When exploring new opportunities for revenue generation, incorporating a marketing mindset throughout the business innovation process is critical for success. A marketing mindset puts your customers (members) at the forefront of the process. It prioritizes customer needs, preferences, behaviors, and challenges.
This marketing mindset is central to the Discovery Opportunity framework cited in two other Association Venture Playbook articles.
It’s Time to Grow Nondues Revenue for Health Associations
Convert Health Care Disruption Into Opportunity to Create Value and Impact
Private Sector Lessons
Association leaders can glean essential lessons from private sector market leaders. Apple, when led by Steve Jobs, set the standard for becoming a market leader by focusing on customer needs and customer experience. Amazon, under the leadership of Jeff Bezos, is also a commonly cited example of a company that has achieved mind-boggling growth by putting the customer first in all aspects of their business — from the point of purchase through delivery.
Association Lessons
Throughout my twenty years leading association marketing efforts, I found one of my most important missions was to change the internal culture from viewing the marketing team as “finishers and distributors” to “customer experts and champions.” There is nothing more frustrating to a marketing professional than getting an email or an invite to a meeting from a colleague in another department to discuss a new program, product, or service. One that they have already developed and now are seeking your input on a launch strategy, almost as an afterthought rather than an integral part of the product life cycle.
If Associations are serious about innovation and revenue growth, they will need to break down department silos and create a culture that fosters cross-department collaboration and idea generation. Waiting to apply a marketing perspective at the end of the “venture creation” process results in many missed opportunities and sub-optimal outcomes. All phases of venture development benefit from a focus on who is the customer and how the value proposition of the new service aligns with their needs.
Four Key Considerations To Ensure Success
Your marketing team has the insights you need to discover an opportunity. A vital responsibility of the marketing and communications department is to understand your stakeholders’ needs, challenges, behaviors, and preferences. Effective marketing teams are data-driven. They are constantly tracking your customers’ behaviors and are seeing, in real-time, the issues and topics that are resulting in action (e.g., views, downloads, shares, and purchases). Their knowledge of your stakeholders will help you assess the viability of new concepts and increase the likelihood of the success of any new project. They also can help you identify the data you need to make key decisions and help you gather that data if they don’t already have it.
Your marketing team speaks your customers’ language. Words matter. Messaging can make or break the success of a new initiative. Your marketing team knows the phrases and words that resonate the most with your audiences. They’ve done the focus groups, they’ve experimented, and they’ve tracked the data to see what works and what doesn’t. That knowledge is vital as you develop new programs. They also will be a key partner as you test new concepts with target audiences and develop launch strategies.
Your marketing team can and should inform goal setting. “Creators” have an optimistic mindset, which can sometimes blind them from recognizing the realities of the marketplace. Those closest to a new idea or concept wouldn’t put in the time and energy to bring it to life unless they thought it was going to be successful. However, very few new ventures are overnight successes. In most cases, it takes several months and even years before a new initiative gains traction, widespread awareness, and profitability. Your marketing professionals are experts in building awareness. Tap into their valuable experience and insights as you set goals and expectations for new programs.
Enthusiasm is necessary for success. Leaders prioritize initiatives they are excited about, and people tend to be most enthusiastic about the projects they have had a chance to influence or co-create. If you want your marketing team to bring their ‘A-game’ to your project, you need to make sure they consider it their project, too, and believe in its potential to advance the organization’s strategic goals.
Our world is rapidly changing, and organizations must innovate their business models and value propositions. As you explore new revenue-generating opportunities, make sure all your key internal stakeholders have a seat at the table. In particular, make sure your strategic communications experts are involved in every step of the way.
This article was originally published on Association Ventures Playbook.
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