People who work or have worked with me know that I have a lot of quirks. I’m not eccentric (at least I don’t think I am), but I’m definitely a bit unconventional. I have sayings, manglafors, and many metaphors I pull out regularly. I’d say my most used statement is, ‘Is the juice worth the squeeze’, and no I’m not the original writer I’m sure. However, as of late, I’ve coined a new concept of consulting my Angel and My Devil. I will say things like, “The Angel and Devil are having a disagreement, I’ll get back to you.”, on a daily basis.

My team has now come to know, and probably hate, this metaphor. My angel is the one on my shoulder representing the customer filter. This is when I look at something and say ‘I wouldn’t want that in my f*@* feed/email/ experience, etc. Why would they?’. My devil is the, ‘But you need to (insert marketing goal here)’, voice that pushes me to be a marketer/business person in the most obvious way.

I used this on a call this week and it inspired me to share in this post. I feel all too often we are guilty of thinking about getting KPIs and driving traffic, conversion, views, sales, etc, etc, etc. We get very lost in that marketing path and forget the human element. The beauty of this is WE are also humans and consumers, so why not use that lense? Talk to your angel when considering how many emails to send a customer or reviewing your content calendar for Instagram. Think to yourself, would I want to see this sh*t?

Balance is a crucial element to what we do today. The space between consumers and companies is nearing uncomfortable economy plane seating level. We must balance the art and science of our craft, but we really must monitor the filters of our needs versus the consumer’s viewpoint. I have an open rule with my team and I tell them consistently to call me out on my BS. I welcome it, might not always love it, but I do welcome it. 😉 It usually results in some funny moments, but it also means someone is keeping me honest. We can’t always be our own Angel and Devil mediator, encourage everyone to have both so there is a greater chance that the consumer voice will have a seat at the table.