I am going to start this marketing monologue with a story. 

I'm going to start with a story.

I was about four years old and I went into a bakery with my dad. And while he was ordering breads and pastries, I was standing there looking in the glass counter at these beautiful pastries.

Eventually, my dad looked down and he says, Lanie, do you want one?

Now, if you're not from New York, you may not know what a Charlotte Russe pastry is. It's a little piece of pound cake stuffed inside a tube about the size of a toilet paper roll filled with whipped cream. And then on the very top, there's a cherry. She hands it to me, and I say thank you—because I was a very polite child.

I ate the cherry off the top and as we were leaving, the pastry falls to the ground. Before I had a chance to say anything, the woman came running out from behind the counter and said, Don't cry, sweetie, I'll get you another one.

Lanie, do you want another one?

And so the woman gave me another pastry.

This time, as we were leaving, I ate the cherry off the top, and—yep—you guessed it. I dropped the pastry on the floor.

Why did you do that? my father asked. And I probably should mention right about now that my dad was not a patient person.

I said, I only wanted the cherry.

What we had was a failure to communicate.

My dad was talking about pastries. I was talking about cherries.

Anyone who has spent time with children knows this feeling—talking about something and realizing halfway through the child has no idea what you mean. That’s because children come into a conversation with a smaller worldview. They don’t have the same vocabulary, experience, or context. So they focus on the parts that make sense and miss the bigger picture.

But here’s the thing: adults do the exact same thing.

Every networking event, every pitch, every sales call—people nod politely while you talk about your process, your platform, or your proprietary system… but if you're not speaking their language, they check out. They're thinking about their next meeting. Or dinner. Or pastries.

So how do you keep them with you? How do you connect, especially when your work is a little technical or complex?

1. Simplify your message.

2. Use familiar comparisons.

3. Test your message before the real thing.

4. Lead with benefits, not process.

5. Watch for confused faces—and adjust.

The bottom line? If you want better conversations and better results :Say less. Make it clearer. Make it about them.

And when you do, you just might walk away with more sales, more referrals… and the occasional cherry on top.

If this sparked an idea or reminded you of your own “cherry on top” moment, I’d love to hear about it. Hit the “Let’s Chat” button on all my social profiles or drop by morethanafewwords.com.