Case Study

Intro

Strategic Vision

 Jonathan Loved the Strategic Vision concept. He had definitely never considered creating a Vision for his business with this kind of depth. His first challenge was analyzing WHO his company served. 

Jonathan manufactured high end custom wood vanities for bathrooms.  Aside from his customers being homeowners who could afford $3500 and up vanities, he really didn’t have any other information about his customers. They just found him online on platforms such as Etsy and Pinterest. As Jonathon attempted to think about different details about his clients he didn’t know where or how to begin the process.

He remembered in his coaching call that if you’re stuck, just start creating a list of the things that pertain to him. In other words, create a client profile for himself. He started putting down the basics…  

Homeowner (400k value), married, three children, two cars, prefers resort vacations, loves fine dining, appreciates fine/custom craftsmanship in all things, has eclectic taste, enjoys a unique living space, pays to have his lawn manicured, loves to come home to a clean and organized home, enjoys fitness and healthy eating, is a strong Christian believer, enjoys searching for antique furniture, friends have similar tastes and interests.

It was becoming quite a list! Now he understood the goal and also realized he was a lot like his ideal clients

Next was the “How do we serve them best” question. To Jonathon, the best part of this whole Strategic Vision was that he is future casting. This meant it was what he wants things to be like in the next 18 – 24 months, not what it is right now. He was able to dream a little for this and write down what he considered the perfect customer journey. Everything from the first customer contact, ordering, manufacturing, shipping and follow up/review/referral processes. 

Jonathan focused on every aspect and person in his business and how they became the hero in their part of the customer journey. Whether it was office work or staining and clear coating the final product. Jonathan also remembered who this Strategic Vision is for. It’s not a marketing piece, it’s for internal use only. That means it will be read by those already on the team and potential hires. Jonathan really wanted to capture the essence of what and why they do what they do. 

Weaving this into story form was a little bit challenging at first because Jonathon didn’t consider himself a writer. Jonathan’s Sharpen the Spear Coach gave him a few samples of Strategic Visions written by other business owners and that gave him clarity. The best part is he was encouraged to take what was relevant to his SV and copy/paste from the samples. No need to reinvent the wheel when it’s already there!

The final piece was “Why should it serve them?” Why is this valuable to all those involved? This took a little bit of deep thinking because the obvious answers of, “they get paid to do it, the customers get a great product and the business makes money,” was incredibly superficial. Jonathan also realized that when he first began this business eight years ago, those were exactly the answers he would have given and been satisfied. Thankfully, he no longer thinks that way. Value connects with purpose and now that he has laid out the complete Vision where he wants his business to go his people will become willing followers. This will begin to draw those who are truly called to serve in the positions he has available. This shared purpose is going to change the entire culture of his business and Jonathon is very excited about that. It’s almost like a total reset of his business and that’s amazing.

After Jonathon completed the first draft of his Strategic Vision he uploaded it into his STS coaching platform so his coach could review it. He also remembered, near the end of the module, there were eleven questions you could ask regarding fulfilling or writing your Strategic Vision correctly. These were so helpful in speeding Jonathon to completing his Strategic Vision correctly.

“This is going to be a game changer for my business,” Jonathon told his coach. His coach reminded him that this Strategic Vision is the cornerstone of his entire business and that he will be constantly referring back to it, not only during the coaching program, but when he speaks to his team as well. Questions like, “How does this serve our Strategic Vision?” and “Are we fulfilling our Strategic Vision with these decisions?” along with a host of other Vision directed questions. 

For Jonathan, this was one of the more difficult things he has done in his business and that was kind of shocking to him. The overall clarity it gave him though is absolutely priceless. He now sees the full potential his business can be and that’s exciting!