Friendship marketing

I spent most of yesterday at the 2nd international Jewish Bloggers Convention here in Jerusalem. Overall it was pretty good. Informative, entertaining and good networking opportunities. And the onion quiche at the dinner buffet was just fabulous. One of the workshops I went to dealt with blog content - what to write about and what to avoid in order to interest readers.

In his own words, the main point was, "Don't write about what you ate for breakfast."

Generally, I would agree. But with one small caveat:

Lunch is a whole different story. Breakfast can be boring, generic and often non-existent. Lunch is totally where it's at.

So with no further ado, this is what I eat for lunch most days.

A sandwich with hummus (the best), avocado, sprouts, spinach and peppers on a foccacia roll from Teller Bakery (74 Agripas Street, Jerusalem). It has the perfect consistency, the right blend of flavors, and it's pretty darn healthy - aside from the potential salmonella threat of the sprouts. But that's a risk I have to take.

Now. The question you are all asking yourselves: Why should I care what Oren Kaufman eats for lunch?

It all boils down to what I'll call 'friendship marketing'.

When you communicate with donors, you are trying to develop a personal connection with them. Something that tells them, "Hey, I'm real. I'm not a stranger. I know you. We're friends. Friends help each other. We're in a tough spot right now and we need your help. Can you lend a hand?"

In order to do that, you can't sound like a coorporation. You have to sound human. When you write a direct mail letter, use less "we" and more "you". Because that's what people do. They relate to others, they're curious about others. People don't want to be friends with self-centered jerks. And nothing says self-centered jerk like the word "we".

Posting about my lunch habits is a good way for people to get to know a little something about who I am. It makes me real. There is a man behind the blog. A pen behind the ink.

It's a good way to illustrate the necessity of keeping it personal.