I love doing strategy because it’s a great excuse to stand back and look at the big picture.
But, really, the big picture comprises lots of little parts.
Which begs the question, how do you make sure you’ve got all the parts (or as many as is humanly possible)?
Experience has taught me to:
- research your organization to gain a sense of your context and operating environment.
- look at your overall communications program so I know how whatever I’m working on fits into the whole.
- review your existing resources for any we can reuse, repurpose or steal from.
- bring fresh eyes so I can see new or unexpected connections.
- fully develop ideas and explain references so even the uninformed reader will get the point.
Here are two examples of how I do this in the real world:
One recent client needed me to review, refresh and revive her existing website copy.
We started with a one-hour Zoom call, which I recorded, to talk about what worked on her site and what didn’t; what she wanted; and what’s unique about how she approaches her work.
The call transcript served as my guide, helping me flesh out both existing and new content.
I changed the voice of the writing from third person to “you” and “we” to make it more direct and engaging.
And thanks to my research, I knew that one of my client’s recent podcasts concisely described what she does and why. With a little editing, the text morphed into the perfect introduction for the homepage.
I have another client I’ve worked with for about 12 years. I’ve been with her through ups and downs. I get what she does and why she does it. I know her audiences.
We co-write, passing drafts back and forth between us, each one stronger than the one before. I develop her thoughts and question whatever is unclear. And I draw out and clarify the philosophy that underpins her work.
Need some help with your big picture? Get in touch!
Thanks for reading!
