Taking The Right Brief
Knowing the problem is not the same as having a strong preference for a particular solution. Agencies will default to ads, consultants will default to year-long research, analysis and change programs, tech companies will have a technology that can fix it.
Knowing the problem relies on knowing the problem. The root cause, not the effect. Solving the genuine problem requires calculation and real decisions.
This requires the facts to be as available as they can.
FACTS ARE NOT A Matter Of Opinion
Getting to the facts ensures we go beyond opinion and wish lists. Opinion is the usual place we find clients when they first present their challenges.
I can’t remember a client or even a casual meeting where the following aren’t (to some degree) the topics of conversation.
Where do we think the world is going?
Why are we thinking that?
What’s our role in it?
How are we going to go after it?
What evidence do we have that makes us think we’re going to win?
I can’t remember a meeting where it wasn’t possible to drive the combined fleet of the Navy, Air Force and Army through each answer.
The questions are simple - the answers are telling.
It’s Time To Think
Our challenge is getting people to think.
Once they do we can open up a meaningful discussion. We will learn more about the product or service. We can identify how the market might be targeted. We may divine the ideal audience, we start to define the impact we want - we may start to develop the unique position we need to win.
Some Key Questions
Let’s assume they have a plan, many will say they do. It may even be a new one. So it’s worth testing.
Have you changed your investment choices according to your new hypothesis?
Are you prepared to?
By what measure and basis did you formulate your investment thesis?
Was any testing done to prove that?
Did you listen to people outside your own comfort zone - those not vested in your own calculations?
Once again the answer to these questions tells us a lot.
Avoid Solving The Wrong Problem Really Well
Business is a complete system. Clients cannot leave the important discussions (market, media, management, manufacturing etc.) to their silos to make. Do that and the specialisms dictate. And then you get the wrong answer.
The correct answer is unknowable in advance anyway. There has to be some evidence. The least risk approach to better answers is testing.
Let’s assume we can get the right product, the best targeting strategy, the correct story through the right channels - but the world moves.
Being ready for inevitable changes means planning an organisation that’s alive to changes. Competition is always there. The biggest competition often comes from our own complacency.
Leaders have to stop working divisionally when thinking strategically.
The success of the business can be measured by how distant market strategy development is from the product development strategy. They are two halves of the same. Any distance at all will spell game over.
Why do we allow the marketing strategy to ignore the product development strategy?
Simple and obvious though it sounds target metrics are everything. They are the one thing that allows the truth to emerge. Missing target metrics are the biggest signal we can have that thinking needs to occur.
Raising the next set of questions:
Have we got the right metrics?
What measures have we missed?
Have we got systems in place to measure?
Why are we beating our forecasts?
Why are we missing our targets?
What needs to change?
We have to stop describing everything under the tag ‘digital’. Everything in our world is being automated, improved or accessible more quickly and effectively than ever. The questions have to focus on the correct things.
What media will engage our customers?
What story will resonate most with our customers?
What mix/blend of activities and experiences will turn prospects into long-term advocates?
Digital solutions are already here - mobile devices, screens everywhere. The challenge, like all techniques and tools, is how confident and expert we are at exploiting them.
For example:
How quickly can we migrate or transform our solutions to mobile media?
How adept are we at creating powerful user experiences in the mobile environment?
Can we take our business from the current browser-based world to Apps and platforms?
Are we learning and leveraging voice, AI/ML/DL, VR and other embedded capabilities.
Can we exploit the value and impact gained through lessons in e-sports/gaming, podcasting, e-commerce and messaging platforms?
Are we thinking sophisticatedly enough about strategies for storytelling, content and internal communication?
Are we competent when it comes to data protection, permissions and privacy as our consumers get closer to our operation through modern more global platforms?