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The Importance of Flagging in Communication

Do you assume that people understand your message, only to learn later that they don’t remember it or are unsure what to do next? Learning to flag important information can transform your communication style so effectively that your listeners hang on every word and walk away remembering exactly what you intended.

As the founder of The BRIEF Lab and the author of Noise: Living and Leading When Nobody Can Focus, and BRIEF: Make a Bigger Impact by Saying Less, I specialize in helping people become deliberate, clear, concise communicators. In this blog, which is based on my recent podcast (“Just Saying” episode 335) Flagging, Flagging, Flagging, I’ll share what the flagging technique is, how it works, and when to use it.

What is Flagging in Communication?

Flagging is a technique that simplifies important information, manages expectations, and guides your audience to focus on your most important points. When you flag key points, you make it easier for your audience to follow along and retain information.

The Basics of Flagging

I first learned about flagging information years ago at a PR marketing agency. A colleague, who was a media trainer and former journalist, taught clients to engage the media using numbered flags: “The three things we’re going to do are …” or “The four things you need to know are…”

Using numbers to organize information immediately grabs attention. Clients who used this technique in media interviews saw an immediate effect—people started taking notes right away. Once you understand how it works, you’ll notice this technique is used everywhere: magazine covers, book titles, presentations, and podcasts. It’s that effective.

Why Flagging Works

Flagging works because it provides a clear and predictable structure for your audience to follow. Without flagging, listeners can easily feel lost amidst the sea of information that bombards them daily.

According to a study by the University of California, San Diego, Americans consume an average of 34 gigabytes of information every day. No one can absorb, relate to, or remember this much information. It’s worse than irrelevant — it forces people to tune out most of it, and they struggle to recognize the information that is important.

Therefore, it’s crucial that you organize and highlight key points to capture and maintain your audience’s attention every time you communicate. This technique works in almost any situation:

• Presentations
• Phone calls
• Emails
• Status reports
• Performance reviews
• Talking to your kids

For instance, imagine opening a book without a table of contents—it would be disorienting and difficult to navigate. Similarly, when you don’t flag your points, your audience struggles to follow your narrative. Without a clear structure, you’re delivering a word-salad that no one wants to eat.

Flagging: You Have to Work For It

You’ll learn that flagging requires you to do some extra work to prepare your message. The truth is, either you must do the work up front, or your audience must do the work on their end. Don’t make your audience do the work. They won’t focus on what you think is important; they’ll focus on whatever is easiest for them if they don’t lose interest entirely.

To begin, take some time to carefully organize your thoughts, decide on the key points, and structure them in a way that’s easy to follow. The good news is, flagging gets easier every time you do it and this extra effort on your part pays off.

By using simple, numbered sections, you not only capture attention but also make it easier for your audience to follow along and remember your key points. Ultimately, flagging transforms complex information into manageable chunks, enhancing the overall effectiveness of your communication.

Three Steps to Effective Flagging

1. Understand Your Audience

In nearly every setting, your audience is overwhelmed with information from many sources. They need you to organize your information; not because they love numbers, but because they need clarity. Think of flagging as a way to give your audience relief from information overload.

2. Organize Information into Manageable Sections

• Decide on the number of sections: two, three, four, or maybe five.
• Keep it simple. Too many sections will overwhelm your audience.
• Consider using larger sections with subsections if needed.

3. Tell Your Audience What You’re Doing

Begin by telling your audience how your information is organized.

Example 1: In a meeting, you could say: “We have four parts to this meeting, and each is 10 minutes long. The first part is…, the second part is…,” and so on.

Example 2: If you want your kids to clean their rooms, “Clean your room” is vague and open to interpretation.

Instead, you could say: “I want you to do three things this morning:

1. Pick up all the clothes on the floor
2. Put them in the laundry basket
3. Make the bed

This is clear, concise, easy to remember, and leaves no room for interpretation.

How to Recognize the Impact of Flagging

When you use flagging effectively in your communication, you’ll notice several positive indicators:

• Fewer Follow-Up Questions: Your audience will have a clear understanding of your points, leading to fewer basic clarification questions. This shows that your initial presentation was well-organized and easily digestible.
• Better Follow-Up Questions: Instead of asking for basic clarifications, your audience may ask more insightful, higher-level questions. This indicates that they understand the fundamental points and are engaging more deeply with what you’ve said or written.
• Improved Engagement: Your audience will be more engaged. You might notice more nodding heads, eye contact, and fewer distractions as they follow along with your structured points.
• More Note-Taking: If you’re in a setting where your audience takes notes, you’ll see them writing down the numbered points as you present them. This is a clear sign that your flagging method is helping them capture and understand the importance of the information.
• Positive Feedback: In a setting such as presentations, status updates, or performance reviews, you may receive comments praising the clarity and organization of your message. Coworkers and clients might remark on how easy it was to follow your points and retain the information.

How The BRIEF Lab Can Help

By mastering flagging, you’ll make your communication clear, concise, and engaging. This technique not only benefits your audience but also enhances your credibility as a leader and communicator. The BRIEF Lab offers a variety of communications courses for teams and leaders — such as BRIEF 101, BRIEF Writing, and BRIEF Meetings — in which flagging is practiced.

Professional leaders recognize the value of concise communication as a core skill that sets them apart, and we can help. When you and your team learn to be BRIEF you will:

• Reduce time spent in meetings, briefings and your inbox.
• Make better decisions based on clear, consistent information.
• Provide clear direction that unifies effort and encourages follow-through.
• Enhance understanding of your mission and message.
• Improve operational efficiency and effectiveness.
• Ensure clarity to reduce confusion and re-work.

Contact us to learn about our offerings; we’ll teach you and your team how to embrace a culture of brevity to become clear, concise communicators.