There’s a good chance you’re doing strategy wrong.
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Most people don’t really understand what strategy is or how to do it effectively. In this guide, we’ll break down the basics of strategic thinking and show you how to put together a winning strategy for your business.
Strategy is not a dirty word. In fact, it’s one of the most important aspects of running a successful business. But all too often, strategy is misunderstood or misused. Let’s take a look at what strategy really is and how you can use it to your advantage.
Simply put, strategy is about making choices. It’s about deciding what you’re going to do and what you’re not going to do. That might sound easy, but it’s actually quite difficult. There are always a million different things you could be doing, so how do you choose the right ones?
The first step is to understand your vision and the goals that flow from this.
What are you trying to achieve and why? Once you know your this, you can start to identify the best ways to achieve the outcome. This is where most people get tripped up. They try to do too many things at once or they chase after every shiny new object that comes along. This is where people confuse “Tactics” with “Strategy” and ironically end up distracted from their goals and grand vision.
If you or your team are there in that confused zone right now, don’t worry. Accept it and start afresh, critically examining what you have come up with so far and re-aligning it to your vison and goals in a structured way.
Define your vision – summarise the impact and change you want your organisation to have and why. If you want to explore more on vision creation, check out our handy guide here.
Consider what is going to support you executing on that vision – is it more clients, the right research and product development, building authority or something else? Brainstorm this with your team, or if you are a solo founder/CEO, find a mastermind community to support you.
The key is to focus on a few core activities and do them really well. This might mean saying no to some things, but that’s okay. You can’t do everything, so you need to make choices about what’s most important.
If you’re not sure where to start, there are a few simple questions you can ask yourself:
· What are our values?
· Who do we serve or aspire to serve?
· What are our strengths, and what do we do well?
· How can we capitalize on these strengths?
· What sets us apart from others in our industry?
Values are a great place to start because they provide guidance for decision-making. If you know what’s important to you, it’s easier to make choices that align with those values.
Once you have a clear understanding of your goals and values, you can start to develop a strategy that will help you achieve them. Remember, strategy is all about making the right choices. So take your time, think things through, and be sure to involve the people who will be affected by your decisions. With careful planning and execution, you can put together a winning strategy for your business.
Clients are the lifeblood of any business, so it’s important to choose them carefully. You can’t be all things to all people, so you need to identify the type of client you want to work with and focus on attracting them.
The best way to do this is to develop a buyer persona. This is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal client, based on real data and research. Once you have a clear picture of who you’re trying to reach, you can start tailoring your marketing and sales efforts to attract them.
If you’re not sure where to start, consider these questions:
What does our ideal client look like?
What are their pain points?
What are their goals?
Strengths and How to Play them – Differentiation
What makes you different? It’s a simple question, but it’s not always easy to answer. In a world where businesses are constantly trying to outdo each other, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd.
One way to do this is by playing to your strengths. What does your business do better than anyone else? This could be anything from having a great product to providing outstanding customer service. Once you know what sets you apart, you can start promoting those advantages to attract more customers.
Here are a few questions to get you started:
· What do we do better than our competitors?
· What unique skills or abilities do we have?
· How can we use our strengths to differentiate ourselves in the marketplace?
