Mr. Welk himself seemed very modest and approachable . . . even a little ridiculous. He was born in North Dakota (in 1903) to Alsatian parents in a German-speaking farm community; after dropping out of school in the fourth grade, Mr. Welk spoke no English until he was 21. And he had a thick accent and a stiff stage manner that was often imitated by comedians in his day.

But there was nothing funny about Mr. Welk’s ability to understand what his viewers wanted. When ABC cancelled the show in 1971 because it was “too old,” Mr. Welk lined up 200 independent stations to create his own syndication network. The show was produced and ran for 11 years. In 1987, reruns began appearing—they’re still shown on many public television stations, where the show has the highest ratings of any syndicated program, reaching three million households every week.

In last week’s weblog, I wrote about the idea of loving your audience—my premise being the more you respect your employees for who they are, the better you can communicate in a way that really connects.

Lawrence Welk understood this concept. Even when he became very rich and very famous, he never looked down on those folks singing along to his music. “Keep it simple so the audience can feel like they can do it, too,” he said. “You have to play what the people will understand.”

Perhaps that’s why three million viewers still watch his show every week. And that doesn’t even count the reunion television specials that are made every so often, the Welk live shows in Branson, Missouri and on the road, or the three Welk Resorts, in San Diego, Branson and Palm Springs.

If you happen to catch “The Lawrence Welk Show” today, no doubt you’ll think it’s corny. And it would be easy to dismiss fans of the genre as hopelessly out of touch. But it’s possible that someone you want to reach is a secret (or out-of-the-closet) Lawrence Welk devotee. You don’t have to love the music. But, to be successful at communication, you need to love the audience.