Remember your vision! 4 secrets to keep you on track during marketing implementation
We love this story, as told by Craig Chappelow:
“In the mid-1990s, I was working with some leaders from Iams, the premium pet food company. Its mission: “Improving the well-being of dogs and cats.”
Over a beer after the workshop finished, some of the executives were telling work stories when the subject turned to then-CEO Clay Mathile. As the legend goes, he was approached by one of the leading business magazines of the day to be the subject for the cover story–and turned it down.
Most business leaders would jump at that opportunity. When asked why he didn’t accept, Mathile is rumored to have said, “I just can’t see how that would improve the lives of dogs and cats.”
When your marketing strategy is in place and the wheels are all moving, it can be easy to get distracted and forget your overall goals. We have seen companies with great vision and fantastic strategies get bogged down in irrelevant details during the process. Sometimes even success achieved during implementation can distract and prevent companies from seeing it through. But our clients who reach the highest level of success are those that don’t get distracted and keep their vision firmly in mind during the implementation of their strategies. Here are 4 tips to help you stay the course:
- Communicate your vision. This is vital, and it bears repeating over and over again. Is it posted where people can see it? Is it included in your communications with your team? When decisions are made are you asking yourselves what will accomplish your overall objective? Distraction is less likely if you keep your goals firmly and consistently in front of your team.
- Don’t procrastinate. When tasks are put off you tend to lose your steam and there is a danger that you will forget the purpose or lose buy-in for what you are trying to do. Once you have lost that momentum, it can be difficult to gain it again.
- Remove the distractions: When possible, remove any foreseen impediments to your team fulfilling their implementation tasks. Do your team members have enough time and resources to fulfill their areas of responsibility? Can any of those potential interruptions be removed or reassigned? Make sure your team knows where their priority lies.
- Return and report: Regular check-ins with your team will help keep your vision in mind, will increase team buy-in and keep them informed, and will prevent distractions. Have a framework in place for progress reports during your implementation.
