Great Technique Is a Habit, Not a Happenstance

Have you ever wondered why ballet dancers look so elegant when they move? For the longest time, I always assumed it was because they were, well, ballet dancers (I know, that’s circular reasoning) — but really meaning “just born graceful, a natural dancer”. Do you think so, too?

As a swing dancer, I noticed that whenever someone new showed up at the Gotham Swing Club dances you could spot right away if she had a ballet background. Even though she might not know how to swing and made all sorts of mistakes, damn she’d make even the most common of mistakes look elegant. And it didn’t necessarily mean she picked up swing any quicker than anyone else; she simply looked good while moving through the novice ranks.

After talking with some pro ballet dancers, as well as several (actual) Rockettes, about how their job works, the one common element that I heard was that they spend several hours every day working on their basics. The same basics they learned on Day One when they were, like, 5 years old. They would never consider to not work on their Basic technique every day.

That’s why they look so good when they move. Their core technique is so embedded in their body that they cannot help but make it look great. Their good technique has become a habit. Their good technique doesn’t derive from what they are; it derives from what they do.

Do you to work on your core conversion techniques every day? It’s easy to forget and to fall back into bad habits, as I witnessed recently in a group of conversion professionals ! One member of the group had wanted the rest of us to vote for one or another nominee for some award (the details don’t matter). He didn’t get a great response rate so he used one of the most awful techniques possible: he created a shocking Subject line for his follow-up email, sure to get everyone who read it to open the email: “Microsoft buys Adobe for $24.6 billion” which of course is not only false but also has nothing to do with the nominee award balloting in question. I knew right away that this is a fellow who doesn’t have his basics locked down far enough. He may be consciously competent in his regular works– he likely does fine work when he thinks about doing fine work — but there’s no way he’s unconsciously competent, doing great work even when he isn’t trying. He’s not practicing every day.

You may be thinking, “What the heck is wrong with a subject line like that?” Well, to start, companies who use such a technique rarely increase their conversion rate. Oh, you most certainly can increase your Email Opened rate ‘cuz of the catchy subject line; it’s not hard to craft a Subject line that induces “opens”. But the moment people realize they’ve been bamboozled — that the implicit promise of more info about the fictitious Microsoft-Adobe merger are not forth-coming — your chances of converting drop down to the pre-subject-line levels, or worse. You haven’t spoken at all to what’s-in-it-for-me to induce incentive to convert to the *actual* call to action (in this case, “vote for a nominee”; in most Grok readers’ cases, “Buy My product”, “Fill Out My Form”, etc).

Or, you may be thinking, “Well, in a group of Pros, it’s ok to slip a bit on the Basics, cuz you all know them”. And that’s just the point. A Pro doesn’t ever “slip a bit” on the Basics because, just like Pro dancers, they cannot do so without intent. Their core technique is so deeply embedded that slipping becomes a matter of conditions beyond their control: and writing the subject line of an email is completely within one’s control . So if you find yourself “slipping a bit”, you should consider that maybe you haven’t been working on your technique regularly enough. Great technique is a habit, not a happenstance.

What have you worked on, today, that better clarifies why your customers ought to buy from you?

In Improving Conversion

Add Your Comments

Comments (23)

Tom Wanek
October 5th, 2009
1:03 pm

Great advice. One can apply this to becoming a better marketer, copywriter, delighting customers, etc.
sanjay
October 5th, 2009
3:12 pm

Wow great, I take your advice we should work on our basics to sharpen our skills.
Marie Curie
October 5th, 2009
3:56 pm

good post
Perfu
October 6th, 2009
2:02 am

Really pretty good post. Thank you for this post .
Office Fit Out
October 6th, 2009
9:52 am

It is amazing how many people tend to get lost in details whereas the going back to basics do show them a light at the end of the tunnel.
mustafa kardana
October 6th, 2009
3:28 pm

wonderfull article thanks..
geoffrey
October 6th, 2009
8:48 pm

Nice advice, it’s all about technique huh
kate duffy
October 7th, 2009
6:26 am

Love the dancer/conversion specilist analogy. Good to be reminded to go back to basics.
Kenny
October 7th, 2009
8:10 pm

Excellent article! The best and most talented make something that is actually very difficult, look easy sometimes. I believe it is because they have the “basics” down so well.
Danai
October 7th, 2009
11:15 pm

Great! I’ll use this technique to improve my site.

Thanks,
SEO tips
October 8th, 2009
1:54 am

Great article,good to see fresh faces at future now blog.I thought that this blog is all about Jeff and Brendan and Bryan.
Amateurfoam
October 8th, 2009
3:00 am

good insight, these rules apply to anything and everything we do.
Prostate Cancer Conqueror
October 12th, 2009
8:09 am

Excellent one. You are very right – great technique is something that has to be LEARNT and PERFECTED, it’s certainly NOT happenstance. Thanks for sharing this. I found it incredibly useful!
Steen Rasmussen I IIH Nordic
October 12th, 2009
9:58 am

So true. You get so much further with a plan than by accident.

But that is also where analytics can help you use the thinking hat instead of the dice.
Henry
October 13th, 2009
3:16 am

I can’t agree you more.
i have to say that everything happens for a reason.
Just as you mentioned,great technique is a habit rather than a happenstance.
Family Guy Online
October 13th, 2009
7:20 am

Great technique truly is a habit not a happenstance
TheFool
October 13th, 2009
7:59 am

Good post ><b

งานวันนี้
Simon
October 13th, 2009
11:44 am

That’s true
I agree
Book Car Values
October 13th, 2009
3:10 pm

Very Nice article check out my blog,http://bookcarvalues.com/ – An informative blog focusing on car shopping,car reviews, automotive information and news of the latest car technology available and to come.
Jaclyn Hawtin - Abstract Expressionistic Art
October 14th, 2009
6:15 pm

I definitely agree with this post. I have a background in ballet, and marketing. They both require a finesse that is only acquired through extensive training and experience.
Enver
October 17th, 2009
5:30 am

Great technique truly is a habit not a happenstance
หางาน
October 28th, 2009
2:08 am

I love this line :
“Their good technique doesn’t derive from what they are; it derives from what they do”
Great Technique Is a Habit, Not a Happenstance | The NMS Blog
November 20th, 2009
6:02 am

[...] Source:Great Technique Is a Habit, Not a Happenstance Share and Enjoy: [...]

Add Your Comments