As a leadership expert and keynote speaker, I spend a lot of time talking about mission. In the end, that’s the only way to really define leadership, or to measure your results. You’ve got to have some sense of purpose—some vision you share with your team—in order to lead effectively.
It’s not enough to simply have a mission, though. That mission must saturate everything you do. All aspects of your company must ultimately reflect that central vision—that greater sense of mission.
That includes your marketing.
Ultimately, your marketing should convey what your company stands for. It should leave no doubt in the consumer’s mind what value you can provide them, or how you can ultimately help them.
Let me offer some guidelines to show you what I mean:
Be consistent. Is your mission to provide easily-accessible tech support to lay people? To create products that are environmentally friendly and energy efficient? To make life easier for busy managers, or perhaps for stay-at-home moms? Whatever your mission is, each piece of marketing content you develop should reflect it. Every time you create marketing collateral, ask yourself how it aligns with your mission—and if it doesn’t, don’t use it. It’s that simple. Make sure you are always sending a clear message about your brand and its mission.
Create mission-centered topics. Is your mission to provide quick and affordable plumbing services to local homeowners? Then write blog posts and create YouTube videos that exhibit some basic plumbing skills or DIY repairs. Stay on-brand and on-message, and show thought leadership in the process. Likewise, if your company focuses on environmental stewardship, pen some blog posts or social media content that draws attention to this realm.
Match your tone to your mission. Even the word choices you make should reflect your mission. The marketing content for a B2B company should be more formal and professional; a company catering to stay-at-home parents, meanwhile, can probably afford to be a little more personal, approachable, and irreverent.
When you get something right, promote it. There’s nothing wrong with a little self-promotion from time to time. If your goal is to innovate, send out a press release for each new product you create. If your mission is eco-friendliness, promote your green initiatives. Use press to reinforce that sense of mission.
Remember: Mission should be what all parts of your company align with!