Solve your customers’ problems better than the competition and you will solve your biggest challenges.
Jeff Knight (pictured) is a strategic marketing consultant with Grey Matter Strategic Marketing
Everyone I speak to right now is so, so busy. They have very little time to think; they are having to focus on the right here, right now.
This could have a detrimental effect on your future because the crazy market could create an element of strategic myopia. As Kate Davies, executive director at IMLA said – the industry needs long-term strategic thinking.
This applies to everyone, not just the industry as a whole.
Therefore, the solution as I see it is to take a small step back and think about developing a big impact goal.
This will help businesses adapt to the new world, enhance internal communication and have greater efficiencies.
A bit of perspective
Now, I have been fortunate in my career to have worked for some successful companies and smart people. Success came about because those companies knew their competitive strengths.
They had strong strategic goals and did not deviate, move goalposts and change priorities.
They were focused on the execution of these goals. And there is one particular person, with whom I worked, who was relentlessly ruthless and successful at this and many people reading this will know to whom I refer.
It’s time to think big
These success ingredients have not changed and for this article, I am going to focus just on creating the right goals. Moreover, the particular need to think about having a big impact goal (BIG).
This is to help provide some focus on the future, which will be upon us sooner than you think. Yet having a BIG does not mean that everything else stops; it can’t. It just means that you have a stronger focus on that one thing that will have the biggest impact to your business.
This stops you running around doing lots of things that may not really matter. From my experience, this will be the one thing that delivers most of your growth in the future.
Choosing your big impact goal
When it comes to identifying the BIG idea, think about your biggest challenges you are facing right now and your customers.
Solve your customers’ problems better than the competition and you will solve your biggest challenges. Therefore, make sure you understand what those customer problems are, as they will have changed as the market has changed.
For many companies, their Big Impact Goal may well revolve around in investing in technological solutions to enhance the mortgage experience and give greater efficiencies. For many, this will be perfect but for others it won’t be, and it is important to focus on what is right for you and don’t do what everyone else is doing.
Something new
Instead of something borrowed, for some, I would suggest that your big impact goal might well be something new, something that you are currently not doing. Now I have heard many times the quote “we don’t know what we don’t know”.
However, it is worth thinking about this quote from Mark Twain: “What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know. It's what we know for sure that just ain't so.”
“What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know. It's what we know for sure that just ain't so.”
Your one big impact goal might be something that you have been thinking about for some time but not yet actioned it. That is why it is so important to take a step back right now to think differently. I know, easier said than done when you are so busy.
What if we don’t?
Therefore, another way to think about your BIG is – “what happens if you do not focus on it”.
Not delivering your BIG will be a real risk to your business. What if you have this great idea, don’t work on it, then a competitor does and steals your business. What if?
It is likely that it is something that needs a shift in company thinking and behaviour and a lot of stakeholder buy in; the sort of thing that is often seen as too much hassle. But as Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work”
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work”
Diversity of thinking helps
To help think about your big impact goal may mean challenging the status quo. It may mean doing something different to the past. It may mean doing something different to the competition. It may mean a bit of bravery.
Thinking differently helps by talking to different people with a different perspective. That way you get diversity of thinking.
You need to speak to people who will challenge the status quo. There is no point talking only to those who will simply agree and nod to keep you happy. Stay away from the ‘yes men’.
Your big impact goal will be unique to your business. It must deliver real measurable outcomes and will make a difference to your company. Do this now, as the future will be upon us sooner than you think.
