It’s time to refine your strategic vision

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As we step forward from a year of profound change, it’s worth considering whether it’s time for a strategic vision review and reset.

In his latest book, “Post Corona: From Crisis to Opportunity,” bestselling author and business professor Scott Galloway notes, “A firm’s value is a function of its numbers and narrative.”

He explains that venture capitalists today give the greatest weight to a firm’s vision, or its narrative about where it could be in a decade.

More important than having a vision is learning to communicate it with clarity. That’s what earns the trust that opens doors to new relationships and opportunities.

Your landscaping business may never seek outside investors, but every day, it’s marketing, recruiting and negotiating favorable terms for necessary services and resources.

The right narrative informs people about who you are and why that matters.

Most importantly, the narrative has to be true. If it lacks your conviction, then it will fail to pull you and your team through the good and the tough times.

What can we do that’s really hard?

One way to find your strategic vision is by asking, “What can we do that’s really hard that will make people’s lives better?”

Everything is difficult if you plan to do it consistently well. Some of the hardest things in business are clear communication, committed relationships and courageous leadership.

This makes them competitive advantages for those that master them.

Clear communication: One of my roles as a marketing consultant is interviewing my clients’ customers to develop accurate buyer personas.

It’s not uncommon to discover customers are split on how well the company communicates, suggesting that improvement is needed.

Accurate, timely and complete communication is never easy, but its impact is undeniable. Nowadays, there’s no reason not to excel in this category if you design systems that use technology to capture data and use it to save people time.

Committed relationships: To win the long game, the most profitable companies in the world, with Amazon and Netflix being examples, depend on recurring revenue from loyal customers. These subscription relationships are the cheapest source of incremental value, provided you continue to earn trust.

Making the mindset shift from business transactions to relationships expands your vision. It focuses the company’s resources on continuous improvement, elevating service to a point of distinction.

Courageous leadership: There’s a good chance your company already champions important causes. Maybe now is the time to take that further. It’s fair to say that the time has arrived for purpose-driven marketing.

Across the country, people are waking up to what’s important in their lives, what’s fundamentally meaningful. Economic, political and social issues are creating opportunities for courageous leaders to step up.

As a small business owner, you have a lot of people depending on your success. They deserve a meaningful narrative that reminds them why that matters.

If there is one initiative that could set your business on the right course this year and keep it there, it’s reviewing and refining your strategic vision and its narrative.