GoodnightEntrepreneur

What your business will and should be

In StrategyTuesday #24 I mentioned that Drucker said that in order to formulate your company’s mission statement you have to answer 3 questions, namely

• What is my business?
• What will my business be in the future (to modify, extend and develop your existing business) and
• What should my business be? (Identify new opportunities that are opening up and that will take your business to becoming a different business)

The last two questions are about the future directedness of your business. These are questions that will help you to not spend energy and money on yesterday’s definition of your business and of the market.

It is about understanding worldwide trends and translating it into an operational plan for your business.

Some trends identified by world-recognised trendspotters [Popcorn, Peters & Barletta, Aburdene & Naisbitt, Salzman] are:

• Baby boomer’s market: Post World War 2 generation born between 1946 and the early 1960’s. This generation’s specific development stage and associated needs have dominated world markets.
• Feminine Think: The way women think and behave is having an impact on business, causing a marketing shift away from a military model towards a relational one of supporting and empowering people.
• Life imitates the digital: Consumers today experience “reality” through their interaction with digital technology. They are accustomed to user-generated content, online groups, 24/7 gratification, automation, etc.
• Spirituality: It is an acknowledgment of the spiritual reality of human existence. It is a trend reaching back to spiritual roots in order to be strengthened for the future.
• Forming virtual tribes: Today people are seeking out a group that have common feelings, causes or ideals; validating one’s own belief system without necessary going outside of your immediate environment. For example Facebook, MySpace, etc.