I think the most rarely asked question in communications strategy, whether digital or not, is this: How do you like to get your information.

As consultants work with clients on engaging customers, pulling out the latest social media platforms, doo-dads, apps and game-changers, sometimes the actual information habits of the customers get lost.

Think:

How many customers are first-adapters?

How many customers prefer to listen to the radio or call the phone numbers they see on billboards?

How many customers really know what to do with a QR code?

Really?

How many customers are going to greet the frenzy of Google+ business pages this fall with a funny look and a shrug?

That’s OK. Ultimately it’s up to companies and strategists to work together to reach people where they are and follow them where they want to be.

Before we dive into a new platform, we need to make sure the customers we want aren’t swimming (quite happily) in some other pool.