Target Marketing

Alignment

Getting Everyone on the Same Page

One of the biggest problems in business today is that people are not “aligned” properly. Most company’s goals are short term‚ usually limited to a monetary discussion about “increasing sales” or “doing better”. Many don’t plan seriously beyond the next quarter. For those who do‚ it’s rarely more than a year down the road.

A recent survey shows that over 50% of companies do not have an effective system in place to increase sales. Twenty-nine percent (29%) had no system in place‚ while 24% only evaluated previous year sales and said‚ “We have to do better this year”. Sound familiar?

For the companies doing well‚ 23% attributed their success to developing a marketing style that was “better and different than their competitors”. Another 23% attributed their success to having the right people working for them and having everyone “aligned” or as stated above‚ being on the “same page”.

3 Common Business Alignment Problems

Core Goals

The Core Goals inside the company are not shared‚ resulting in different people working towards different objectives and goals.

Core Values

The Core Values inside the company are not shared or even defined‚ meaning that the guidelines or “rules” of how to accomplish your goals have not been established.

The Perception/Reality problem

Customers and prospects do not see companies for what they are and do. Similarly‚ companies often have misperceptions about their customers and prospects. We call this misalignment the “Perceived Reality”. The Perceived Reality then is not only the prospect and customer’s mistaken perceptions about your company but also your company’s mistaken perceptions about them.

The goal‚ of course‚ is to understand and communicate your “Actual Reality”‚ both for your company to your customers and your customers to your company. The Actual Reality includes not only what your customers want‚ but what they need and how they find information to make that decision.

Both alignment problems can have serious consequences.

How to Get on the Same Page

Set goals.

Determine what drives your company‚ not just on a short term schedule‚ but define your quarterly‚ annual‚ and long term company goals. Get as many people as possible involved in this process. When completed‚ make sure you communicate your goals to your company so everyone’s going in the same direction.

Define your core values.

Outline the values that drive every decision in your company. Be specific and clear about what they are. These are the non-negotiables in your company. Bring everyone together so they know what lies beneath every decision. Define them and stick to them.

Align customers and company.

Find out what you do well and what your customers and prospects think of you. Make sure you’re communicating your strengths to your customers and what differentiates your company from others in the way they want. And make sure you know what your customers are looking for. Develop a plan to communicate and execute.

One Page Strategic Plan

The Luftig Warren Educational Marketing System solves all three alignment problems. We have developed a simple process as part of our Educational Marketing System™ that allows you to identify the important goals in your company and set guidelines to achieve them. This system allows you to think beyond an exclusively financial perspective and show you how to use long-term thinking to grow your business.

See an example of the Luftig Warren One Page Strategic Plan.

Get your free whitepaper on the 15 steps to effective marketing and get your complimentary copy of the Luftig Warren one page strategic plan for free.