The future is coming. Fast. And it's going to be a connected, transparent, and unforgiving place that should scare the life out of people used to the old ways of making and marketing stuff. Which is great news for the rest of us.
To be successful in this new world, you will have to start by selling something that truly compels people to buy it, whether that's a product, a service, an idea, a cause, an experience, a job, or even yourself (and advertising won't be able to make up for your deficiencies anymore).
After you've figured out what that compelling thing is, the next question is to ask yourself will be...What matters most, what will be the key determinants of my success...?
- Engaging employees so they love your brand or engaging consumers so they love your brand?
- Making compelling promises to people or delivering on your promises to them?
- Succeeding reliably or failing spectacularly?
- Being passionate about your cause or being honest and generous about your competition?
- Winning well or losing well (a topic Seth Godin explores in detail here)?
- Having a great digital strategy or building a strong presence in the real world?
- Enhancing your hard product or enhancing your soft product?
- Focusing on your employees' rational processes or focusing on their emotional behaviours?
- Finding the right people or designing the right structures and processes?
- Managing your organisation or managing your clients?
- Getting your strategy right or getting your tactical execution right?
- Making sales or building relationships?
- Investing in your brand equity or leveraging off your brand equity?
- Hitting your numbers today or building for the future?
And the scary answer will be...
All of it. At once. Forever.
Which is what is going to make getting it right and being successful so hard. Just as it should be.
Because that's how great things happen.
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