#SmartStrategy [Designing Your Strategy For Business]

How do you find a hole? Do you look for the hole itself, or what surrounds the hole? 😂 

And how do you find a hole that is not there and one that you can't actually see?

How do you find a hole if you don't even know that one exists?

We've all heard the expression that we don't sell a drill, what we're selling is the hole. It's the "hole", moving towards the outcome that we want, not the tool that does it. 

This is how we can see our "survivorship" biases in how we build and execute strategy. 

Strategy is often what you need to do, but also what you don't need to do. It tells you what you see, but also what you don’t see.

Your audience doesn't want the drill, but rather they want the hole... so they can put in a mount to hang a picture, to connect that TV cable... yah, basic stuff.

Yet, the hole is the medium through which they can activate your audience’s true need, their true want. Their end goal. Their vision, for those in business. 

It is also the absence of the hole, the 'missing hole' that can give us even more clarity.

It's what we don't see at first glance, what we don't recognise when we first look at the problem. Once we see it, the power of it really resonates as a unique & clear solution.

In creating powerful strategies in my talks and learning sessions, I speak about the “missing holes” strategy [and the fact that I used to be an aerospace engineer and pilot, really bring this concept ‘home’ for me].

In WWII not all of the fighters/bombers were making it back to base after their mission, as they were getting shot down over Europe. Hoping to correct the problem, on the aircraft that returned, they mapped out all of the bullets that had hit the aircraft, creating a diagram with a bunch of holes on the aircraft. 

A simple problem with a simple solution, right?

The next 'normal' thought was simply to add armour to protect the aircraft in the groupings of the bullet holes. Makes sense, right?

The logic seems pretty sound-proof at first glance - protect the aircraft that received the damage…the armour will protect it and it will make it back for another mission.

Except - the aircraft that were NOT returning were the ones that were shot at, and ALSO had bullet holes that caused catastrophic damage to the key areas of the aircraft. These aircraft unfortunately crashed, and never returned to base. Yet, back at base, the engineers & mechanics couldn’t “see” these holes…

Now, we’re of course not in a war zone, but this concept is quite foundational and can create that extra level of clarity.

This is where “positioning” can help ensure everything is aligned properly around your #digital environment - on the site, socials and with campaigns. 

It can paint an entirely different picture of what your audience is actually doing, and what you need to do to engage or adapt so that you can deliver everything that you are capable of.

Your audience is looking at search terms, and exhibiting behaviours that tell you where the holes are. AND, they also clearly show what they are NOT doing, what they are NOT searching for, what behaviours they are NOT exhibiting. You've probably heard the expression that, like the 'solution' to the plane problem:

Strategy also tells you what not to do.

Do you agree? 

Strategy is often what you need to do, but also what you don't need to do. It tells you what you see, but also what you don’t see.

Have you identified and leveraged the missing holes in your strategy? What does your Growth Pathway Strategy look like for your business? Have you decided what not to do?