The power of analogies
Using language to build a bridge between tech and client
I love analogies. Ask anyone who knows me moderately well or has worked alongside me — colleagues and clients. Analogies are like power smoothies. Instead of having to endeavor the effort of peeling a banana, coring an apple and hulling some nuts, you get to absorb all the nutrients, and taste, in a way that is time efficient, valuable and leaves you feeling empowered. Analogy-ception. You get the point.
They allow people to understand concepts in a frame of reference that is relatable. When addressing complex topics which might involve jargon and technicalities that might sit beyond a person’s knowledge base, a good analogy provides a visual analogue that can help make these ideas easier to digest.
That’s why analogies have become a go-to at TouchFoundry. So often, when leveling with clients in meetings and presentations or users in our test labs, we’ve drawn insights that reach beyond their knowledge of the topic, and so, we have to reassess our own understanding, turn it into a bridge between us and client so that we can show them what we’ve learnt, and how that information is going to solve their problems.
With the help of a solid analogy, we’re able to communicate issues in a way that holds real meaning to our clients, leveling the playing field so that they can contribute to an educated decision, or direction on a way forward. Our clients’ insights and decisive actions are invaluable — that’s why it’s important to make sure they really understand the meat and bones of all the variables at play. Like de-jargoning some legalise to a contractor, all information presented needs to exist beyond layman’s terms, better yet, terms that clients are accustomed to processing.
One of the most powerful methods of communication is if the presenter is able to assume a character in the nearest vertical to the recipient. Adjust your language out of the box you’ve been working in, and think in the language of your client. Everyone has their own character, constitution, and way of processing information — empathise and construct your analogy based on a personally tailored understanding. Based on personality types, which we are huge fans of here at TouchFoundry, (read why we hire based on personality type in an upcoming article), some are best accustomed to processing information audibly; while others in written text; some visually in imagery and spatial relationships, and others in data and collections of statements.
Analogies fill the best of all worlds — drawing on analogies allow visually orientated humans to paint a proverbial picture of a concept in their minds giving them all they need to draw their own parallels. It allows analytical and data-centric minds to process the operational touchpoints of the actors in an analogical scene, thus completing the loop of the referencing process. It allows everyone to understand, because whether you like it or not, we all grew up on stories. Not pictures or data or books — our first reference to the world, before we could walk or talk, was in our imaginations, our minds eye, and that’s why analogies always speak so close to home.
Next time you’re trying to simplify a complexity to a colleague, or trying to get a friend to relate to your point of view, or maybe you’re brave enough to try this on your partner — use an analogy — assess the outcome, you might be pleasantly surprised :)
