What Is a Mission
Statement?
A
Mission Statement is a summary that explains your business to the world.
It’s the big picture of how you see your purpose.
More than just a
slogan it should express your business’s essential values. Anyone reading
it should understand what you do and why you do it. They should see how
you plan to keep to your values.
Why Do I Need One?
Most businesses do many different things in the course of serving their
customers. The process of writing a Mission Statement can help you
determine what the core benefits are that you provide.
In a sense, it
explains to your business’s reason for being to you and your potential
audience -- the forest, as opposed to the trees.
If you have ever
struggled to explain to someone what exactly it is that you do, a good
Mission Statement can not only make this process simple but it can also
help that someone explain you to others. So it can also help your bottom
line.
And with the clarity
of purpose that defining your Mission Statement gives you, you will find
it easier to make decisions about new opportunities, directions and
changes of plans. Simply put, you will be able to ask, “Does this new
situation fit with our Mission Statement?”
What’s In
A Mission Statement?
A
Mission Statement should say who your company is, what your company’s
goals are, whom you serve, what you provide and why you do it. It should
also say how you plan to tell that you actually are operating according to
your Mission Statement.
Generally, this
statement should be short – just a few sentences long. As this article is
directed towards small businesses and sole proprietors that should be
enough, but larger companies can and do have Mission Statements or Value
Statements that are crafted for each division or stakeholder group.
While you should feel
good about what your Mission Statement says, it should not be simply a
feel good statement. Don’t fill it up with essentially meaningless
sentences about how wonderful your company is.
It takes some time to
develop a good Mission Statement. And it is not a one-person job. Involve
everyone within your organization. Get feedback from your clients. Talk to
your suppliers about what you do. You need to because they will expect you
to live by those words, at least during working hours.
How Do You Write
A Mission Statement?
Fill in the following to get you started on crafting your own Mission
Statement. I’ve filled it in for my business to give you an idea of how it
is done.
My/our company name
is: Nicola Andrews at Bionic Office.com
My/our
clients/customers are: small business owners and sole proprietors
I/We help them to:
grow their businesses
In the following
manner: better and more effective communication
My/our goal is: to
write carefully crafted copy that clearly expresses the messages that my
clients want to say
Because: they need
my help
I/we will accomplish
this in the following way: through understanding their business
objectives, core values, target audience, products and/or services before
I start, I will write the words that will effectively connect them to
their client base and other stakeholders.
I/We will know success
when: My clients’ businesses improve and grow.
Finished version:
Bionic Office helps small business owners and sole proprietors grow their
businesses through better communication. All the copy I write is carefully
crafted to clearly convey what my clients want to say. I take the time to
fully understand each client’s business objectives, core values, target
audiences, products and/or services before I start so that what I write
effectively connects them to their client base and other stakeholders and
improves their business. |
