A business statement explains to the world the reason for a company's existence. While it seems like a simple enough thing to develop, many businesses struggle with making their statement streamlined. A business is flexible, and while this is generally a positive thing in dealing with clients, it can make the company very hard to define in a statement.
As organizations increase the areas they cover and the services they offer, a business statement may become over-complicated and need trimming down to the company's core concept. Ten business leaders from Forbes Coaches Council discuss the key strategies leaders can implement to trim the fat from their business statement and make it more concise.
1. Engage Employees
Engage employees in fine-tuning your business statement with an online survey. Put your current business statement and values at the top. Then, create a question where you rewrite the statement five times and have them prioritize their favorites. In the next question, give them a chance to rewrite the statement themselves. Not only will you get a better business statement, you’ll get more buy-in. - Susan K. Wehrley, BIZremedies
2. Align Activities With Purpose
An organizational purpose statement expresses the positive difference the people of the organization want to make in the world. Fine-tuning the purpose statement can be achieved by testing all business activities against the stated purpose of the organization. If activities are not aligned to purpose, it is time to change the activities or change the purpose statement. - Paul Ward, The Global Centre for Conscious Leadership
3. Ask Your Customers What They Think
A business statement will have no influence if it isn't created with the input of those affected by it. It's not about what you want others to believe about your business; it's about what they actually will. It should seem organic and each word's application should be agreed upon by the people who execute it for you. A statement with generic words is useless and will have no impact. - Lynda Foster, Cortex Leadership Consulting
4. Reflect Your Values And Ambitions
Tie your business statement to a set of values that reflect you and the end user benefits you strive to deliver, not to a specific product or service. This provides greater scope for growth and a focus for your ambitions. It is also a useful litmus test when expanding your business. If new services don’t fit under your business statement umbrella, consider whether they fit into your business model. - Mark Savinson, Strategy to Revenue
5. Stay Connected To The 'Soul' Of Your Brand
A business statement that expresses the "soul" of your brand and why it exists will attract the kinds of customers and clients you want to have. The soul of your company is what gets your stakeholders engaged and keeps them loyal. Simply starting by completing this sentence, "Our business exists to..." is an effective way to get at how to express your company's core purpose in a compelling way. - Emily Rogers, Emily Rogers Consulting + Coaching
6. Don't Talk About 'How'
Businesses need to adapt over time and change their how, but your business statement should be a solid foundation that can sustain any changes to your "how." Where many companies go wrong is that they believe what they do is the services. Instead, you need to tap into what the services accomplish. Apple isn't a tech company; it's a company that allows mavericks and creatives to break the status quo! - Cody Dakota Wooten, The Leadership Guide
7. Practice The Three Cs
Companies can get caught in the minutiae of creating business statements which serve themselves and not their intended market. Link your purpose to your client's outcome. Your statement should be clear, not cloudy. It should be concise, not chatty. It should be confident, not cautious. A statement should answer the "why" of our business, while providing a well-defined solution to a client's problem. - Paul N Larsen, Find Your VOICE as a Leader ™
8. Keep It Concise And Compelling
A strong core purpose or mission statement must answer who you are, what you do, why you do it and who you do it for. I find that most statements answer only two or three parts of this equation and usually miss the "why." It needs to be concise so people can remember it, feel connected to it and compelled to either work for you or purchase your goods and services. - Wendy Fraser, Fraser Consulting, LLC
9. Use 'Kindergarten Speak'
In order to put forth a clear and powerful statement about your brand or business, make the statement plain and straightforward. Imagine you're speaking to a class of kindergarten children and explaining your business and the impact you'd like to have on the lives of people who either work for you and whom you serve. If they get it, great -- give yourself a round of applause! - Michele Davenport, MOSAIC COACHING SOLUTIONS
10. Answer Why Your Organization Exists
A business statement is the answer to why the organization exists. For a leader to fine-tune the mission statement of their organization, they must answer their “why” first. A mission statement comprises of the organization’s value, belief, and the reason of “why you do what you do.” Clear and focus your mission statement by answering the "why" your organization exists. - Abraham Khoureis, Dr. Abraham Khoureis
