October Blog: Because you’re worth it

We all love a good marketing campaign.

 Whether they come through in Super Bowl proportions or arrive as another sponsored post in our news feeds, they all serve a purpose –

Because you can’t sell a secret right?

With plenty of emphasis placed on creating these magical marketing moments, why is the same dedication so often not afforded to closing the deal?

As an early stage start up it can be difficult to get in front of the right audience to talk about what you have to offer. Making sure those opportunities are not wasted is paramount and understanding what conversation to have can be the difference between a yes and no.

Especially when it comes to dealing with businesses direct.

Leadership teams making financial decisions want to understand what’s in it for them (aka their business.)? What benefit will they receive? How will it impact their bottom line? What will their return on investment be?

2020 and it’s “unprecedented times” has made those financial security needs even stronger, budget purse strings even tighter and the fight for start ups to be successful that much more difficult.

But it has also made the need for innovation more prevalent. We’ve had to find new ways of accomplishing tasks, of connecting and communicating and it’s these new needs that will change the shape of our future.

So, how do we prove worth? How do we prove the benefit of embracing innovation and change? How do we prove value for money?

We use data. And no, we’re not talking about an android with freakishly yellow eyes.

Observable | Seeing first hand how the day on the ‘frontline’ of a business unfolds and capturing moments, especially with staff, that system data simply can’t.

Measurable | Placing a metric like a Net Promoter Score, a timing or instance count to present a visual representation of a point in time.

Quantifiable | Proving the positive impact change has had with a calculated metric  by measuring the difference between the before and after points in time surrounding change.

Financial | Adding an economic component by comparing the cost of change against long term savings or financial gain.

Truth is though, as we navigate our new look paths forward, the conversation of benefit realisation is just as important inside an established business as it is validating your worth through a sales process.

Leaders have the ability to gain real insight by taking the time to invest in benefit realisation projects which is something that has never been more important.

It enables them to understand the current state of their business, see first hand how systems and processes flow, and get a true feel for the pain points their team face.

Painting an accurate picture of where waste is occurring and improvements can be made goes a long way to being empowered to make educated decisions for a financially positive future.

Let’s not forget the lessons the Toothpaste Guy brought us.

Whether you’re a start up founder trying to build your business with successful sales and marketing campaigns or the leader of a existing business trying to make the right decisions for a brighter tomorrow, data is going to be your new best friend.

Data isn’t something to be afraid of, because it holds greater truth and impact than any marketing campaign or blind assumption can achieve on its own.

As the saying goes “I didn’t come this far to only come this far” and as we emerge into the new world – whatever your journey looks like, you have the ability to hold incredible conversations and make empowered business decisions.