Be Different or be dead

September 8, 2014

Why common mission statements organizations create are ineffective and worthless

Source: Unsplash

Why common mission statements organizations create are ineffective and worthless.

Why are most business plans replete with mission statements that are meaningless?

They are exhausting; they tend to all resonate with similar themes.

A mission statement is the ultimate selfie.

It’s all about the organization. What the organization thinks about itself. What you aspire to be. What you think makes you great.

Almost every ‘About us’ page on a company’s web site shares a mission statement like this one:

“Delight. Yes, delight. Simply put, that’s our mission: To delight you with the products, services and customer support that we provide to you every day.”

Does anyone really believe this tripe?

Customers get little helpful information from mission statements like this.

This type of claim may declare the intent of the organization, but it provides no useful information in terms of why people should buy from you as opposed to the other choices they have.

In addition, most businesses say the same thing; they intend to ’delight’ customers; exceed their expectations; exist for them and so on. Nothing particularly new or special here.

This is nothing more than a selfie shot

Mission statements are helium-filled. They communicate at the 50,000 foot level. The average reader doesn’t understand nor do they believe what you say.

What’s missing?

Rather than the infatuation with your mission statement, I would like to see this on your company website on the About us page:

“The reason you should do business with us and not our competitors is…”

Acknowledge that people have choice.

Give people a reason why they should buy from you and no one else.

Take a deep breath.

If you have nothing meaningful and helpful to say to others, perhaps saying nothing is the best course of action.

Cheers,
Roy
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• Posted 9.8.14 at 03:24 am by Roy Osing
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