear in the potential adopter’s mind.

For mediation to gain market traction, the market needs to see it as better in some way than these other common options:

• Doing nothing or handling it yourself. This remains the most widely adopted option in conflict situations in virtually every market.
• Intervention by someone with authority. In commercial and business settings, this might include human resources or senior leadership.
• Litigation. While mediation marketing commonly makes the case for mediation by contrasting it to litigation and the accompanying financial and emotional tolls, only a very small number of business disputes escalate to litigation. The status quo isn’t litigation for most conflict and disputes, including those in the business arena.

Until mediators collectively do a better job of contrasting mediation’s relative advantage over the above “big three” options, adoption rate will rise slowly.

Characteristic 2: Compatibility

To spread, an innovation needs to fit well with people’s existing values, past experiences and present needs.

If you want to increase your ADR marketing success, you need to figure out what your target market values, what problem-solving approaches they already know and use, and explicitly connect your value offer to those.

For instance, if your market values direct dialogue for resolving disputes and preserving the business relationship, they’re apt to be more attracted to a style of mediation that doesn’t rely solely on caucus to negotiate a resolution. If your market distrusts neutrality, then they may be more attracted to working with a negotiation coach who’ll figuratively “step to their side” and advise them, than a professional mediator.

Characteristic 3: Complexity

The easier it is for people to understand and use the innovation, the faster the adoption rate.

This is a particular challenge for mediators. The public still doesn’t really know what mediation is because the term is often used interchangeably with negotiation and arbitration in the media, and because mediation conducted by one mediator can look quite different than mediation conducted by another. The public doesn’t yet know how to find the kind of mediator who will be a good fit for their particular situation and values, and too often assume that one size fits all, sometimes leading to disillusionment with all of mediation. And court-associated mediation carries some of the same procedural and systemic complexity that litigation carries – hardly a way to make mediation simpler to adopt than litigation.

Mediators who de-complexify the process of getting to the mediation table will help diffuse mediation faster. This translates into re-thinking the procedural maze associated with some court-associated ADR. And for mediation outside of the legal arena, it translates into minimizing the hoops mediators require parties to jump through to get to the table.

Characteristic 4: Trialability

If people can try out an innovation in some form, without first having to commit to it all at once, the adoption rate will increase.

Trialability is not an unfamiliar idea if you’ve ever walked by the product sample lady in the supermarket.

The challenge for mediation, of course, is that its confidential nature makes sampling difficult. Videos of roleplays (even unscripted ones), while informative, don’t achieve trialability in the true sense because the viewer knows what they’re watching isn’t fully real. They’re not really sampling; they’re watching someone else sampling.

The answer to this challenge may well be in the time-tested process of networking. Networking, online and in person, allows your market to sample who you are instead of what you do. The most effective networking builds trust and gives your market the opportunity to experience how you think, what you’re like, and how credible you are. It’s a shorter leap to buy your services for a market that already knows and trusts you as a person and as a professional in your field.

Characteristic 5: Observability

If people use an innovation and the good results are visible by others, the innovation will spread more rapidly.

Observability is tricky stuff for people whose product is invisible. Self-promotion by talking about your successes at networking events, on blogs, and via social networking sites doesn’t rise to the level of observability. Credible observability comes from others talking about your work and the good results they achieved because of you.

Add to this challenge the real possibility that consumers of mediation may not really observe that the mediator is helping the dispute or conflict get sorted out. In Daniel Bowling and David Hoffman’s Bringing Peace Into the Room: How the Personal Qualities of the Mediator Impact the Process of Conflict Resolution, Peter Adler describes this small research project:

Several years ago, Kem Lowry of the University of Hawaii Department of Urban and Regional Planning did an analysis of some thirty successfully mediated cases that had been in a program I directed…First Lowry asked the mediators in our cases to explain what they did to bring about success. Then he asked the parties in those same cases what they actually observed the mediators doing. The mediators – myself included – gave elaborate explanations of strategies, timing, and tactics. We identified how we went about conducting our conflict analyses and circumscribing issues to be worked on. We deciphered the breakdowns, breakthroughs, and the windows of opportunity both lost and found. The participants in our cases had a very different view. What they recalled us doing was opening the room, making coffee, and getting everyone introduced.

So how to build credible observability for both the ADR field and for individual mediators? Some ways include:

• Testimonials. Not just any testimonial, but ones in which the writer or speaker explicitly describes what you did that helped.
• Tapping people with courage. Some folks who’ve used mediation won’t discuss it with others, even when they’re happy with the results. It’s the dirty-laundry thing. But the blogging, cell phone generation may have fewer inhibitions. You need to find the people with courage to talk – again, very specifically – about what you did that helped.
• Tapping people affected positively when the parties work things out. If successful observability is about making the good results visible to others, you may have more success getting people who weren’t directly involved in the mediation to talk about the successes. People like HR directors, managers, CEOs, and legal counsel.

To integrate these ideas into your mediation marketing, answer each of these questions for your own practice and use your answers to design your approach:

1. What is the conflict status quo for my particular market and how can I demonstrate to them that my services are a vastly preferable alternative?
2. How do my services speak explicitly to the values, past experiences and present needs of my market, and how will I convey that to my market?
3. How can I make the adoption and use of my services as straightforward and simple as possible and how can I best alert my market about that?
4. What will I do to give members of my market the opportunity to sample me and/or my services?
5. How can I make the good results I’ve had with my clients observable by my prospective clients?

This article was originally printed in the ACR Commercial Section Newsletter, December 2009.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

There’s an old psychology experiment (if someone can recall the source, please remind me, as I can’t find it) demonstrating that specific requests trump general ones. I was reminded of this experiment when I saw an article by the word-of-mouth marketing geniuses at GasPedal. In In “How to Get Your Fans to Take Action,” they say,

A large fan base is nice, but it’s when you get them to take action that it really pays off. Here’s how:

1> Be specific
2> Make it easy
3> Acknowledge them

1> Be specific
Get fans moving by giving them something specific to act on. Rather than asking for general support, ask for specific things like reviews, volunteers, testimonials, feedback on a new product, donation amounts — whatever. By keeping your requests specific, your fans will know exactly how you need help.

2> Make it easy
People are busy — and while they would love to help you, they don’t always have the time to join in complicated campaigns on your behalf. Make things simpler by removing unnecessary steps, giving them links to where they need to go, and outlining specific instructions on whatever you’re asking. The easier you can make the process, the more likely fans are to participate.

3> Acknowledge them
When a fan shows their support for you, make a big deal about it. Thank them, acknowledge them in front of other fans, and highlight the results of their efforts. Sooner or later, you’re going to be asking your fans to take action again — make it easier next time by showing everyone how much fan support means to your business.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

My immediate reaction was, “Now this is simply smart marketing.”

The guides’ author is Stuart Baker, a Cape Cod-based mediator and builder who helps property owners, construction professionals and architects sort out the kinds of quagmires any of us who’ve ever built a house or done a major renovation know well. Stuart combines almost 30 years of construction experience as founder and owner of Creative Contractors Corp. with ten years as a mediator / negotiator, and several years as an addictions counselor, community organizer and local community project coordinator. His site, Conscious Cooperation, is a well-designed, straightforward resource and his new guides are now featured prominently on it.

The two short guides offer wisdom for setting up a constructive (ha!) working relationship associated with a building project, how to communicate effectively, and what to do if conflict brews. For example, the Property Owner’s Guide cautions,

7. EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED: Address work changes and surprises.

• Work changes should be written out and if at all possible estimated beforehand.
• A good rule of thumb is that the actual cost of a work change order will be held within 20% of the estimate unless unforeseeable things emerge.
• The contractor should agree to make every effort to notify the owners of unexpected situations, particularly in remodeling. It is impossible to always foresee everything, and there may be additional costs. Trust is important here.
• Address dealing with dust protection and cleanup.

I liked Stuart’s smart marketing idea so much I asked him to tell me a little bit about his intentions with the guides and how they’ve been received.

I have found that the intention to cooperate and be committed to mutual success is really powerful and can open very unexpected doors of harmony, effectiveness and enjoyment related to any project. This is part of what I urge people to put good attention to. I ask them how do they feel when they know someone is holding them in this fashion, and wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to do that reciprocally.

With the two guides my intention is to reach “both sides” of the construction relationship equation, both property owners and contractors, hopefully before they even have a contract. The Guides can actually be used, too, to help both “sides” screen each other.

My overall intention is to help people set a great beginning and framework for successful continuation and completion of any project. As you and I know, the human relations are so important, and in this realm I think
they are often given so little attention. Then people wonder what went wrong! I want people to bring out underlying themes, hopes, fears, concerns, excitement. I want to bring out the agendas and have clarity, forthrightness and hopefully honesty between people.

He tells me the guides have been very well received. No surprise there. You can get your own copy of the guides from Stuart’s site.

Thanks, Stuart, for your willingness to let me share your great marketing idea.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

“I often went fishing up in Maine during the summer. Personally I am very fond of strawberries and cream, but I have found that for some strange reason, fish prefer worms. So when I went fishing, I didn’t think about what I wanted. I thought about what they wanted. I didn’t bait the hook with strawberries and cream. Rather, I dangled a worm or grasshopper in front of the fish and said: ‘Wouldn’t you like to have that?’

“Why not use the same common sense when fishing for people?”

Love that story. Hat tip to my friend Cindy for reminding me of that one, long forgotten to me.

Announcing “quick calls”

You may be interested in my new Quick Calls weekly office hours, announced last week over at my Conflict Zen blog. You’re welcome to make use of them as well.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

These are the questions they’re asking themselves as they rummage about on the ‘net:

• Does she know her stuff?
• Can I trust him to get it done right?
• Why should I hire her instead of the mediator down the street?
• How can he help my clients and/or me?
• What would working with her be like?
• Does he offer something that I believe is a compelling solution to my problem?

For many mediators, these are the answers you’re providing online and off:

• Images of suits at boardroom tables, the scales of justice, handshakes, doves.
• FAQs about mediation, with the same answers as many other mediator websites.
• A photo of yourself in front of your legal library’s bookshelves, perhaps with your attorney colleagues around you.
• A boardroom like all others.
• An introductory session like all others.
• Print materials that are professional but generally boring and indistinguishable from the ADR provider next door.

Collectively, these answers are ineffective in a world where “cookie cutter” just doesn’t cut it anymore.

Why Differentiation Matters

If you’re already established and bringing in all the clients you want, you’re not reading this article. You already had a toehold before competition got tough or you had such an entre into your market that you could be mediating from the moon and people would still seek you out. I’m not writing this for you.

I’m writing it for the other 95% of mediators out there.

To stand out to your prospective clients, you need to be remarkable, not average. You need to convey your fit with their specific needs, not be interchangeable with other commercial providers. You need to convey that your practice is vibrant and in demand, not boring or tired.

What does it take to stand out, to be remarkable, to be unique in what you do and/or how you do it?

Here are five actions you can take in the next 60 days to build a differentiated platform for your practice. Some are concrete actions, and some are reflective work. You’ll need to do both, because each feeds the other.

You’ll notice none of them involve building or re-building your website. That comes later because the outcomes of the exercises will guide website design, function and content.

1. Stop Running From Your Current Job

To market effectively, you need to be running toward your dream, not just away from your nightmare. Running from your present situation supplies only the desire to get away – to almost anything that will give you some relief. That’s not a great foundation for marketing, which benefits greatly from genuine passion.

When mediators tell me they want to build a private practice or prove the mettle of a mediation division within a firm, I always ask: Why ADR? With painful frequency the answer is some version of, I’m disillusioned/unhappy/tired of what I’m doing now.

I live for the days mediators say to me, I’m so excited about the potential that ADR offers that I can’t stand waiting another day for my market to see that too.

Action 1: Figure whether you’re running primarily away or toward. Be nakedly honest with yourself. If you’re running away, all is not lost. Your task is to get very clear on what you would love to run toward – paint a picture in detail, figuratively or literally. Maybe it is commercial ADR. Maybe it’s piloting commercial jets.

2. Take Off the Mask

Differentiation is, in no small part, about risk. The risk to be who you really are and show that face to your market. It’s the risk to set yourself apart in a remarkable way, instead of blending in with the crowd. And in the mediation world, it sure is a growing crowd.

When it comes time to write marketing copy, build or re-build your website, and put yourself in front of your market, you want no cognitive dissonance between who you really are and who they see, or between who they see and what your marketing says about you. You want consonance and differentiation, in tandem.

Action 2: Who are you, really? If you could relax and let your good quirks shine through, what would people see? If you took off the professional mask you think you have to wear and let your market see you in your glory, what would they see? When you’re most happy, who are you and how do you act?

3. Pick Up the Paintbrush

This is about getting very clear on your market. Your market is not everyone, even though everyone has disputes. Repeat after me: My market is not everyone. When you market to everyone, the old saying goes, you market to no one.

Your market is looking for glimpses of themselves in your marketing. They’ll look ‘til they find the person who’ll give it to them, or they’ll walk away and find another way to resolve their dispute.

Be the commercial mediator for the construction trade. Or NASCAR fans who own mid-sized businesses. Or tech startups in Silicon Valley. You can add more markets later if you wish, but understand this: Narrowing your market usually means more business, not less, because your reputation as the go-to person in that market creates word-of-mouth momentum.

Action 3: Paint a picture of the people in your market, using words or images. What do they do? Where do they live and/or work? What do they spend money on? How do they dress? Where do they hang out? What do they do in their spare time? What kinds of values do they hold deeply? What causes do they support? Do you like them as humans (please say yes or pick a different market – it’ll show)?

4. Write a Classified Ad

You’ve heard of the elevator pitch. This is like that but you get fewer words. Your market is busy, overwhelmed by information, and wants you to cut to the chase.

If you were to write a classified ad for your market, telling them who you’re seeking and conveying a few important tidbits about the real you, what would you write? Here’s an example to get you started:

Conflict makeover artist seeks high-achieving mediators who want to transform their reactions to conflict. Whiners need not apply; this is strictly for internal-locus-of-control ADR providers who want to boost their own and their clients’ success. Are you a conflict junkie or conflict doormat? Tammy will teach you how to transform your reactions in conflict and be the mediator you know you can be.

Action 4: You have 75 words max. Write the ad. It’s not about using it; it’s about the clarity you’ll get from the act of writing and limiting your verbiage.

5. Take Your Market to Lunch

Market research matters, and I suspect very few ADR providers actually do it. Market research helps you answer necessary questions like:

1. How many people are there in my chosen market?
2. Who is my competition and how do I stand apart from them?
3. How do they solve problems now?
4. Would my market buy what I’m selling? If not, why not, and how would that change the services I offer?

The Internet, the Yellow Pages, your local library, and your local Small Business Development Center (sponsored by the SBA) can help with the first two questions. But there’s no substitute for talking to people in your market if you want to answer the last two.

Those last are two of the most important answers you need. And the questions most of you will skip. Too much trouble? Afraid of the answers and the implications for your dream? Too vague about your target market to know how to find them? Too uncomfortable approaching them?

All legitimate fears and discomforts. But here’s the rub: If you don’t do your research, you’re building a business based on a hunch. That’s a pretty expensive hunch, and one that hasn’t paid handsomely for most mediators.

Action 5: Invite five people in your target market to lunch together. If you know your market really well, you’ll know the kind of place they’ll enjoy eating. The trade is this: They get a fabulous, fun, extended lunch with no obligations beyond that, and you get to be a sponge with lots of questions. Be sure you get answers to numbers 3 and 4 above. After the first lunch, rinse and repeat.

The Return on Your Investment

When I look at mediators who make it in the current business and ADR environment and those who don’t, the differentiation is clear.

• Those with clarity about their market shine.
• Those with clarity about what differentiates them are remarkable – and their markets notice, too.
• Those who set aside their fears and reach out to their market for the unvarnished truth learn what will work and not work. Then they translate that information into practice.
• Those who set a solid foundation by working through the hard questions have the best marketing materials, websites, and advertising.

If you take all five of the actions I’m recommending, you’ll spend eight hours over 60 days. That’s one hour per week. If you’re running toward your passion instead of away from your disillusionment, you can find that one hour and it will pay satisfying dividends.

This article was originally printed in the ACR Commercial Section Newsletter, September 2009.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

There are times I do use PowerPoint, but I’m judicious about it and always keep Garr Reynolds’ wisdom in my mind. And the following tongue-in-cheek wisdom, too. It’s an oldie but goodie. Enjoy the chuckle!

[Can't view the embedded video in your email? Click here to view it online.]

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

I promised the audience some follow-up links based on our conversation about marketing mediation, and thought I’d share them with everyone.

Articles related to my keynote comments

• Marketing mediation from your strengths
• How a narrow target audience broadens chances for success
• Mediation in the mainstream: 5 successful strategies for spreading innovation
• Your ADR marketing strategy: Avoiding the opt and dropped trap
• All aflitter about twitter: Answers to your social media questions

Getting the most out of MakingMediationYourDayJob.com

• Subscribe to receive future articles automatically (no charge)
• Find past articles that are most relevant to you

I also promised you all a link to my self-paced, online course for mediators and other ADR professionals: Making Mediation Your Day Job course. As I mentioned, I’m closing new enrollments (for now) after this weekend, so if you’re interested, this is the time to take action.

Thanks for having me with you today and my very best to you,

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

ADR is a word-of-mouth business and one way you can boost your own efforts is to encourage satisfied clients to sing your praises to others. To get results, remember these two important factors:

1. You’ve got ask them for the favor. Don’t assume that satisfied clients will automatically mention you to others with similar needs.

2. And you need to make it easy for them to act on your request. If it’s a testimonial you seek, for instance, give them the questions you’d like them to address in their testimonial, give them a print or online form, and make it so concise an activity they can do it in 5 minutes or less.

Web Worker Daily has a short, excellent primer on the features of an effective testimonial, how to ask for them, and how to use them most effectively. Here’s a taste:

What makes a great testimonial? They give details, cut out the sugar and help answer prospects’ objections.

1. Specific. Good testimonials don’t stop at “They did a great job” or “The product made a difference in my life.” They explain why the service did a good job or how the product made a difference.
2. Believable. Sugary and fake-sounding testimonials tend to lead to mistrust. To make a testimonial sound as credible as possible, include details like full name, business name, web address of the business and a photo. Video testimonials add more credibility. After all, would you give a fake video testimonial?
3. Answers common concerns. When prospects consider your product or service, what barriers stand in the way of their buying from you? Testimonial that erase potential objections are incredibly useful.

Read more good advice at How to Get Good Testimonials.

Earlybird discount for conflict resolution seminar

The earlybird discount for my November 5 conflict resolution seminar, Achieve Your Conflict Zen, ends on October 4. I have a few spaces left and always welcome mediators who want to learn more about keeping their own cool and balance in the face of client conflict or about helping their clients manage their emotions better. This fall’s seminar takes place in a lovely retreat setting at a private New Hampshire Inn, with our lakeside cottage meeting space overlooking Mount Monadnock.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

Do you wonder how to reach your ideal market and really engage their interest in what you’re offering?

These are two of the most frequent questions other mediators ask me. I’ve answered in my book, Making Mediation Your Day Job. I’ve offered additional strategies here on the blog. And I’ve answered in teleseminars and short workshops around the country.

But there are two problems: It’s not all in a single place so you can follow all I want to share, step by step. And I’m not available to give you one-on-one feedback and answer your questions after you get started.

Well, I’ve just corrected those problems. “Just” being a relative word, since I’ve been working on this for the last three months.

And today, I’m opening my new Making Mediation Your Day Job Course, the only course of its kind, to fellow ADR providers all over the world.

It’s online, so you can access it anywhere you can get an Internet connection.

It’s self-paced, so you can complete it at whatever speed fits into your life.

It’s step-by-step, so you don’t have to guess anymore what things you need to do first.

It’s light years less expensive than my one-on-one biz coaching, so you can rest assured it’s affordable even in tough economic times.

It’s a lifetime membership, so you get not just what’s there now, but also everything I add in the future. Without getting billed over and over and over as the months go by.

And I’ll be there with you, all along the way, answering your questions, joining you for conversation in the discussion forum and in monthly member-only telephone calls. I’m creating a community of learning for mediators and I’m bursting with anticipation of the kinds of fantastic conversations we’ll have there about building business, mastering the craft and contributing to the growth of the ADR field.

But there is one thing you should know right now. When the limited number of spaces I’ve set aside are full, I’ll close the course to new members for an indefinite period. I want to keep the course manageable so those of you who take advantage of it to jumpstart your ADR practices can get the best of me. I’ve taught online for almost a decade and know how many is too many to do right by you.

So head on over to the Making Mediation Your Day Job Course and check out all the material we’re going to cover and how to be part of the inaugural group!

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.

• What it takes to make mediation a real demand in the marketplace?
• How to stop spinning your wheels and start making a living as a mediator, conflict coach or other ADR professional?
• Which marketing activities are worth your time and money and which ones are like throwing away your precious time and money?
• How to know what your market really wants and would gladly pay money to get?
• Where to start building a simple, successful marketing strategy that fits with who you are?
• How to make yourself stand out in the crowd of other professionals without being sales-y and slick?
• How to leverage the power of the ‘net and create a vibrant web presence without a single geek gene in your body?

In just a little over a week, I’ll be launching something pretty special that I’ve been working on for months. I’ll show you how to do these things…and much, much more.

If you’ve read my book and wanted even more, I’m going to give it to you. If you’ve wanted to work with me one-on-one but couldn’t swing the time or finances, I’m going to make it easier for you. If you’re one of the many folks who’ve emailed me in recent months, looking for ADR business and career advice, I’m going to put all my answers in one place. If you’ve asked me how to get a proper website in place and who to trust, I’m going to tell you exactly how.

September 20. My folks were married on September 20. Seems like an auspicious date to me.

Making Mediation Your Day Job by Tammy Lenski is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Based on a work at MakingMediationYourDayJob.com.