Get engaged

I attended the follow up workshop for ‘Bournemouth By Night’ on Tuesday 24th April. I always enjoy public consultations. Maybe it’s my public sector experience that drives me to have my say, or perhaps I just like to know what’s going on and get involved.

It’s not for everyone I guess, sitting at a table with strangers, talking about your aspirations for your town, but for me it’s really inspiring. I meet people from walks of life I wouldn’t get to meet ordinarily, I find out what’s going on in the town I’ve adopted as my home, I have a chance to have my say on its future and feel inspired and proud of where I live.

Getting people engaged is always a challenge. Our time is stretched with work and home, the boundaries are blurred and there’s little balance for many of us. So how do we capture attention? How do we make people listen, get involved and take ownership of projects or ideas?

Know your audience. What makes them tick? What do they need? What can you do for them? Can you make their life better with your product, service or ideas?

If you can answer yes to some of these questions then you are on the right track to making yourself heard by the people that matter to you.