16 things communicators dread hearing

One drawback to working in communications is the inevitable deluge of requests.

Pleas for assistance come from all directions, at all hours. They are inevitably “urgent” and must be turned around ASAP.

You can just whip up that PowerPoint slideshow, write that speech and create a neat flyer, right? Can’t we just create an app?

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If you’re a communicator, you know the hassle of being besieged by asinine, unreasonable requests. Here are 16 that might sound painfully familiar:

• “What we need is a communications plan.” (Good call, chief.)
• “Your communications team isn’t ‘strategic’ enough.” (Then again, your strategists don’t communicate.)
• “We need a Facebook page for this!” (A post, maybe?)
• “We need an app!” (Uhhh, probably not.)
• “We need a video!” (Oh, definitely not.)
• “What we need is a ‘hearts and minds’ campaign.” (“Hearts and minds”? Have you ever met our Board of Directors?)
• “Our intranet is rubbish.” (Your participation, attitude and contributions make up several mounds thereof.)
• “We really need this on the website homepage.” (Feel free to put your walk-a-thon pictures elsewhere, thank you.)
• “You really need to be in this meeting!” (Sorry, I’ve got my hands full making our communications team “strategic.”)
• “I’ve designed this leaflet. Can you just send it out, please?” (Did your child make this? No.)
• “Could you promote this <insert ancillary pet project> on Facebook?” (Seems like a perfect fit for your own personal page.)
• “We need a logo for this new project.” (How about a hand giving the thumbs-down?)
• “We have organized a competition with a local school to create a logo.” (Then I’ll be taking a sick day/week/month.)
• “Our communication is too reactive.” (OK, let me get my Magic 8-Ball.)
• “We need to ‘shout about ourselves’ more.” (Yes, that’s what readers truly crave.)
• “We really need you to promote our event!” (Oh, it’s happening at 4 p.m. today? Let me see what I have lying around in my magic communications workshop…)

Do any of these ring a bell? What are your most common requests and gripes? Feel free to vent in the comments.

Darren Caveney is creator of comms2point0 and owner of creative communicators ltd. A version of this post first appeared on comms2point0.

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