A sports enthusiast’s take on digital strategies
There’s a big difference between playing football and playing golf.
Alex Ferguson once said
‘My greatest challenge is not what’s happening at the moment, my greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their f*****g perch. And you can print that.’
Fergie however played the long game and is the most successful football manager ever in the English top flight.
But I know what he means – when I played – most of the time it was about the player in front of me, of being in the moment and in their head.
I had to trust in my manager, his plan and the way my team mates and I executed it.
But when it comes to golf
The best way to describe it is that …
I’m playing with somebody
I want to beat them,
but I’m not usually worrying about them or what they do at all.
I’m usually worried about
Where’s the wind coming from?
What club do I use?
Who put those trees there!
Where do I need to put my ball so my next shot is easiest given the environment is in flux.
You might say – what has this got to do with anything…?
Well, it’s my analogy to describe when organisations — big or small — fail to “lift their heads up” and adapt to where they need to be, as opposed to focusing on where they are.
One of the big indicators of people that fail to “lift their heads up” is that they’re totally focused on what’s right in front of them: their competition.
They must know something…
They stop to look at them.
But most disruption happens not from your competitor, but from somebody on the side or behind you.
So, put your head in the digital marketing game – what is it going to be?
Football?
Deal with the problem in front of you – keep doing what you are doing and hope that your own Fergie knows what they are doing, and that you have the skills to support their plan.
Or Golf?
Understand the end goal, then assess the ways to achieve the end result – accept that the environment at the moment is full of disruption and stresses, and that nobody has the right answer all of the time.
Accept that every action you take may succeed or may not – test and trial, take responsibility for the result, review it and then try again better…
Both approaches might work, but which way do you as a marketer want to play the game?
When it comes to Digital Marketing Strategy, our team have over 50 years of hands on experience in senior leadership roles in business to draw on. We’re not laser focused on the latest technology, but on helping our clients to find the solutions that will work best in achieving their business goals.
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