What are Your Business Aspirations (and How Will You Get There)?
Before you answer, know this: A robust brand foundation is needed for marketing to work.
Strategically build your unmistakable brand to stand out, attract ideal customers, power a successful marketing strategy, and boom, your business thrives.
But where do you start? What is step numero uno to push your business in the right direction?
You’ve probably heard about the importance of creating mission, vision, and value statements.
But topics like mission, brand purpose, strategic vision, and the ever-present “Start with Why” get lumped together which leads to head-scratching and stagnation.
So let’s work to eliminate confusion, K?
My two cents:
1. To lead your team and your customers, and grow your business, you need words of power to guide you:
- A clear mission
- A vision to get there
- And values to maintain a committed pace
2. Clarifying this fancy stuff is something I frame as a leadership exercise.
What is your mission and vision to lead yourself, your team, and your customers to success?
What are the values you’ll stick with to get there?
Think about it this way: You align values with personalities and create a brand that ideal customers (and ideal employees) want to join.
Why?
Customers (and employees) want to be a part of a mission. They care about your story when it jibes with their beliefs.
Oh, and guess what? This nifty exercise helps you clarify where you want to go, and as a result, attract others who want to join in.
All good, right? Cool, Let’s get started.
Crafting a Vision for Success: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Outlining and Achieving Your Business Aspirations
1. Brand Mission
What is a Mission Statement, really? It’s a short, but impactful description of your business. Your mission voices Why you do what you do, the Ideal Customers you do it for, and How you’re going to do it.
It’s a short statement packed with enough detail to show what your business does on a daily basis. A sentence or short paragraph describing that beautiful thing you do.
- Your business’s job
- Its vocation
- Its mission
Why are you in business?
Who do you want to help?
And How will you help them?
Use the following three steps to create a potent mission statement that gets the wheels turning.
a. Define your Purpose: WHY does your business exist?
Should I do what Simon says and Start with Why?
In his book, Start with Why, Simon Sinek expresses that most of us live our lives by accident. We live as it happens. The cure and what leads to fulfillment is to live life with purpose, on purpose. Discover your Why—the thing that drives you—bring it to life, and use it as a filter to choose a direction that leads to fulfillment.
Here’s the most common quote from the book:
“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”
The claim is that emotion tops reason and we buy based on a sense of belonging. It’s a potent way to get someone to purchase a product because we are sold on the cause of an idea.
Look at big brands like Apple, Patagonia, and Chick-fil-A. People are sold on their ideals and will gladly support each brand because they believe in the business and its Why.
If you’re marketing a product to the masses, you’ll establish a powerful emotional connection with certain people who are wholly in tune with your Why.
If you’re looking for perfect-fit people for your business, your Why molds skillful, enthusiastic employees. They want to participate, become brand advocates, and spread the word.
How does this Why thing apply to your business attracting customers and growing?
I mentioned some big companies, but I think a Why will ignite any small or medium-sized business’s brand.
Your Why is Your Purpose.
- Why you started your business
- The reason it exists
- Your intent
According to Harvard professor Gerald Zaltman, the decision to buy is made subconsciously.
- People are driven by unconscious urges, the biggest of which is emotion.
- Feelings initiate action, so you must generate emotion.
- Emotion is what drives their decision to buy.
As the author of the book, Unconscious Branding, Douglas Van Praet puts it, “We don’t even think our way to logical solutions. We feel our way to reason.”
So as a business owner, seek to excite your ideal customer’s heart and soul and connect with them emotionally. That’s your sizzle!
This is exactly why your Why (your Purpose) is so important and should be your foundation for a mission built to lead.
IKEA’s mission statement reads:
“Offer a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.”
IKEA offers well-designed, durable, affordable furniture to hundreds of millions of people. Their Why is all about making furniture as affordable as possible for as many people as possible.
A personal trainer might create a mission statement like this:
Helping over-50 men burn fat, gain muscle, and move better so they have more energy, keep weight off, and live optimally, without diet and exercise controlling their lifestyle. I’ll do so via instruction, online content, and expert interviews, to help them make long-term changes that stick.
His Why is about helping over-50 men burn fat, gain muscle, and move better so they have more energy and keep weight off without diet and exercise controlling their lifestyle.
Helping over-50 men live optimally is why he’s in the personal training business!
b. Define your ideal customers: Who do you serve?
Have you defined the ideal customer (or customer segments) your business is trying to reach?
In future posts, we’ll get deeper into this with something called an ideal buyer persona but for now, you need to know who you aim to serve.
Have you defined your target audience? Who specifically are you trying to reach?
Get clear on your one ideal customer or the market segments you serve.
“Craig, I’m missing my ideal buyer persona!” Don’t fret, we’ll get to that in a future article, or you can read my post on ideal customer profiles. (Need help defining your ideal buyer now? Get in touch.)
For now, think about a narrowly defined segment of the market—a select group of people with a set group of characteristics.
Most businesses should serve a small, narrowly defined section of the population.
And targeting a select group of ideal people and positioning your business by focusing on them will make it easier to market your business and grow.
So for today’s exercise (your Mission), outline who you serve. And know this—your ideal customer doesn’t have to be spelled out in your mission statement. The words you use can hint at who you serve.
Back to IKEA’s mission statement:
“Offer a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.”
IKEA’s client is potentially everyone shopping for inexpensive but well-designed furniture.
Here is the mission statement for The Focus Personal Training Institute (FPTI):
“To educate and develop personal trainers who demonstrate technical proficiency, integrity, and professionalism.”
So, who is your market?
It’s best to be clear about who you are trying to reach. McBreen Marketing mainly serves B2B Service businesses. We have other clients but most buyers fit this profile.
c. Define your How: How will you get your work done?
The third part of your mission is your “how.” What is the strategy your business will use to accomplish your work?
Think about your work and your unique approach.
How are you uniquely qualified to fix your ideal customer’s problem?
Will you make learning free?
Are you going to accomplish your mission via writing, speaking, and workshops?
How will assets be applied to fulfill your mission?
Think about your How as the vital actions in your daily grind.
Back to IKEA:
“Offer a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.”
Their How is creating a wide range of high-quality furniture at affordable prices.
What about my biz: McBreen Marketing?
“We use a structured branding framework and proven marketing system to convert local service businesses into stand-out brands that drive growth.”
Remember our personal trainer? Here is his How:
Helping over-50 men burn fat, gain muscle, and move better so they have more energy, keep weight off, and live optimally, without diet and exercise controlling their lifestyle. I’ll do so via instruction, online content, and expert interviews, to help them make long-term changes that stick.
His How is making fitness accessible for men over 50 years old through instruction, content, and interviews, to help them make long-term changes that stick.
Create your mission statement:
To make this easier, think of it as a super short job description. Be clear and concise in describing your mission as the Why, Who, and How, or more specifically:
a. Define your Brand Purpose: WHY does your business exist?
b. Define your Ideal Customer: Who Do You Serve?
c. Define your How: How will get your work done?
Think of it as a clear, concise job description.
How can you combine these three into a short statement?
Look at the brands below and work up your own…
To connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful.
Tesla
To accelerate the world’s transition to renewable energy.
Southwest Airlines
Dedication to the highest quality of customer service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and company spirit.
Harley-Davidson
The Harley-Davidson mission statement defines the dreams of motorcyclists: “We fulfill dreams through the experiences of motorcycling by providing to motorcyclists and to the general public an expanding line of motorcycles and branded products and services in selected market segments.”
And our Personal Trainer:
Helping over-50 men burn fat, gain muscle, and move better so they have more energy, keep weight off, and live optimally, without diet and exercise controlling their lifestyle. I’ll do so via instruction, online content, and expert interviews, to help them make long-term changes that stick.
2. Brand Vision
What’s a Brand Vision?
How is it different from a mission statement?
Your mission is where you are going.
Your Brand Vision is you asking:
What happens if our mission comes to life?
Where you want to go.
Your long-term business vision and what that future looks like.
What is your backstory?
- Did you start your business with a vision to attain?
- A contribution wanted to make?
- What problem did you set out to fix for a specific customer?
- What’s the primary long-term goal of your business?
Use your backstory to fuel your Brand Vision.
Your short statement describing where you want to go.
→ A leadership exercise describing where you want to take your business, team, and clients.
So ask: What primary goal do I set to bring vision and inspire me, my team, and my clients?
IKEA’s vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people.
LinkedIn wants to create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.
Our personal trainer’s vision:
To become the top online creator for over-50 men who want to get fit, lose weight, and live optimally by improving their mindset, fitness, and nutrition.
To craft your vision statement ask the following questions:
- What desired outcome will give you and your team an inspirational vision?
- What will spark you to move continually in that direction?
- What do you want your business to become in the next 2, 5, or 10 years?
Think of it as your big-picture decree of where you want to be in the future.
Your vision is the picture of what you want.
Your mission is how you get there.
Your Brand Vision should be aspirational and realistic.
Yeah, stretch it a bit but not too far. And have a little fun. (Why not?)
What’s your long-term vision?
3. Brand Values
Your values are the beliefs you will stick to when crafting a plan to see your vision through.
Guiding principles to lead your business, team, and clients toward a shared cause or goal.
What values move you?
Think about your core beliefs. How you want to conduct business. And how you will treat people along the way. Make sure it’s something you can practice continually.
What is your guiding code to help lead you and your company toward a shared goal?
As I wrote, to lead your team and your customers, and grow your business, you need words of power to guide you: A clear mission, a vision to get there, and good old values to maintain a slow, steady, committed pace.
So, what are the values to help you get there?
Customers (and employees) want to be a part of something if it jibes with their beliefs.
Go back to your Why.
People are sold on your Why. They are also sold on your Values and will gladly support your business because your Values align with their ideals.
There is no set format for this. You can use a few words or a short phrase.
Ask yourself the following:
- What are the key characteristics of my business?
- What do I want them to be? What do I stand for? What do I want my business to stand for?
- When looking at my Mission and Vision, what Values will guide us?
- How will we treat customers, employees, and partners?
What traits are needed to lead your business, team, and clients?
Don’t overcomplicate this.
Here is ours:
“We consider the combo of branding and marketing to be your most important assets and approach every project with a clear, focused strategy that’s right for your business and is built for growth.
We work to understand your needs, goals, and vision, to help you and we are dedicated to getting this right! We love what we do, see our clients as partners, and are dedicated to helping you grow your business.”
Our Personal Trainer’s brand values go a bit deeper:
“I am committed to helping over-50 men build a better life through mindset, fitness, and nutrition.
I strongly believe that it’s never too late to make big changes. I’ve also struggled with weight throughout my life, and the trifecta of fitness, nutrition, and a positive mindset changed my life. I want to help others do the same using a balanced program they can easily fit into their lives.
I also want to promote a healthier society.
Do the right thing. Always.
Learn and improve daily.
Care and make it show.
It’s never too late.
Keep it simple.
Stay focused.
Listen.”
List the top values that drive you and your business.
What About You? How Will You Outline and Achieve Your Aspirations Through Mission, Vision, and Values?
Let’s recap this little lesson so you can create your mission, vision, and values…
Your Brand Mission:
Think of your mission as a clear, concise job description (the way you operate daily) with three components to drive it:
a. Your Brand Purpose: WHY does your business exist?
b. Your Ideal Customer: Who Do You Serve?
c. Your How: How will get your work done?
Your Brand Vision:
Your brand vision is a short statement clarifying where you want to go. A leadership exercise describing where you want to take your business, team, and clients.
What is the future that you really want to build? Your comprehensive long-term goal? What do you want your future to be?
So ask: What statement will bring a clear vision and also inspire you, your team, and your clients to move in the direction you want to go?
Your Brand Values:
Guiding principles to lead your business, team, and clients toward a shared cause or goal. Ask yourself this: What characteristics are needed to lead your business, team, and clients?
A robust brand foundation is needed for marketing to work. and this is how you start!
Use McBreen Marketing to Outline Your Business Aspirations
Improving your brand strategy is easy if you have the right goals and the right partners. McBreen Marketing will partner with you to help you build the best brand for your business using our Strategy-first Foundation and Total Brand Reset. We’ll craft your unique brand formula and help you grow your business.
Ready to let us help you tackle your branding and marketing woes? Get started by contacting us for a free consultation today.
The post Unveiling Your Business’s True Identity: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Your Mission, Vision, and Values appeared first on McBreen Marketing.
