StrategiesThatWork.com

We hope you find the following information to be both useful and interesting.  At the bottom of this page you will find brief summaries of other articles that may also be useful to you....

Use our contact forms to let us know what you think, other topics we should include, and so forth...

No Magic Bullets

Everywhere you look someone is writing a book, promoting a seminar, or sending you a consultant with the "magic bullet", the way to have a strong and successful company in five easy steps. Much like the late night infomercials that promise you a lean and muscular body while you sleep in exchange for your MasterCard or Visa number, the magic bullets of business only work for the people promising them. There is an alternative, but it won't happen while you sleep. It is the Science Of Yourco.

What Is The "Science Of Yourco"

No generic business strategy will make your company succeed because the companies that win are the ones that do a lot of things right, consistently.

Every company does a few things right, and generic strategies cannot do you enough good to separate your company from the throng of competitors. The generic strategies cannot possibly take into account your unique set of corporate characteristics, your unique group of employees, your unique combination of competitors, your unique supplier relationships, and your unique market. Generic business solutions can improve a generically weak company, but it takes more to be a winner.

Winning auto racing teams do not adjust spark plug gaps and set carburetors according to the specs on the box, they test various settings to discover the best setting for that particular car under the anticipated racing conditions. Your company is no different. You need to develop a Science Of Your Company, an understanding of the unique factors that keep your business from being generic, and how those factors interact to limit your options and provide opportunities.

The Beginning Of The Science

The first step is to start noticing the number of assumptions that shape the decisions of your company.

What total package of goods and services do end users think they are getting when they purchase your product? How much impact do your sales and marketing efforts actually have on the purchase decision? If the market knew everything there was to know about your product and the products your competition offers, would your market share go up or down?

How well does the way your company distributes overhead represent actual costs, and how does that affect the actual profitability of various products and corporate divisions? Have you ever considered a flat pay scale with incentive bonuses based on the results of monthly performance evaluations?

When was the last time production benchmarked performance by testing to see how much a totally focused and highly committed production run could produce (try offering a significant reward for the winning effort, you might be amazed)? Have you ever randomly picked five items from your list of frequently purchased items and tried to find a better product or a better price for the same product? What would happen if you gave the same R & D project to a university graduate student or outside engineering firm and your in-house engineering group to compare creativity and cost? Could you sell one of your salespeople a competitor's product?

Question Assumptions

Asking the right questions (and then researching to discover the answers) is the key to understanding how much of what you know is actually true.

Look at the decisions your company makes, decide which ones have the greatest impact on costs or growth. Then question every assumption that goes into making those decisions. Most of the assumptions will probably turn out to be pretty accurate. The few that are not can make the difference between being a winner or just another competitor.

Easy Answers Are More Fun

The Science Of Yourco is one of the most important concepts we can present to you. That makes this article particularly difficult to write. Canned answers and magic bullets are fun to write about because they "package" nicely. You state a problem, offer a solution, and show why the reader is better off for having read what you wrote. The reader gets a pleasant sense of closure, a renewed confidence that he or she is now better prepared to win in the business environment.

The problem is that most easily written / easily read "solutions" fail to really meet the reader's needs. This Science Of Yourco really works, but it probably leaves you feeling a little lost, and maybe somewhat uncomfortable. But if you think about it, it also makes sense. I wish I could give you an easier solution, but this is the only one that really works.

The Good News

The good news is that if you decide this is too much trouble and choose to ignore it, your company will still (most likely) do alright. That is because there is a really good chance that your competitors will be equally complacent. It takes some time and effort to develop a Science Of Your Company.

The bad news is that the first company to develop a Science Of Their Company will have a significant advantage in the market, an advantage that the rest of that market will probably not have time to catch up with.

The real question is "do you want to count on being lucky, or do you want to gain that advantage?"

Best Picks...

....If you are in a hurry and can only read a few articles, the following five are the ones we hear the most about...

They are a bit longer than most of the others, but they will give you something to think about....

Could You Run A Winning Football Team Like You Run Your Company?

Teamwork - Coaches and players speak to business professionals, encouraging them to build teams that can win.  Let's compare your company to a professional football team....

Eating The Heart Of The Watermelon

The heart of the watermelon is the sweetest and lowest hassle part - so why bother with the rest?  You may not want to follow this thinking at your next picnic, but it sure works when making customer and product decisions!

Quit Your Company - An Exercise

This exercise will force you to see your company and the competitive landscape differently than ever before.  It will help you decide what needs to be done in order to stop the competition you don't even have yet...

Dealers And Distributors (Short Version)

You may need dealers and distributors- or not.  The real issue is whether your end users feel that they need your dealers and distributors!  Companies win when they offer end users what they want....

Dealers And Distributors - And "Going Direct"

If you have a dealer and distributor network, should you consider "going direct"?  Let me ask you this - if a major competitor did, what would happen to you?  That's your answer - this will help you see how to do it....

Management Theories

Not all management theories work - and this section discusses some theories that have problems

Reality Instead Of Theory

You can't believe everything you have been taught about business.  Most of it is true, good information - the trick lies in knowing which parts to believe, and which parts to reject.

Positive Reinforcement Myths

Positive reinforcement can result in training and motivational miracles - but there is one little catch...everyone in the "real world" seems too well fed for it to work!

Truth About Advertising - What Advertising Awards Mean To You

Advertising awards are something ad agencies love to display - perhaps it gives them a feeling of credibility.  It's a shame those awards don't reduce their client's advertising costs or increase their client's sales...

"One Size Fits All" Management Fads

Management fads do a lot of damage - they send companies off in wrong directions, and they erode the confidence of managers.  How?  Managers try the latest fad, and when it doesn't work, they assume it is because they were not good enough - it's a shame, because their instincts are almost always more effective than the fads...

TQM - The Quality Myth

TQM has been a major force for a number of years.  Although it has lost some of its luster in many circles, its proponents (consultants getting wealthy, perhaps) continue to re-invent it under a constant flow of new names....

Your Departments

The last group of articles in this section apply to sales and marketing.  The reason this area is receiving so much attention here is that there seems to be more confusion in that area.  Let's just take a quick look at some of your key departments...

Accounting Excitement

If business was a sport, the accounting department would be keeping score.  Unfortunately, the accounting department seldom provides the kind of information managers need in order to make good decisions....

Purchasing

Purchasing is more than "buying what you said you wanted", it is a proactive role that investigates better products and anticipates demand.

Engineering And R & D

Engineering creates your "new and improved" products - you need to make sure they know what your company and your customers want from them.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing - Manufacturing efficiencies largely determine your costs - and costs largely determine your competitive position!  Efficiency requires great management, management willing to do what it takes to attract and retain the very best people.

Entering New Markets - Then Closing The Door Behind You

Entering new markets - you couldn't do it if the companies already in those markets were staying in touch with their customers!  Remember that after you enter a market - or you may become someone else's "new market"!

Innovate, Renovate, But Satisfy Your Customers

Things have changed faster than most companies have changed - the web, overnight delivery, long distance charges, longer lasting products, direct (to consumer) sales - there are many ways to combine these things to satisfy your customers - and gain market share.

A Winning Marketing Campaign - Lousy Sales

Heartbeat Of America.  The ad campaign won awards, but market share slipped.  Winning companies match great marketing with great products - then the competition loses while consumers win.

Strong Companies Win In Efficient Markets

Marketing is not the art of lying without getting caught.  When your product is the best choice, there is no need to lie.

Applied Market Research - Satisfied Customers

Market research can come from a consultant, but it should also come from your own employees.  Having market research means nothing, however, if you don't use it to make customer driven decisions.

Selling To People - Not Markets

Sometimes we can forget that markets don't buy anything, people do.  Market research is valuable, but make sure it tells you about real people.  Nobody wants your product - they want a way to solve a problem or meet a need - perhaps your product can help them accomplish that.

Advertising For Sales, Not Awards

Advertising - why are you doing it?  If it is for sales, you may need to make sure your agency understands your priorities - instead of pursuing "awareness" and "impressions" - if you want sales, hold them accountable for sales!

The Rest Of It...

Not everything fits into a file, box, or compartment - this is the rest of it....

StrategiesThatWork.com Homepage

Marketing should not be a lie - build a company with productive labor, efficient purchasing, great design, accurate accounting, rational distribution - and the result is a truth you are proud to tell.  Marketing becomes a simple matter of telling the truth to people who are interested!

Eating The Heart Of The Watermelon

The heart of the watermelon is the sweetest and lowest hassle part - so why bother with the rest?  You may not want to follow this thinking at your next picnic, but it sure works when making customer and product decisions!

Dealers And Distributors - And "Going Direct"

If you have a dealer and distributor network, should you consider "going direct"?  Let me ask you this - if a major competitor did, what would happen to you?  That's your answer - this will help you see how to do it....

Dealers And Distributors (Short Version)

You may need dealers and distributors- or not.  The real issue is whether your end users feel that they need your dealers and distributors!  Companies win when they offer end users what they want....

Quit Your Company - An Exercise

This exercise will force you to see your company and the competitive landscape differently than ever before.  It will help you decide what needs to be done in order to stop the competition you don't even have yet...

Three Kinds Of Employees

The right employees are one of the most important resources a company has. Most employers are quite aware of how valuable a great employee can be, but have a difficult time figuring out who the great ones are.  It helps to divide the work force into three groups.... 

Your Mission Statement - What It Means

A mission statement is not something you can carve in a plaque next to your door, because it needs to change.  Mission statements establish priorities, and if customer satisfaction is not at the top of those priorities, you may have a problem.

Could You Run A Winning Football Team Like You Run Your Company?

Teamwork - Coaches and players speak to business professionals, encouraging them to build teams that can win.  Let's compare your company to a professional football team....

Performance Reviews

Performance reviews.  Yawn.  While performance reviews are not exciting, few things can do more to shape your company.  Done right, they can make a big difference...

"Honey, We Need To Talk"

"Honey, we need to talk" are terrifying words when they come from your spouse.  You may feel that you have an "open door policy", but walking in that door feels a lot like "Honey, we..." to most employees.  You need an easy way to stay in touch - like lunch!

Partnering And Sole Sourcing

Partnering - we hear a lot about it, but if you aren't willing to be a partner in your purchasing, you are not ready to ask your customers to trust you in that role....walk in their shoes for a moment.

Customer Focus

"Customer Focus" is something we hear a lot, but seldom results in much action.  Funny, isn't it, that customers are the only people who leave money in your company - everyone else is there to take some out....

Science Of Yourco

You don't have to look further than the nearest business magazine to find a few easy steps to management success - so why bother to develop a "Science Of Yourco"?