We Sucked At These 3 Things—And We Failed

Boring jobs suck. I know because I had one once and it made me want to cry into my Thai takeout every night. But, I couldn't quit because I was pregnant (yes, on purpose), and my husband was green fielding a wind farm down in Chile (the country), and not getting paid. So, I had the stable job at a software startup in the digital publishing space. So Silicon Valley of me, right?

Nah, worst job ever. Why? Because nobody cared about what we did. I came from the journalism world, so they recruited me to sell in the software. But, I was told to focus on our platform, the numbers, and why our competitors were beneath us. Never did we utter a word about where we came from; how our trials and errors led us to creating this kick-ass solution; or what challenges (and wins!) we were experiencing as a young, VC-backed startup. In short, we were completely out of touch with our customer and just fire-hosing them with data, logistics and code in a language they didn't even speak. And we never told stories.

As you guessed, the company failed (shocking). And, in large part, it was because of the lack of powerful and compelling brand storytelling. We had no story, so no clients knew what to care about because they couldn't relate. And, worse, no team member cared because they (well, we) were so disconnected from our customer. So, our culture and company shriveled into mutiny (we literally had a revolt, but that's a story for another day).

Needless to say, I high-tailed it out of there, had a baby, and started Raw Strategy to make sure that every client had a powerful brand story, the systems to bring it to life, and a palpable connection to their people. 

So, ask yourself, are you making the same mistakes we did (see below)? If so, stop. Need help? Reply to this email (it's actually me, Lindsay, on the other end!), and I'll come to your rescue. For now, avoid these 3 critical mistakes:

Mistake #1 | We had no voice

We were automatons delivering highly technical information with no human story behind it—we had no point of view, no story arc to allow clients to engage, relate, and become believers in us, and we had no messaging that our audience would recognize as endemic to our brand. So, seriously, nobody gave a sh**, and it was like open-heart surgery convincing anyone to buy. 

Mistake #2 | We had no systems

When it came to marketing, we had no repeatable workflow, no checklists, no external or internal motivators to keep us on track and on task. We had no consistency, and therefore we were not dependable, nor seen as a thought leader in our vertical—we merely existed. 

Mistake #3 | We didn’t make anyone’s life better

We were so focused on making sure people knew what we did, what OUR vision was, what services we provided TO them, that we forgot to listen to what they actually needed. Turns out, it wasn't what we were creating. 

So, do yourself a favor: Find your voice. Find your systems. Ask your tribe what they're looking for, then serve it on a silver platter in the language, words, and context they actually use. MmmK? 

Was this helpful? Good, then share it with your peeps! I’d be grateful, and they will be too!