If you’ve read my previous articles on a perceived loyalty gap and empowering customers one thought might have come immediately to mind: that will cost money and impact short term performance. It’s an inconvenient truth I believe that this definitely is true.
So, why am I advocating for this anyway?
Because there are ways to navigate through that dilemma between short term performance and long term success.
Let me ask you something: what do some of the most successful and valuable companies today have in common?
Well, if you look closely you might find that most if not all of them were said to be losing ground, underperforming at one or more time or even had outsiders giving up on them. Do you remember Apple, Microsoft, Google or Amazon experiencing this at one time or another? Multiple times? I certainly do and wouldn’t think they’ve been hurt by that in the long term.
What did they do differently then from others. I would say the main factor is that they didn’t get distracted too much by outside pressure and expectations staying true to their vision and strategy. A vision and strategy that had to change and adapt with the times even if the outside didn’t initially understand.
Of course there always has to be short term thinking. In changing times one always gets distracted. The important thing seems to be to actively manage that distraction, accept it for what it is and do the stop-gap measures needed while staying on course. In the end you can only take your customers with you into “your future” if you believe enough in that future to stay course. How should they believe if you don’t.
That all sounds pretty easy and logical you might say, so where’s the catch? The challenge is that when outside doubt and pressure already is high as is focus on your company, the slightest signals are taken up and judged. And with the probable need to implement at least certain stop-gap measures there will always be mixed signals. Mixed signals that an anxious outside will most likely not read in your favour. Making this part of your communication strategy and not denying the obvious will become a necessity. After all the worst thing in such instances when signals want to be read against you is denying the obvious and subsequently losing trust. How could someone not agreeing with what’s supposed to be obvious be trusted to have the right strategy? Kind of the point, isn’t it?
You might now say that all of the examples I’ve given have lots of money so staying true to a long term strategy is easy for them throughout short term challenges. Very true – today. Wasn’t true for all of them the first time they did it. They just built trust by getting it right the first time, helping them today.
Of course individual situations and challenges are always different. Sometimes it may even be true that absolutely all that can (still) be done is short term. However I passionately believe that in the vast majority of cases that not to be true but there to be a way through all short term challenges.
Staying true to a – potentially changing and possibly openly challenged – long term vision at the cost of short term performance/success may be an unpopular thought. An unpopular thought very well considering in my opinion though.
Let me know your thoughts on this and contact me to discuss on how I might help you navigate through short term versus long term communication.