#casual/informal/conversational way of speaking you get a lot more of in stuff like comedy than in other latin literature -- i wouldn't be

[fluentisonus]

@pilferingapples sure!! so in latin hercle is a short version of the interjection hercule (sometimes mehercule), which means "by Hercules!" -- hercule is pretty common & you get it all over the place from different authors (Cicero for example uses it A Lot), however hercle is something I at least (<- comedy enjoyer so grain of salt) really associate with roman comedy & that sort of 'style' of speaking, it's very characteristic of it & shows up as an exclamation/swear similar to this ^ almost constantly in the dialogue there (i think it gets used like more than 600 times across various plays iirc), and to my knowledge the majority of the examples we have of hercle being used in latin in general are from Plautus & Terence (the two main roman comedians that survive) -- hence why i was joking about Bahorel having gotten it from roman comedy & him mimicking that particular style & tone of speaking here haha

yayyy hercle....... bahorel latin comedy enjoyer Real

[peakyblindersbitch]

Babble

Synopsis: Alfie starts dating a young woman and discovers that she too has her share of secrets.

Pairing: Modern!Alfie x Reader

Warnings: mentions of sex

Gif Credit: Google

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“So you’re a baker, that’s amazing! I’d love to stop by your bakery sometime, if you’re alright with that.” I say with a smile as I sit across from the older gentleman, Alfred with a glass of wine in hand.

“Yea, I am darlin. Its quite fulfillin, doin what I love all day. And I’d love for you to taste some of my pastries, right. We’ve got all sorts of stuff.” He responds, leaning back to let the waiter set the steaming plates of pasta down on the linen covered table.

“That sounds wonderful Alfie- It is alright if I call you that right?” I ask the man and he nods in response. “I’ll have to plan to do that one day. It’s so great that you have a business doing what you love. I’ve always imagined quitting work to become an artist but I guess I’ve never had the guts to do it, you know?“

“Yea, I get it pet. I’d love to see some of your art. Do you paint?” He asks, taking a sip of the red wine in front of him.

“Yes, I do. I’m not sure if I’m any good but you’re welcome to come by one day and take a look Alfie.” I smile before taking a bite of my meal

“How long have you been here, in London. You’ve still got quite an accent, yea?” He remarks and I answer him with a soft smile.

“A year and eight months. Moved in last May, I’m from New York City, so it wasn’t too hard to adjust, being busy and all. But I love it here, everyone is so kind and welcoming.”

“Right, it’s quite nice here. What did you say you did professionally?” He inquires with a tentative smile.

“Oh, I’m a lawyer, mostly family stuff, divorces and such. I’ve found some good work here, lots of custody battles. I suppose it does show the dark side of the city.” I recall the dozens of cases I’ve already assisted in.

The back and forth small talk goes on for the entirety of the meal, and at the end of the night Alfie sees me back to my home, a humble single story cottage surrounded by a garden.

“Thank you Alfie, I had a wonderful night. I do hope we can do this again sometime.” I lean in for a hug and deliver a soft peck on his cheek, just above his beard.

“Goodnight darlin, I’ll see you soon.” He returns the kiss and after only a moment is on his way. I turn on my heels and enter my home, shuttling the heavy door behind me and climbing the dark oak wood stairs. I make my way to Brooklyn’s nursery, where I find her babysitter reading her a curious George book. I tap my knuckles on the door and my daughter’s eyes shoot up, and she breaks free from Laura’s lap before crawling over to me. I scoop her up and give her a kiss to her forehead.

“How was my baby? Did you miss mommy? Mommy missed you so much baby! “ I squeeze the baby girl in my arms and Laura smiles, standing from her position on the plush carpet. She’s only eighteen but Brooklyn loves her so much. I hand the girl a few bills and wish her a good night as I put Brooklyn in her crib. After a few minutes she drifts off to sleep, and after locking up and changing into some comfy pajamas, I too fall asleep.

I don’t hear from Alfie for another few days, just when I’ve began to think he’s forgotten about me. He gives me a call at about dinner time, when I’ve just fed Brooklyn and had begun cleaning up the dishes. I answer the phone with a somewhat annoyed tone, due to the timing of the call.

“Hello.” I hold the phone between my ear and shoulder as I place the dishes in the sink.

“Hello, this is Alfie, the gentleman from the other night. I was thinkin about you all week, maybe you’d like to go on another date?” He asks confidently and I instantly ease at his voice.

“Alfie! I’d begun to think you’d forgotten about me. That sounds wonderful to me.” I walk over to the high chair and pick her up so she can go play for a few moments while I talk on the phone. Alfie and I plan out a date for the following Saturday, a trip to the movies.

I spend the week in anticipation, fretting over what I will wear and how I will do my hair. As I worry about my date I begin to feel anxious about telling him about Brooklyn. I’d begun to develop feelings for this man, and how would I tell him that I have an almost two and a half year old daughter. Surely that wouldn’t go over very well, at best he would just cut off contact and never call again. Finally, Saturday comes, and I’m ready twenty minutes ahead of schedule. I’ve decided that I’ll tell him on the fourth date. Instead of having sex like most normal people might do, I’ve planned to tell him about my daughter, if he hasn’t already found out about her by then.

He picks me up in front of my home and I eagerly greet him at the door. This time he is dressed more casually, in jeans and a T-shirt. “Alfie, it’s great to see you again.” I greet him with a hug and he returns the embrace.

“You look wonderful darlin, even more beautiful than I remembered. Let’s get movin, movie starts in half an hour and I want good seats.” He says, nearly dragging me to the car. He’s parked across the street and he helps me into the coupe. As we drive we converse about our weeks and work mostly, but begin to speak about our personal lives. He mentions his abusive ex wife quite light heartedly and his success in his bakery. I speak of my ex husband, Brooklyn’s father, who had left me for a man, and my latest artworks. We both get good laughs out of our stories and before long, we’ve arrived at the theater. Alfie opens the car door for me and helps me out, although I can tell the movement is somewhat painful for him. Although he’s no older than 45 he walks with a cane, and has trouble on long flights of stairs, which I quickly learn. I thank him gratefully and we enter the theater.

After deciding on a comedy film we enter the dark theater and although the previews have begun there is not another person in the theater. “So it’s that bad? Nobody else is watching it? Great taste Alfie.” I tease and he fakes offense.

“Excuse me? I have wonderful taste, thank you. And for your information I bought the tickets ahead of time. So we’d have the theater to ourselves.” He admits. I nearly gasp in shock, only a second date and he’s already being so romantic.

“Alfie! I can’t imagine what that must have cost.” I say in shock as we sit down in the very center.

“Not too much, a few hundred dollars.” He says as he sets the popcorn between us two. The previews continue for what feels like an eternity, and we once gain find ourselves deep in conversation.

Just like the last date, it ends on a wonderful note. This time he takes his time as he leaves, and promises to talk soon. Once again I step inside my home and put my daughter to bed. I go to sleep dreaming about how wonderful Alfie Solomons is.

Over the next three months we go on six more dates, and I find that I still haven’t told him my secret. One afternoon he drops in for a surprise lunch, with a picnic basket in hand. My hair is a mess and I’m running after Brooklyn, who has managed to get candy all over her face and hair. At the sound of the doorbell she yells and runs through the living room, watching as I open the door. To my surprise, Alfie stands there.

“Alfie! I don’t recall us having plans today!” I exclaim, embarrassed about my current state.

“Just figured I’d stop in. Babysitting, are you?” He asks, amused, watching the little girl behind me smear her sticky hands onto the couches. I humility look down and open the door whisper for him to enter.

“Not exactly. There’s something I never really told you. Remember the fella who left me for another man? We were only together for a few months but we had a baby together. I was just so afraid you wouldn’t call me again if you knew, I’m sorry Alfie.” I admit guiltily and he chuckles in response.

“Hey, it’s alright. No need to be nervous. I love kiddos. Never was able to have my own, so it’s nice you have one. What’s her name?” He asks, stepping aside so I can shut the door behind him.

“Brooklyn.” I say and her eyes flicker up to us. She ways up to him and wipes her sifth hands on his jeans before shrieking and running down the hallway. He stands next to me and watches the girl run.

“She sure is... energetic.” He remarks and I can only chuckle in response.

“That’s the nice way of saying she’s a fucking handful, I’ve heard that a million times. Terrible two’s are a real thing Alfie, not just made up.” I begin to walk after her so she doesn’t fall and hit herself on the hardwood flooring. When she finally runs back to the living room, Alfie is sat down on the couch looking at all the picture of her hung on the wall.

“Your house is a shrine, I swear.” He jokes as he peers around each wall, containing at least half a dozen pictures of me and Brooklyn together.

“When it’s just us two, I can spend all my time focused on her. I would say a baby picture is better than a dog’s picture.” I comment with a smirk, referring to the photographs of Cyril that Alfie has hanging in his home. He clicks his tongue and nods in agreement.

Brooklyn begins to cautiously make her way over to him, patting his crossed legs and setting a toy monkey on his lap. “I think she wants to play Alfie.” I watch as he sits on the carpet and plays with her, and I feel so thankful that this went so well. Not only does he love kids, she loves him. I couldn’t think of a more perfect date.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

[spidersanctuary]

A disordered venting about RP problems:

My experience RPing with Tumblr RPing is not very extensive - goes back about five years, I think. Before that, I RPd a bit, much earlier, but for the most part the only RPing I've done is on Tumblr (and Skype, but as an extension of Tumblr RPing).

I don't like bouncing around. I tend to stick with a place that looks legit, get attached to the characters (mine and others') and stick it out, even sometimes unreasonably so. I've been in... basically three group RPs. Two of them were larger (let's say, defined as "more than around ten active players at any given time", and the third was smaller and purely reactionary, a-la "we don't like the way things are here so we'll make our own". Though not without problems (and I can't say I didn't have my part in them), it was the most drama-free as a whole. It also looks like the fourth, soon to come, might follow along the same pattern.

Despite my sample size of one, I'm confident in saying small groups have a different dynamic. Especially if they're founded by people who already know each other. Bigger groups are trickier, in many ways, and I was struck by the realisation that the different problems I encountered in both my bigger groups were representative of two ends of a spectrum.  Similar things going wrong in opposite ways, so to speak.

One of them was defined by lack of forethought and planning. Indeed the whole RP just kind of happened organically, something more serious growing out of something very silly and casual. While it had its fun sides - and it was wildly fun, at times, for as long as the fun lasted - it's also obvious in retrospect how that could be a huge problem. Different players. No standardised rules or guidelines until way, waaay later in the game (after much drama had already happened). Lots of different people with different RPing backgrounds and personalities and playstyles, none of them fully on the same page. While many of the problems had to do with one or two difficult personalities in the group, that's not really the isuse. There is always a risk of... unpleasant people, no RP group is safe from them and no RP guidelines will truly protect you from someone who WANTS to start shit or manipulate things to their benefit and is cunning enough to do that. But even aside from that... the lack of regulation about who could grab what characters and how many (some players ending up with 20+ blogs), or any kind of spoken agreement about activity guidelines and replying etiquette. Lack of agreement about how "canon" certain plots were, in the RPing continuity. Lack of agreement about the continuity, period. A clash between people who wanted to develop a certain pre-planned (and rather exclusive) storyline and those who were more in it for spontaneity. It was a recipe for disaster. It didn't need to get as bad as it did, but starting off like that, it was bound to get unpleasant eventually anyway.

Now, the other group... oh, the other group. After the colourful experience of the first group, the things it offered seemed like a reassuring breath of fresh air. Planning! An almost DnD-esque level of detail to the established universe, rulebook, bestiary and lore! Basically an entire little sandbox lovingly crafted for you to play in. Transparent activity guidelines and rules! An actual mod team working to be approachable while still holding authority! New plots for everyone to participate in to be released basically by the clock, so nobody would feel left out! So lovely! Unfortunately, things are rarely as sunny as they appear. A certain type of literate, application RPs is infamous for their snobbishness and elitism, and despite the initially welcoming tone, that was exactly what this unravelled to be. On the flip side, many of the appeals of the group amounted to little more than elaborate publicity acts. Always, always must the group remain attractive and desirable to newcomers (perhaps unsurprisingly given the apparently abysmal player retention rates, both short and long-term). The tone turned out very different from what was advertised, the sandbox-like universe revealing itself to be more of a literal sandbox, with complex topics turned into gimmicks, and supernatural characters (prosecuted and feared for their in-humanity) easily and casually sharing information about their powers with near-strangers like kids on a playground comparing their toys. The "plots" thrown one's way are not only usually poorly (if at all) developed but intrusive, so that they are impossible to avoid completely even if one is not interested in them. Worse yet, the RP insists on doling out serious consequences and high-stakes crises like death, destruction, invasions of murderous monsters or malignant town-wide spells, but is curiously reluctant to allow any room for serious RPing or sense of consequences.

In fact, it's impossible to talk about consequences when even a sense of any basic continuity is thrown out the window, precluded by the occasional hiatus and re-launch and the various measures taken to make sure that new players enter onto a relatively blank slate. Yes, even if long-time residents of the area and the populace in general SHOULD remember and be affected by that politically motivated massacre half a year back, or that time monstrous vegetables SLAUGHTERED half a school of elementary schoolchildren. Thus, even though the RP is long-running (turning two years old soon), it is impossible for the setting to develop any sense of history, and instead it seems to turn more and more comically nonsensical the more tragedies befall the town and are promptly forgotten a few weeks later. Rather than a serious and in-depth setting, one begins to feel instead as if all the characters are living in a Lotus Eater-like state of vague oblivion, briefly reacting to various events but never quite letting them reach collective memory.

Now, all this might be bearable (and even fun! There's an appeal in a certain kind of wacky no-strings-attached horror-comedy-gore, no denying that), IF a couple things weren't true. a) If the RP (and specifically the mod team) didn't make such a huge deal about what a serious and respectable and serious RP it is. No OCs allowed. "We allow shipping but we don't put an emphasis on it! Please don't think this is one of those silly ship-obsessed RPs". No more than two characters allowed. Replies MUST happen every x days, and even though replies of various kinds are accepted (all prose, just different formats and individual reply lengths), only CERTAIN kinds count towards the activity requirement (???!), and a long-term failure to keep it up will end up in you getting the boot. Even if you ARE active and involved with other people and interact a lot. (Don't even get me started on that. I and about three or four other people, most of whom LEFT shortly after, ended up having our plots disrupted SIGNIFICANTLY because the mods booted - or in this case harangued into throwing in the towel and leaving in a huff - a player who was active with all of us, but wasn't active enough in "the RIGHT way" i.e. the right format. This was part of a bigger package of them caring more about keeping up certain pretenses and ticking off certain boxes to be more outwardly desirable to new applicants than the fun of the users who were already there.) b) The nit-picking. Oh god the nitpicking and micromanagement. Some of the shit I've personally seen, some of it I've heard about. It's one thing to crit a player for not being IC with a mod pre-made character. It's another thing to do that after they've been in play for A YEAR, and if you do that then, you're being blatantly disrespectful of all the development the player's put into them. And it's yet another thing to do that to someone's OC (before the 'no OCs' rule was instated). I've had mods dictate to me that my character shouldn't be reacting to x event like this or that, by listing a bunch of factors that, while possibly convincing, were only ONE possible way to interpret the big picture. For real. Psychology is complicated but for some reason all that goes out the window the moment the mod team decides they know how your character should be played (and I'm not talking about blatant realism or accuracy issues like "that's not how PTSD works" but actual decisions/ways of thinking, things that there should, in theory, be no "wrong" option with because once again, people are complicated).

Which brings me to: C) The omnipresent feeling of entitlement by the mod team aka the Powers That Be, as if they believe that theirs is such a supremely privileged, special and elite group, that they merely DEIGN to let you be a part of it. All of it manifesting in a complete lack of basic courtesy when approaching players. Or rather, any player who's been there longer than a month and who they're not actively trying to be Welcoming(TM) to. I should have seen it pretty early when I had a beef with another player who, to wit, disliked that an RP scene we had depicted her character as a "bad guy" (who was previously ESTABLISHED in canon as a psychopathic murderer!!! and the RP scene basically showed him doing more of the same!!!). She ended up badmouthing me to other players she was interacting with closely, and then they as a group complained about me to the mods, in which she twisted a certain conversation we'd had over Skype into something that reflected very badly on me, along the lines of me forcing her to RP a scene she would be triggered by. Now. This was resolved when I provided the mods with copied Skype messages (direct Skype quotes, a format that, in theory, can't be doctored) that showed she was fabricating that conversation - that she had outright told me she WOULD be okay with doing that scene. She eventually got booted for that (and other stuff). And all would have been well if it weren't for the way I had been initially addressed by the mods, and the condescending, denigrating, making you feel like shit TONE of it. Going from zero, utter peace, to "you have an attitude problem and you need to stop now or we'll kick you out". They also tacked on about half a dozen minor "offenses" I had done, like rambling too much about how the reasons I liked a school subject someone else disliked in the ooc chat, or trying TOO hard to get involved in plots, or other bullshit things that the people involved hadn't even complained to them about. I later realised that this, too, was a Pattern. Whenever they went to you with any sort of grievance, whether from their own side or from another player, they would tack on about half a dozen other "transgressions" you had made, sometimes making them up entirely out of thin air. (Other examples include: Me trying to "enforce a headcanon" by having my character react x way. I then pointed out that the "headcanon" I was allegedly """"enforcing"""" was the information stated on THEIR blog about how characters are large are reacting to a previous major town-wide event. (To wit: the information stated that the Event, a violent and deadly clash between two groups of people, exacerbated tensions between them and led to more mistrust between them. My character, who belongs to ONE group, was being mistrustful of the OTHER group. And somehow, this was not okay. Yes. That's it. That is literally how asinine it got. But then again, it's not surprising - as I explain later, it wasn't baout the offenses making sense. It was about getting to make me feel shitty for something) Or: I was being "inconsiderate" by having my character "out" the supernatural status of another character whose player was no longer in the group, and who they were not in contact with. Said player and I HAD in fact discussed this at the time, and they'd WANTED to have it happen, but the mods didn't know one way OR the other. They simply ASSUMED so they could try to pin it on me!) A long line of instances of them taking "offenses" that they didn't know for sure were offenses, that the player DIRECTLY affected HAD NOT come to them about, to paint a bigger picture of you being some kind of Problem Child who was daring to be naughty in THEIR classroom.

Now, I don't know if this was deliberate, but I can see why they did it. It makes you, as the player, feel like crap, puts you on the defensive, makes you question yourself. "Holy crap, were people really bothered by that time I went on a jokingly-serious rant about how awesome botany is when someone said they hated that topic in biology class?" (Hint: No they weren't. They thought NOTHING of it. But the mods saw it and filed it away for when they needed to make you feel like crap.) It puts the mods in a position of power and strengthened their authority. It forces you into a no-win scenario where you either deny the nonsensical accusations, and thus weaken your position and look less credible because it looks like you can't accept responsibility when you're wrong, OR accept the accusations and thereby agree with them that you're the naughty child and bad at following the rules. So it's a shitty, shitty manipulation technique. All of it coming from a place of entitlement and elitism.

I wish I could say I come from all this wiser, but it does feel like entitlement and elitism are the common denominator here. Part of the problem of the first RP was certain people needing to feel like they were superior and hating it when other people got in the way of that. Part of the problem of the second was stuck-up, self-important mods. Ultimately, it comes down to people who enjoy, just a little too much, to feel power and authority over people. To say that "it's THIS way, because I say it is" and have that listened to without question. Who enforce the rules not because it benefits the community, but because it makes them look good. Who view discussion, in and of itself, as disobedience, as an attack on their authority, an attack on them. I can't say I know for sure how to recognise the warning signs of a group like that BEFORE applying. But maybe big RP groups just aren't worth it, period.

[simplemlmsponsoring]

New Post has been published on http://simplemlmsponsoring.com/attraction-marketing-formula/internet-marketing/flipping-the-b2b-marketing-script-7-brands-that-talk-to-consumers-not-companies/

Flipping the B2B Marketing Script: 7 Brands That Talk to Consumers, Not Companies

“It feels like I’m talking to a wall.” This is the utterance you might hear from a person whose counterpart in a conversation is not particularly engaged. If you’ve been there, then you know it’s not a great feeling. But one of the biggest issues in B2B content marketing is actually the reverse: people tend to feel like the brands marketing to them are the ones talking to walls – as in, speaking to them as if they were an intangible corporate entity rather than a human being. For this reason, “business to business” can be a troubling misnomer. In this discipline, we’re not really marketing to businesses – buildings with walls and stairs and desks and chairs – but the people who inhabit those buildings. And in order to be truly effective, we need to break through this wall and achieve meaningful human connections. That means striking notes of authenticity, emotion, and distinct personal relevance. The good news? It most certainly can be done with fun, flair, and finesse. And plenty of brands are doing it well. Below, we highlight seven B2B brands that we feel are setting a great example with their approaches to customer interactions and conversations. These B2B Brands Bring the Human Touch #1 – Slack* Their collaboration hub is a business solution, helping organizations produce better work more efficiently, but that’s because it makes life so much easier for the people who use it. When a business adopts Slack, it’s often because the employees made a push for it by consensus. Accordingly, the company’s message tends to be aimed toward those professionals, and not just the decision makers or executives who ultimately hold the buying power. Slack’s Twitter account is far from a stuffy business feed. They also run another account called @SlackLoveTweets, which amplifies the voices of relatable everyday users who express affinity for particular features of the product. And if you scroll through Slack’s blog, Several People Are Typing, you’ll find plenty of posts that focus more on the people doing the work than the work itself.   For example, a recent piece titled A Slack Guide to Going Out of Office opens with this empathetic paragraph: Even though many of us daydream about our next vacation, there’s a real fear about being able to unplug, leave your team and projects behind, and return later with minimal disruption. It’s not easy, and it’s natural to ask yourself, What will happen at work while I’m gone, and how will I ever catch up when I get back?

Oh. And check out this little gem.

#2 – MailChimp The email marketing platform received a lot of positive attention last year for its first large-scale marketing campaign, which was tremendously fun and clever. Riffing on slight misspellings of the brand name (and Google’s knack for determining a searcher’s intent with “Did you mean X?”), MailChimp and agency Droga5 created a series of faux products, short films, and songs. The video below explains the rationale behind this effort and shows some examples:

MailChimp’s people-first branding is also displayed on their Instagram account. Here’s a snapshot of recent posts on their feed; not exactly the typical dry B2B fare: #3 – WeWork A provider of flexible office space, WeWork has grown rapidly since being founded in 2010. Earlier this year, the company launched an in-house creative agency, which put rolled out its first campaign in May. The series of digital spots featured workers in cramped, undesirable offices juxtaposed against open, comfortable workspaces. WeWork’s VP of creative strategy explained the thought process behind the campaign strategy to AdAge: “We wanted to make something that was relatable,” said Michael Fitzsimmons. “The scenarios in the videos … represent real challenges that a lot of businesses deal with on a daily basis.” More importantly, the scenarios represent challenges that the human beings at those businesses deal with. #4 – DivvyHQ* Offering a specialized platform for planning and executing content marketing initiatives, DivvyHQ markets to a specific type of professional: content marketing managers and others in charge of running content teams and strategies. As such, you’ll find plenty of posts on their blog that speak directly to this cohort (e.g., New Marketing Technology Trends: 5 Takeaways for Content Managers), even if that means potentially turning away folks who fall outside of it. As co-founder Brody Dorland explained in a recent piece on content personalization: “While it’s obviously valuable to obtain and keep the attention of people who are in your target audience, it can be almost equally valuable to avert those who are not. In this regard, many content marketers could stand to be a bit more forthright and frontal.” Additionally, DivvyHQ will often add recognizable themes and references to business-oriented content, making it more sticky with the humans reading it. For example, last year they released a content strategy guide built around Back to the Future. More recently they had a blog post on enterprise content collaboration — an innately humdrum topic — and spiced it up with a Star Trek spin. #5 – Antea Group* Here’s another company that seeks out personally relevant angles for otherwise straightforward subject matter. Antea Group is a global EHS and sustainability consulting firm, and often adds some pop culture flavor to blog posts in order to catch readers. For instance, an EHS overview has more pull when it’s full of inside jokes and memes from the comedy flick Office Space. And a writeup on safety compliance is much more fun when framed as a way to escape the nefarious Demogorgon from the Netflix show Stranger Things. The latter post even included a customized contact form for the fictional monster. #6 – Cisco The global technology conglomerate has been around for more than 30 years and is still going strong, largely because of its foresight and propensity for staying ahead of the curve. Our topic at hand is the perfect example; Cisco’s VP of EMEA Marketing was espousing the importance of “human to human marketing” years ago. “Technology has been the enabler and supported how marketing has evolved and is now accomplished,” wrote Jeremy Bevan. “But has the outcome of marketing really changed? If we take away technology and go back to the fundamental basics – what are we as marketers really here to do? It is quite simply to be ‘human.’ ” Cisco has long prioritized corporate social responsibility initiatives and frequently highlights a deeper purpose through emotionally driven campaigns. Here’s a great example:

“If you can imagine it, we’ll build a bridge to get you there.” Powerful stuff. #7 – Zendesk “It can be hard for B2B companies to find the balance between humor and professionalism on social media,” wrote Lindsay Kolowich in a post for Content Marketing Institute (CMI) last year. “But Zendesk is one of the B2B brands that’s really nailed it.” Indeed, this has become a signature for the customer service software company. You can check out that CMI post for prime examples or just scroll through Zendesk’s Twitter feed to find plenty of casual and informal language that strikes a chord with everyday folks. For a taste of the brand’s humorous and edgy take on B2B campaigns, watch their classic “I like it when he gives me the business” ad from a years back:

No More Business as Usual The days of companies talking to walls need to end. Whether B2C or B2B, if brands cannot strike an authentic and human tone with their audiences, they’re going to get shut out. When crafting your message, think always about the people at the businesses you’re marketing to, rather than the businesses themselves. This is a fundamental tenet for modern strategies, and central to our content marketing approach at TopRank Marketing. Get in touch if you’d like to learn more; we promise you won’t find yourself talking to a wall. [bctt tweet=”The days of companies talking to walls need to end. Whether #B2C or #B2B, if brands cannot strike an authentic and human tone with their audiences, they’re going to get shut out. @NickNelsonMN” username=”toprank”] Want more examples of brands engaging in customer-centric marketing? Check out these helpful posts:

7 Examples of Brands Mastering Social Customer Care How 6 B2B Brands Climbed to New Heights with Content Marketing The Future of Connection on Facebook: How Stories May Change the Marketing Game

*Disclaimer: Slack, Antea Group, and DivvyHQ are TopRank Marketing clients.

The post Flipping the B2B Marketing Script: 7 Brands That Talk to Consumers, Not Companies appeared first on Online Marketing Blog – TopRank®.

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[christopheruearle]

Flipping the B2B Marketing Script: 7 Brands That Talk to Consumers, Not Companies

“It feels like I’m talking to a wall.” This is the utterance you might hear from a person whose counterpart in a conversation is not particularly engaged. If you’ve been there, then you know it’s not a great feeling. But one of the biggest issues in B2B content marketing is actually the reverse: people tend to feel like the brands marketing to them are the ones talking to walls – as in, speaking to them as if they were an intangible corporate entity rather than a human being. For this reason, “business to business” can be a troubling misnomer. In this discipline, we’re not really marketing to businesses – buildings with walls and stairs and desks and chairs – but the people who inhabit those buildings. And in order to be truly effective, we need to break through this wall and achieve meaningful human connections. That means striking notes of authenticity, emotion, and distinct personal relevance. The good news? It most certainly can be done with fun, flair, and finesse. And plenty of brands are doing it well. Below, we highlight seven B2B brands that we feel are setting a great example with their approaches to customer interactions and conversations.

These B2B Brands Bring the Human Touch

#1 - Slack*

Their collaboration hub is a business solution, helping organizations produce better work more efficiently, but that’s because it makes life so much easier for the people who use it. When a business adopts Slack, it’s often because the employees made a push for it by consensus. Accordingly, the company’s message tends to be aimed toward those professionals, and not just the decision makers or executives who ultimately hold the buying power. Slack’s Twitter account is far from a stuffy business feed. They also run another account called @SlackLoveTweets, which amplifies the voices of relatable everyday users who express affinity for particular features of the product. And if you scroll through Slack’s blog, Several People Are Typing, you’ll find plenty of posts that focus more on the people doing the work than the work itself.   For example, a recent piece titled A Slack Guide to Going Out of Office opens with this empathetic paragraph:

Even though many of us daydream about our next vacation, there’s a real fear about being able to unplug, leave your team and projects behind, and return later with minimal disruption. It’s not easy, and it’s natural to ask yourself, What will happen at work while I’m gone, and how will I ever catch up when I get back?

Oh. And check out this little gem.

#2 - MailChimp

The email marketing platform received a lot of positive attention last year for its first large-scale marketing campaign, which was tremendously fun and clever. Riffing on slight misspellings of the brand name (and Google’s knack for determining a searcher’s intent with “Did you mean X?”), MailChimp and agency Droga5 created a series of faux products, short films, and songs. The video below explains the rationale behind this effort and shows some examples:

MailChimp’s people-first branding is also displayed on their Instagram account. Here’s a snapshot of recent posts on their feed; not exactly the typical dry B2B fare:

#3 - WeWork

A provider of flexible office space, WeWork has grown rapidly since being founded in 2010. Earlier this year, the company launched an in-house creative agency, which put rolled out its first campaign in May. The series of digital spots featured workers in cramped, undesirable offices juxtaposed against open, comfortable workspaces. WeWork’s VP of creative strategy explained the thought process behind the campaign strategy to AdAge: "We wanted to make something that was relatable," said Michael Fitzsimmons. "The scenarios in the videos ... represent real challenges that a lot of businesses deal with on a daily basis." More importantly, the scenarios represent challenges that the human beings at those businesses deal with.

#4 - DivvyHQ*

Offering a specialized platform for planning and executing content marketing initiatives, DivvyHQ markets to a specific type of professional: content marketing managers and others in charge of running content teams and strategies. As such, you’ll find plenty of posts on their blog that speak directly to this cohort (e.g., New Marketing Technology Trends: 5 Takeaways for Content Managers), even if that means potentially turning away folks who fall outside of it. As co-founder Brody Dorland explained in a recent piece on content personalization: “While it’s obviously valuable to obtain and keep the attention of people who are in your target audience, it can be almost equally valuable to avert those who are not. In this regard, many content marketers could stand to be a bit more forthright and frontal.” Additionally, DivvyHQ will often add recognizable themes and references to business-oriented content, making it more sticky with the humans reading it. For example, last year they released a content strategy guide built around Back to the Future. More recently they had a blog post on enterprise content collaboration — an innately humdrum topic — and spiced it up with a Star Trek spin.

#5 - Antea Group*

Here’s another company that seeks out personally relevant angles for otherwise straightforward subject matter. Antea Group is a global EHS and sustainability consulting firm, and often adds some pop culture flavor to blog posts in order to catch readers. For instance, an EHS overview has more pull when it’s full of inside jokes and memes from the comedy flick Office Space. And a writeup on safety compliance is much more fun when framed as a way to escape the nefarious Demogorgon from the Netflix show Stranger Things. The latter post even included a customized contact form for the fictional monster.

#6 - Cisco

The global technology conglomerate has been around for more than 30 years and is still going strong, largely because of its foresight and propensity for staying ahead of the curve. Our topic at hand is the perfect example; Cisco’s VP of EMEA Marketing was espousing the importance of “human to human marketing” years ago. “Technology has been the enabler and supported how marketing has evolved and is now accomplished,” wrote Jeremy Bevan. “But has the outcome of marketing really changed? If we take away technology and go back to the fundamental basics – what are we as marketers really here to do? It is quite simply to be ‘human.’ ” Cisco has long prioritized corporate social responsibility initiatives and frequently highlights a deeper purpose through emotionally driven campaigns. Here’s a great example:

“If you can imagine it, we’ll build a bridge to get you there.” Powerful stuff.

#7 - Zendesk

“It can be hard for B2B companies to find the balance between humor and professionalism on social media,” wrote Lindsay Kolowich in a post for Content Marketing Institute (CMI) last year. “But Zendesk is one of the B2B brands that's really nailed it.” Indeed, this has become a signature for the customer service software company. You can check out that CMI post for prime examples or just scroll through Zendesk’s Twitter feed to find plenty of casual and informal language that strikes a chord with everyday folks. For a taste of the brand’s humorous and edgy take on B2B campaigns, watch their classic “I like it when he gives me the business” ad from a years back:

No More Business as Usual

The days of companies talking to walls need to end. Whether B2C or B2B, if brands cannot strike an authentic and human tone with their audiences, they’re going to get shut out. When crafting your message, think always about the people at the businesses you’re marketing to, rather than the businesses themselves. This is a fundamental tenet for modern strategies, and central to our content marketing approach at TopRank Marketing. Get in touch if you’d like to learn more; we promise you won’t find yourself talking to a wall. [bctt tweet="The days of companies talking to walls need to end. Whether #B2C or #B2B, if brands cannot strike an authentic and human tone with their audiences, they’re going to get shut out. @NickNelsonMN" username="toprank"] Want more examples of brands engaging in customer-centric marketing? Check out these helpful posts:

7 Examples of Brands Mastering Social Customer Care

How 6 B2B Brands Climbed to New Heights with Content Marketing

The Future of Connection on Facebook: How Stories May Change the Marketing Game

*Disclaimer: Slack, Antea Group, and DivvyHQ are TopRank Marketing clients.

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