Your bespoke, game-changing copy is the problem

photo credit: Greg Rosenke

You lost me at… bespoke.

It's one of many words that, when pressed, organizations don't really mean or embrace.

Words that would rarely, if ever, come up during conversation, let alone a contract negotiation.

Yet there it is... part of the web copy, the pitch deck, and the promo ad.

Not everyone cares about your word choice.
(but some do)

Not everyone sees you borrowing from the competition's vernacular.
(relax, most people don't believe them either)

So keep this in mind:

• There are few one-of-a-kind hand soaps or social services providers.

• There are even fewer game-changing law practices or pumpkin patches.

• And fewer still... bespoke agencies or pest exterminators.
  
  

Then ask:

• What do we do well enough for the ideal customer or client to say, "We could benefit from that"? (we're not even aiming for uniqueness or greatness yet, just relatability to their needs)

If they have to look up bespoke or question your unverifiable claim, they’re likely seeking out the competition next to see if they speak plainly to their pain point.

Make it EASY for people to choose you.

And when it doubt, always simplify.

The "Attention" Graphic

“PROGRESS” via Visualize Value

One graphic. Two vastly different perspectives.

1. WHAT deserves my attention?

2. WHO deserves my attention?

In the WHAT scenario, this exemplifies focus (good).

In the WHO scenario, this signals missed opportunities. (not so good).

I also see the WHAT-WHO as interconnected.

When I am hyper-focused, I have little time for distractions and interruptions. It’s part of our conditioning to always "strive for" a level of focus that leads to breakthroughs or better outcomes.

But it can come with consequences.

Human consequences.

And if I am to effectively lead a team, my business, clients, or my family forward... I need A LOT more of the Xs on "WHO deserves my attention?" to become checkmarks. (I also think of an X as a person coming back multiple times).

Doing focused work isn't a hall pass to ignore the needs of people who seek your insight, guidance or encouragement. We might not always have the time, right this minute, but we must find ways to make time and space for the people who need us.

Those who get it will have a more profound impact on the people in their sphere of influence.

NOTE: this graphic is originally titled "PROGRESS" from Visualize Value, which prompted how we define & measure progress.

Why every leader should be writing

photo credit: Israel Andrade

If you are the boss, the CEO, the president, the business owner, the executive director, the person the buck stops with, then you might want to heed this advice: you should be writing.

Arguably it could be the most important facet of your leadership. Here’s a bulleted list of why:

• Your people want to hear from you – not just at the quarterly meeting or when things are getting tense. They want insights based on your years of experience, miles on the odometer, your wins and losses, your relatable stories of what they are challenged with right now.

• Your people want to know what’s working and what’s not, what the plan is and what direction the company is headed. Don’t assume they know this or will remember it. Remind them regularly.

• If your company’s mission, vision, and values aren’t well known, or if they don’t sound like you, or reflect how you lead or where your organization is going, it’s your responsibility to consciously connect the dots or redraw the lines so people get it. This is foundational to your writing and messaging. 

• It is a way to crystalize your thinking before you start communicating. Bullet points have their purpose, at the right times and venues, but they are not a substitute for writing with intention or communicating specifics.  

• You will  have a record of your messaging and what was shared; a written reminder of what has – and hasn’t – been said.

• You will be sharing stories (making you more relatable) instead of regurgitating talking points (making you come across as unauthentic). 

• You provide important perspective to data, trends, successes, and where things fell short.

• It gets what is in your head onto paper or screen where you can refine your thinking. Because your first draft isn’t your final draft.

• You begin articulating what you believe about business, leadership and success based on real-life trial and error, not someone else’s that is captured in a book.

• By communicating, first in writing, and then finding additional ways to bring those stories to life, you are consciously setting and reinforcing the culture. 

• Because every business challenge is first a communication challenge, and open communication cures many ills.

• Because bad news never ages well, and the grapevine distorts reality.   

• You will cast a shadow of what good leadership looks like by sharing deeper insights, plans and priorities.

• You will be building the archive; leaving a legacy and a blueprint. And you will be more attuned to the passing of time and the inevitable passing of the baton when the time comes (and it always comes).

WHAT THIS FORM OF WRITING IS… AND ISN’T.

This isn’t thought leadership or convincing existing customers and prospects that you have the pulse or unique perspectives on business. That is an entirely different endeavor, and something you might consider as well.

This is internal communication, the most urgent of business communication.

It is a function that might not exist or is relegated to a communications team without your regular input.

This is culture building by the chief culture officer – you.

This is the priority you might never have considered your priority.

This should be happening already. If not, you can start now.

If you don’t know how to start, let’s talk, and then start writing.

If you are already writing, make sure you have a person you trust to challenge, question, push you and, perhaps most importantly, call your bluff when necessary.

Bounce ideas off them. Determine what sticks and what doesn’t. Decide what’s worth committing to type and then sharing with others in various formats.

Because writing isn’t as easy as it sounds, and can come across in ways you never intended without a good edit.  

Even if you don’t see yourself as the writing kind, there are ways to get your ideas to paper/screen. But you must convey them out. Look at them. Chew on them. Own them.

Your people will thank you. The next generation of the business will thank you.

And you will have zero regrets articulating what mattered most during your time leading the people who helped propel the business forward. It is what success looks like when your team believes in, and acts upon, what you’ve chosen to share.

The creative act of owning the box you're building

THEM: We need something.... "out-of-the-box and more creative."

BOLD VERSION OF YOU: No, I don't think that is the real need.

This isn't confrontational or a posture of unwillingness.
It's being helpful.
It's choosing to speak truth.
It's being the problem-solver you were called to be.

It's why they hired outside eyes and brains and proven talent to give them an honest, unvarnished perspective they lack.

Because you work in nonfiction, working hard to tell real and not made-up stories to real people (and target audiences) over algorithms, which is the opposite of a fictional marketing fantasyland.

Because you read in an old brief somewhere or the owners told you why they started this business in the first place, which, based on the "creative" they now want to be more creative, doesn't look or sound at all like why they created this business in the first place.

Because people don't like being marketed and sold to, let alone sliding down a brand's sales funnel.

Because people who make purchasing decisions often have a built-in BS detector that clients struggle detect in their own work.

Because people simply want good service from people they can trust, people that remind them of them, even if they don't look or think like them.

Because "creative" is wildly subjective.

Because the "creative" shouldn't be about their likes, but their customers' wants, needs, desires and solutions to pain points.

Because you're not trying to win trophies, you're trying to help them grow their business.

Because creativity for creativity's sake can mask a good straightforward story with unnecessary distractions.

Because the best creativity doesn't steal the show, it puts the spotlight on the show itself.

Maybe what's needed isn't something more creative or out of the box.

Maybe what's missing is getting back to that reason the business was started in the first place: to do things differently, to break away from the crowd instead of following it, mimicking it, competing with it.

Maybe reminding them, giving them permission, and pushing them toward having the audacity to do their thing, their way, and in a way that speaks to the heart of others who also find that way compelling -- is the most compelling and creative thing you can do.

Maybe it's about unapologetically owning the very box they've built.

Or there's this, which is possibly the worst-case scenario where everyone wilts just a little bit more and as they maintain the status quo:

NON-BOLD VERSION OF YOU: Sure, we'll take a stab at making it more creative.

It's time to be more bold.

Bold is honest, direct and often simple (that doesn't mean it's easy).

And businesses need boldness now more than ever.

I wonder...

To some it might look like daydreaming

or wasting time

or being unbillable.

Wonder is a crucial part of the problem-solving process.

You might link this to "thinking"

which is linked to "solving"

which is linked to "answers"

that someone wanted yesterday.

But wondering isn't about solving... yet.

It's not time to "do" or "execute" quite yet.

Because it's not clear what direction is best.

This so-called time-wasting, looking-out-the-window,

not-doing-the-work non-action is about

doing the right work,

that seeks to earn better outcomes.

It's more than simply checking the box.

When we allow space in the process

(which is not yet a sprint, or highly agile,

or moving at the speed of business)

to be informed by wonder...

we DISCOVER new possibilities.

Creativity has time to emerge.

Chasing innovation involves

walking and stopping,

patience and active wondering,

long before the sprints begin.

I wonder… and so should you.