In my mind, this was the art of communication!

Today, thanks to social media, every one of us has easy access to a “microphone.”  Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, YouTube, Google + — these new media make broadcasting a message as easy as hitting the ENTER key.  Every few days the blogosphere grows exponentially as thousands of words slip from the confines of an imagination onto the broad expanse of the information super highway.

Untold creative genius is invested in producing and delivering messages — in everything from 140 characters to blog posts — from podcasts to YouTube videos.  Any one can be an “announcer” in any of a growing number of channels.

At this point it is important to note that sheer numbers (followers, fans, friends, views) indicate that many of these messages are entertaining; some even provocative or compelling.  But one can’t help wondering whether much of this is infatuation with the proverbial announcer’s voice; or, to be more pointed, is social media marketing in danger of being more about creating, crafting and delivering a message than it is about connecting, communicating and ultimately selling?

Blanket pronouncements like this are, of course, unfair; and creativity will almost always find a target.  But a cautionary note seems appropriate for all of us who believe in the value inherent in social media.  The thing that makes social different from most, if not all other media is the fact that dialogue is a critical cornerstone.  This is not just about the capacity for give-and-take; conventional broadcast and print have the capacity via letters to the editor and other feedback mechanisms.  The distinction is that give-and-take — conversation – is a basic ingredient in the foundation of social media.

In fact, it is the voice of the marketplace that is the fabric of social media.  Any who would succeed long-term in social media marketing cannot ignore this fact.  To do so — no matter how masterful the message — is to relegate social media to little more than another one-way message distribution channel.

Successful social media marketers listen, instigate dialogue, and focus at least as much on conversation (and what can be learned) as on a pitch or presentation.  Probably more.

Put another way — the reason social media is such a robust marketing tool is that it provides for — indeed, at its best, it becomes — a shared experience.  And it is within the comfort of shared experiences that real connection is made and communication occurs.

In retrospect, this was the dynamic at work when, as a teenager, I listened to those announcers.  Resonant voices and production quality aside, the radio experience was, simultaneously, intensely personal and shared.  Social media affords a dimension that makes it possible to couch every marketing effort in the context of shared experiences.  Perhaps the most difficult part of the job is being less concerned with announcing and more focused on dialogue.

Master this, and any questions of ROI will likely disappear.

Eric Fletcher

Makes for a nice song.  But practically speaking, we don’t much care for the discipline that is required to really listen.

Don’t believe this?  Look around, and consider the precipitous decline in the art of conversation.  E-mail, texting, social updates (in as few as 140 characters, to boot) — all make it infinitely more easy to browse, skim, filter and create shortcuts for messaging.  Key words and optimized phrases have become the shorthand of ideas.  Seems like this used to be thought of as “hearing only what we want to hear.”

And if one is really plugged in, technology will do much of the work for you.

Really listening, it turns out — the kind of intentional act that puts aside agendas and preconceived notions — is hard work.  It calls for focus and concentration.  It has one goal: to learn something.

Not to sell, disciple, convert or win.  To learn.  Because learning is the door to opportunity.

(As an aside, if your sales force, customer facing team or social media experts are having difficulty identifying new productive and profitable opportunities, they may not be listening.)

This is what we tell our children: listen and learn.  It is — to a lesser degree to be sure, but to a certain degree nonetheless — the way we behave in the earliest stages of an important personal relationship.  Talking less.  Listening more intentionally.  Looking for insights that combine to form a bridge to relationship.  Alert to the most promising opportunities for connection.

The unfortunate tendency — in the context of personal and business relationships — is to far too quickly believe we know enough (if not, all).

And with “research” complete, the focus on listening shifts to a preoccupation with what we now want to say.

We agonize over brochure copy, web content, Twitter posts, and a message strategy for Facebook, Linked In and now Google +.  With so many ways to deliver our message, what we say becomes the focus.  Even in conversation, research points to the fact that often, while feigning listening, we’re really thinking about what we need to say next.

Few are the strategic discussions around the execution of a feedback mechanism.  Fewer still the times that the listening potential of social media or the firm web site appear on a meeting agenda.  These are, after all, messaging tools.  So convinced are we that connecting and communicating with the market is about messaging, that the absence of robust listening tools is scarcely noticed.

And we certainly don’t consider the listening opportunity inherent in social media.  (How many organizations do you know that follow clients or key customers on Twitter — not to talk to them, but to listen to what they have to say?)

This is not to diminish the need for or value in quality messaging.  It is, of course, critical.  It is to at least whisper into our collective marketing ears.

Want customers / clients for life?  Listen closely.  Given the time and opportunity, the market will tell you the secrets to their loyalty.

Eric Fletcher

Not only is the issue real; it is legitimate.  It isn’t as though any of us has either a shortage of work, or an overabundance of free time on our hands.

Why are we here?  What keeps pulling us back?  When will the investment pay off?  And will we recognize the payoff when it occurs?

If the numbers game doesn’t meet your needs – i.e. the accumulation of followers, friends and fans — the issue becomes pointed.  Get beyond the metrics that are relatively easy to skew in a positive direction, and what is the measure for success?  And even when it comes to the numbers aspect of direct marketing, when might it be the best investment to simply buy connections.

So…what about all the time a comprehensive social media strategy requires — Is it worth it?

Measuring Intangibles

There have been volumes written on the “ROI of social media.”  Virtually all discuss the idea that social is an investment in relationships.  And relationships are tough to measure.  They are dynamic.  Some days they are stronger than others.  The best weather storms and grow deep over time.  And client loyalty initiatives notwithstanding, relationship is an intangible asset.

To apply a standard designed to quantify tangibles when attempting to measure intangibles is to ignore the fact that the two live and operate in opposite sides of the brain.  (This is really a topic unto itself, but if you wrestle with this idea, check Chip Conley’s thoughts on measuring what matters, here.)

If we are to accurately measure the value of social media we must rethink the measurement process.  Not retool; simply rethink.  Align perspective.

In a presentation titled The Power of Vulnerability (click to view), social researcher and storyteller Brene Brown begins with this premise: in the social arena, connection is what matters most.  The ability to feel connected is of ultimate importance to human beings.

Now…if you skimmed that last paragraph, take a second to re-read.

For everyone wondering about the social media explosion, or what the return on the time invested might be, the answer lies in the way we think about connecting.  As Brown suggests, human beings are prewired to connect, to belong, and to share.  Social media is simply an extremely efficient way to make connection possible.

With this in mind, here are four cornerstones of a productive way to connect:

1. Be about building. There are plenty for whom social media is just another numbers game.  Gather (and solicit) enough names, create a pitch, and sell widgets.  But if you’re here to connect, be about building something to which others are drawn – a discussion, a group, a community.
2. Give unconditionally.  Agendas and expectations kill relationships.  If you want folks to connect with what you’re building, figure out how to give something of value.  This is not to suggest that you shouldn’t ever ask for something or make a “pitch”; it is to say that if the first thing you do with every connection is fire off a Direct Message selling your software, you may not be building lasting relationships.
3. Be personal, real, and appropriately transparent. Brene Brown talks about the critical nature of vulnerability.  We won’t presume that social media marketing is the venue for total transparency; but if you hope to build enduring relationships, social calls for language, tone and thesis that resonate.  Absent a quality that is unmistakably real, your connections will be nominal.  And of little long-term value.
4. Target smart. One of the greatest challenges associated with establishing rewarding connections in social media is defining with whom you wish to connect.  There is, unfortunately, no single easy answer for this; however, begin by being selective around subject matter, individuals / groups you admire, and issues around which you have affinity.  Social is an enormous pool.  Be focused, and you’ll realize valuable connections sooner rather than later.

Ultimately value must be reflected on the bottom-line.  But if connections and relationships are valued assets, short-term numbers rarely tell the whole story.  Never underestimate the value of intangibles.  Measure What Matters.

Eric Fletcher

The answer may be two-fold.

It is possible that things began to go awry when the primary focus of social media marketing shifted to numbers; that is, when the accumulation of fans, friends, followers and connections became the be-all-end-all measure of success.

Especially when compared to conventional media, social media affords such great opportunities, not the least of which is placing the world at the proverbial doorstep of any enterprise…without respect to budget.  But the instant that bolstering numbers becomes the objective, the real strength of SM has been diminished.  From the beginning, social has been about community; its dynamic growth is directly linked to the market’s desire to connect, to experience relationship, to be part of something; its lifeblood is dialogue.  Go for numbers in lieu of relationships and sacrifice results.

Or perhaps we lost traction when we began to equate marketing with the creation and delivery of the message, as opposed to identifying the precise point at which connection might occur.

Don’t misunderstand — messaging is most certainly a critical piece of the process.  But creative genius and awards aside, if messaging doesn’t emanate from a clear understanding of what it takes to connect with our target, we should not be surprised when the market barely moves in our direction.

Building A Strategy? Start Here.

Find endeavors that have experienced SM marketing success, and you’ll find two constants: smart targeting based on a strategy that transcends the numbers game; and,  communication that begins with intentional listening.

What might happen if, for a season, we forsook the pursuit of numbers and invested in carefully selecting a target market?  What if your enterprise were able to build a community that shared concerns, aspirations and experiences?  Invest in what it takes to identify and cultivate this market and you’re on the brink of success.

Couple smart targeting with intentional listening and experience what happens to a marketing strategy that includes feedback and collaboration with clients/customers/targets.

These are the differentiators and critical factors of a successful social media marketing strategy.  It takes aim at a specific target, and employs the creative (and opportunistic) resources of the mind’s ear.  It is a relentless quest for common ground and points of connection.  And it results in messaging that connects with targets, and has unquestioned impact on the bottom-line.

Eric Fletcher

Significant global unrest appears perpetual. Economic crisis inhibits dialogue around everything from national initiatives to local education. Infrastructures that facilitate so much of what is deemed essential seem stretched beyond reasonable limits.

Yet, those seated in the centers of power – political, social, private enterprise, all – seem impotent when it comes to effecting positive change.

Where is the brand of leadership that sees beyond its own street, neighborhood or village? Do leaders anywhere possess a world view born of an understanding that, while each community is made up of a multitude of perspectives, the threads of shared aspirations are strong enough to bind us together.

Without respect to your sphere of relationships, influence and operation, if you run into a leader that meets the following criteria you’ll be ahead of the game if you tap into their experience and perspective. If you own or run a company, hire them. This kind of leadership is, at best, a lost art.

Characteristics of a Leader

1. Big Picture Perspective. Whether a Manager, an occupant of the C-Suite, or a representative of “the people,” leadership cultivates and maintains perspective that transcends personal or parochial opinions and experiences. Driving an agenda rooted in narrow interests rarely gives rise to significant and lasting change.

2. Doesn’t Roam the Neighborhood Marking Fire Hydrants. If you’re searching for leadership, run when you encounter someone that invests time staking out territory. This never goes hand-in-hand with collaboration and consensus building.

3. Builds Teams. Leadership understands, whether intuitively or experientially, that winning requires a team. From governments to corporate giants to garage entrepreneurs, the best leaders rally support and leverage resources. They do not operate on (or seek to “mark”) an island. Leaders who do not believe in the greater potential of a team should be relieved of duty. Fire ‘em.

(By the way, the ability to build teams goes hand-in-hand with accepting responsibility — versus blaming all ills on the shortcomings of someone else.)

4. Possess and Inspire Vision. A verse in Proverbs observes that “where there is no vision, the people perish.” If you wonder whether you are a leader or whether your enterprise has leaders in every area, look for the vision. The absence of vision equates to the absence of leadership. On the other hand, the ability to inspire vision is linked to the ability to identify and tap into shared aspirations.

5. Values Listening and Learning over Hyperbole. Somewhere along the line we began to think of personal charisma and the ability to articulate a message as earmarks of a great leader. We manage to overlook that these characteristics have been shared by some of history’s greatest scam artists. This is not to demean the importance of being able to communicate. Rather, it is to remind us that what we most need in leaders today – the ability to find common ground between multiple diverse experiences, collaborative skills, a visionary perspective – are grounded in understanding. And understanding comes from listening. Have someone masquerading as a leader, but unwilling to collaborate and listen? Fire ‘em.

We select leaders in a number of different ways, depending on the venue. But perhaps one of the reasons leadership seems in short supply in so many circles is that we have forgotten what it looks like. Charisma, titles, access, economic might – none of these, leaders make.

What would you add to this list of characteristics?

Eric Fletcher

What we must not overlook is the fact that all listening is not equal. Query your favorite search engine for “types of listening” and you’ll find plenty of content on Discriminating (I-get-to-pick-and-choose), Passive (I’m-not-really-engaged) and a handful of other labels that seem like attempts to quantify the fact that sometimes we listen; often we fake it.

It is not difficult to make a case for Discriminating Listening in selected situations. After all, it is almost impossible to find a market segment that is not flooded with messages, each making as big a splash as possible in pursuit of mind share. The art of communication often seems inexorably linked to the metrics of media buys, production costs and decibels. The result can be deafening.

And with all the talk about the subject, one can’t help wondering whether marketers are listening.

An Opportunity to Reinvent

Few will admit it, but the proof is in the execution of strategies. Most strategies indicate that Social is viewed as another channel, put in play to convey a carefully produced and (theoretically, at least) finely tuned message to the masses.

Follow this course, and we ignore at least two things central to social media’s popularity:

• At its best, social platforms build around interaction and community; and,
• Social platforms afford everyone a voice.

Like it or not (and many struggle mightily with this) social media invites us to return to the basic building block of communication – the dynamism of shared experiences. This is the inevitable byproduct of interaction, participation, and collaboration. But it does not begin with messaging.

Enter Intentional Listening – listening by design, with purpose, with ears wide open. This is the opportunity and potential of social media.

That is the case. And though the irony of talking about it this much is not lost, here is fodder for what can hopefully be an on-going discussion around one of the most critical practices in social media.

Five Keys to Intentional Listening

1. Begin by asking “to whom should we be listening?” as opposed to “what should we be saying?” Somewhere in the course of the media age we have come to equate the best communication solely with message creation and delivery. And though this is not to say that the quality of messaging is not critical, it is to suggest that perhaps we have placed the proverbial cart before the horse. The most successful marketing always begins with target identification and research.
2. Take note (scrupulously) of what your target audience cares about. Review tweet streams, examine past posts, and browse lists of friends and followers. This “listening” will yield some of the best marketing intelligence available – a glimpse into what your market values and invests in.
3. Build on shared experiences. Listen carefully and your market will tell you exactly what it takes to connect. Build your connection strategy around shared experiences, interests, values and common needs. (If you are unable to identify this point of connection, return to number 1.)
4. Remember the arithmetic. Listen more than you talk…at minimum, two times more. Practically speaking, retweet more than you tweet your own message, ask questions that promote conversations around what your target market values. If the only time you seek interaction or feedback is when you want to precipitate action on your behalf, your arithmetic is wrong. Intentional Listening is about what it takes to build relationship. It is not about exploiting a podium or pulpit. In short, give more than you expect to receive.
5. Help build. Community is the life-blood of social media. Help build it and, with deference to the better mousetraps that might come along, your market will beat a path to your door. Build connections. Invest more time in a cause, event or idea that is important to your market than you do in asking targets to join your cause, and you’re on the road to relationships based on shared experiences. And there is dynamism in there.

This is the challenge for social media strategists: do we view this evolving arena as a message delivery media, or do we see it for what it is – a way to invest in Intentional Listening. The former view squanders the potential, turning social media presence into little more than a firestorm of sound bites.

Practice Intentional Listening and we’re on the road to shared experiences, valued collaboration, relationships that endure – and yes, loyal friends, fans, clients and customers.

Eric Fletcher

It comes in the form of the conversations that used to occur at the water-cooler or over the backyard fence, or in the good-old-fashioned (un-choreographed) town hall meetings. It is about give-and-take, and real-time feedback.

While one of the primary ways we evaluate marketing tools is in terms of how effectively a message is delivered, social calls for a new way of thinking about media. (Or, more accurately, it can actually help refocus our perspective on what constitutes successful communication. But that’s another discussion.) This is a new brand of media, made up of the fabric of relationship. This tool is far from one-way, one-sided or one-dimensional. It is about participation, collaboration and interaction.

Social media embraces the possibilities of shared experience.

(Note to anyone still puzzled by its popularity: this relational foundation is the reason that, while it continues to evolve, the growth of social media shows no signs of waning.)

In other words, if you’re a marketer, social media is for more than simply transmitting highly produced messages. It is tailor made to instigate dialogue, generate feedback and be integral in making an on-going brand experience accessible to customers/clients and prospects.

While this seems like good news on the surface — it is, after all, communication theory 101 — many organizational discussions about SM as part of a marketing strategy are stymied when ROI becomes the question. What is the expected return on investment, and how will it be measured?

The Ultimate ROI

To be sure, some enterprises face unique challenges around the use of social media; however, identifying ROI should not be one of those challenges. Here is the proposition: when properly used, social media delivers the ultimate return on investment. It is a return that transcends sales totals and revenue projections. These inevitably fluctuate dramatically based on multiple market realities. It trumps the fickle “satisfied customer,” vulnerable to a better price or greater convenience.

The ultimate ROI on a marketing investment is Loyalty.

Loyalty is not built over the span of a thirteen-week communication blitz. Or a state-of-the-art web presence. It is not the byproduct of any strategy employed to deliver a single message. Certainly, all of these tools can play a part; but loyalty implies relationship, and it is born of experience. Or, more accurately, loyalty is the product of a series of experiences.

Create the kind of experiences with your brand that engender loyalty, and it will change the way you (and the entire C-Suite) think about and measure ROI. In this context, return becomes exponential. Loyalty not only endures; it instigates whole new conversations in the marketplace — and these new conversations have potential far beyond any marketing message you might create. (Think word-of-mouth on steroids.)

While certainly not a silver bullet for every marketing effort, when it comes to facilitating an on-going experience with an eye on loyalty, social media affords something few other options can: proximity, presence and unfiltered feedback.

(As an aside…is it conceivable that the very thing that makes social media a dynamic force — authentic, unfiltered feedback from the market we target — actually strikes fear into the heart of some companies?)

Certainly, specific executables will vary, but the framework for a social strategy designed to facilitate shared experiences and build loyalty will invest in a three-pronged strategy. Focus on doing these three things well, and you’re on your way to relationships that endure.

• Intentional Listening
• Generation of Unfiltered Feedback
• Instigation of Collaborative Conversations

First Step — Leave Your Ears On

It has been said, but bears repeating — communication at its best is at least as much about listening as message delivery. In fact, without a robust listening component baked into the strategy, even the most articulate message does little to engender loyalty.

So how is this for fodder: successful social media marketing does not focus on message delivery; it focuses and builds on listening to the voice of the marketplace

For many this is not easy. But the truth is that social media is a great gift to every marketer willing to listen. For perhaps the first time in the mass media age, we have a tool that is collaborative and experiential at its core. We have constant and easy access to the voice of our markets.

If we will listen, our clients, customers, prospects and targets will tell us of the experiences they most cherish, and exactly what is required to win their loyalty.

Now that is ROI!

Eric Fletcher

But all of us, unique perspectives notwithstanding, count on our marketing investments to do one thing: contribute to a change – in awareness, in behavior, in loyalty, in habits or routines.

You may not think of or define marketing as an agent of change, but consider it. Regardless of the deliverable, from a single effort to an entire campaign, marketing is designed to instigate some type of change in the status quo. It may be about transforming a target into a client, expanding a customer’s use of your product/service line, creating awareness, or deepening loyalty to a brand. But effective marketing is, at its core, an agent of change.

Enter “Social Media”

I don’t believe any single solution is the holy grail of marketing; but the so-called “social media” options present marketers a new level of access to a critical dynamic of change – the oft overlooked (or ignored) element of dialogue.

Simply put, dialogue is the life-blood of enduring change. One-off decisions and temporary digressions can be precipitated by an event, an incentive or a compelling message. Dynamic campaigns can certainly win customers. But lasting change – the kind that lies at the heart of repeat business and customer loyalty – is the byproduct of feedback, conversations and the dialogue attendant to shared experiences. And “Social” provides a platform for numerous approaches to each of these activities.

We have long recognized the potential impact of “word-of-mouth” marketing. Get satisfied clients/customers talking about their experience with your product or service, and the marketing game changes. No longer is it the voice of the company extolling benefits; customer-originated messages have authenticity. Shared experiences resonate.

Add the element of actual real-time feedback, and you’ve tapped into the real marketing potential of social media; now you’re building relationships. And relationships trump everything. Relationship is the context for trust. Conversations that allow for questions and answers, musings, what-ifs, and even the airing of a problem – this kind of dialogue is the DNA of relationships that grow and thrive.

So when you wonder about the role of social media in a marketing strategy…or how to introduce the idea to leaders in your company…or what the best practices might be with respect to Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, remember the seed that eventually gives rise to the most pervasive and enduring change your market will ever know – dialogue. Today’s game-changing marketing plans create shared experiences, encourage on-going dialogue, and build communities with clients and prospects.

Eric Fletcher

Okay — truth be told, many of us are still wrestling with pieces of the new tool-set. (Please submit all workable Social Media marketing strategies.)

But while in pursuit of promising new connections in an undeniably dynamic marketplace, it may be timely to revisit the tool that has always shaped, and will again change the discussion.

Spot The Common Thread

Spend a few minutes visiting with a lawyer or a doctor who built a successful practice twenty-five or thirty years ago. Turn the discussion to how the practice was developed and the response will be something close to “I did good work; the word spread; and the practice grew.”

Find a retailer whose product isn’t the cheapest, but for whom customers exhibit intense loyalty. (Yes, they exist.)

Or talk to a client of one of Carl Sewell’s auto dealerships in Dallas, Texas where the idea is to transcend selling a car today in favor of creating a customer for life. (If you haven’t read it, the book is a “must read.”)

The thread that runs through these and a relative handful of other examples is the importance of the client/customer experience.

While companies invest heavily in innovation, go-to-market strategies, creative marketing communication and reward mechanisms, are we spending more than an afterthought on the experience clients (or targets) have when engaged by even the intangible aspects of a company. Certainly, benchmarks exist for creative budgets, production costs and even customer “loyalty” initiatives. But when it comes to what prospective customers actually experience, otherwise sophisticated strategies focus on comfy waiting room chairs, a cup of cappuccino or a “we appreciate your business” flyer stuffed in with an invoice or statement.

I should confess that I’m pretty big on comfortable waiting areas and a good cup of cappuccino. That said, if we believe a handful of tactics are the things that engage the market, and build enduring relationships, we have not learned the age-old and most basic lesson of successful marketing endeavors.

If the objective is to move one round of widget production, empty shelves of current inventory, sell one car, or sign one consulting contract, you likely quit reading a couple of hundred words ago.

But for every enterprise interested in creating customers for life — or, maybe even more valuable, loyal advocates for your brand — effective marketing comes down to what customers/clients/prospects experience when they encounter your company, product or service. This is really the essence of brand: is what your clients and targets experience consistent with what your message promises? Does the experience transcend or fall short of expectations?

There is little doubt that creative genius is able to engage for a season. But those who seed the stuff that turns to word-of-mouth muscle believe in creating, and invest in delivering an ongoing experience.

Market shifts and media innovations will inevitably distract many. Those focused on engaging the market in the experiences from which enduring relationships are born are the companies that will be left standing.

Eric Fletcher

You know the drill. There is buy-in for a vision; goals and objectives are identified; planning completed and resources have been ear-marked.  Then something insidious happens: it comes disguised as a too-good-to-pass-up “opportunity” that demands immediate attention, or (often the case) as an even bigger, better manifestation of the original vision. And once this vicious cycle is set in motion the grandest of visions is almost always relegated to dreams of what might have been.

When it comes to focus, it is an unfortunate and problematic catch-22 that many entrepreneurs, innovators and yes, marketers, by nature see opportunity at every turn. For the glass-half-full leader, the reality is that conceiving a vision plays to a strength; maintaining focus often accentuates weakness.

Add to this the fact that in today’s marketplace good ideas are rarely enough to carry the day, and you’ve spelled Trouble (with a capital “T”) for many endeavors. Better mousetraps and newer/faster/more cost effective solutions are conceived on a regular basis. The few that make it to the market and win are either the byproduct of tenacious focus or pure luck. Ether one is good, but only one is conducive to planning.

One of the most creative and innovative business leaders I know is plagued by his vision.  So grand is his ability to picture what might be, that he is never short of ideas.  But his perspective seems to render him incapable of focusing long enough to nurture an idea to fruition. By contrast, some of history’s grandest breakthroughs are the almost coincidental byproduct of focus  I frequently wonder about the impact my friend’s vision might have, were he able to focus long enough to execute a strategy.

Implicit in the idea of “strategy” is the reality of focus. It will cover a multitude of problems. It allows for alignment corrections and compensation for aspects of an original vision that might have been “off”. But lose focus in today’s market and course corrections are often impossible. Your target is likely to disappear.

So, if focus wins, how do you fight through blurry (or double) vision?  Here are four ideas.

Do your due-diligence on the front end.  Know your market.  Even if you don’t have an R&D budget, find a way to test your idea and marketing strategy.  Customer surveys and focus groups are great tools here. And, in case you’re still wondering, social media puts instant feedback within reach of any venture.

Know the metrics. How much does your vision cost?  How much is it worth?  At what point does it begin producing ROI? What percentage of your budget is earmarked for marketing?  The numbers provide essential perspective.

Establish a timetable, identifying critical intersections.  No business or marketing plan is good enough to be open-ended.  A plan of action should include a calendar that specifies appropriate dates for evaluation and strategic “tweaks.”  Establish these at the outset, and it’s much easier to avoid playing “hunches.”

Practice saying “NO.” Whether marketing a company, product, or idea, the critical measure of focus is the ability to say “no” to distractions disguised as opportunities.  There will be plenty.  Stay the course, execute your plan.  Chasing multiple opportunities is reactive.  And a reactive strategy almost always concedes leadership and market share to the competition. Credit to a friend and colleague here; Allen Fuqua (@A_Fuqua on Twitter) says, “if you never say ‘no’ you have no strategy.”

There are a number of understandable reasons for the blurring that exists between vision and focus.  For many businesses it is as simple as the fact that a single leader is responsible for both tasks, while the perspective required for each is unique.  So, for all charged with both tasks, separate hats — or more appropriately, goggles — may be the order of the day.

Eric Fletcher