The parable of the seed sower …

It could have all been so different for Dame Andrea Jenkyns.

Now a well-established Member of Parliament she was not always destined to become part of our legislature.

In her teens, Andrea was a fine soprano, a talent discovered whilst singing songs written by her childhood hero, Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Night after night her father, Clifford, would play Lloyd Webber’s music with Andrea providing the vocals.

So convinced was he that she was destined for operatic greatness that he decided to approach the great man himself with some of her recordings.

In one extraordinary episode, he turned up at Lloyd Webber’s house with his mahogany music box hoping to amaze the great impresario.

Unfortunately, he had forgotten to check if Lloyd Webber was at home.

He wasn’t.

So the downcast Clifford had to make do with a cup of tea with the butler.

Are there parallels between this story and business?

The parable of the Seed Sower in Matthew 13 tells us this is nothing new.

As hard as we might work on our promotional material if we aren’t sending it to the right people our efforts are well and truly cast on stony ground.

A little thought about who our ideal audience is, how we reach them and the language we use to address them are so, so important.

If that’s something you’d like to talk about, please drop me a line.

But in the meantime …

Until next time.

Alec