What you’ll read: A positive impact master shares how to make the world brighter. We marketers can use these learnings in our industry too.
If you look at any list of major consumer trends over the last few years, the phrases “conscious consumer” and “ethical operations” are almost guaranteed to come up.
For small, growing businesses, the writing is on the wall:
If the well-being of your employees, your customers, and the global community come second to profit, your customers aren’t going to want anything to do with you.
The good news:
Companies that are dedicated to making and leaving the world a better place will survive and thrive well into the future.
Luckily, Wales’ first (and the world’s first) Future Generations’ Commissioner, Sophie Howe, recently gave a TED Talk detailing how her department is working to do just that — for her country and for the global community.
Incidentally, small businesses should take heed of the lessons Howe brings to her talk, as they can help teams readjust their focus onto what truly matters:
Having a positive impact on your customers’ lives, and on the world as a whole.
Involve People in Setting Long-Term Goals
Howe’s first piece of advice is to get all hands on deck working toward a universally-common goal.
In her position, Howe takes a two-pronged approach. First, she communicates clearly and specifically, about how our actions today will impact our future. As her constituents become more aware in this regard, she then empowers them to come together, make their voices heard, and set long-term goals as a community.
Now, chances are Howe came to the table with a ton of long-term goals, herself. Still, her focus is on guiding her community members to take ownership of the goals they create — in turn leading to increased dedication and engagement throughout the community.
For small business owners, getting all stakeholders (both your team members and your customers) involved in goal-setting and decision-making processes should be a top priority.
Thinking “big picture,” it’s crucial that your employees are heavily involved in creating your company’s long-term goals, and your overall vision for the future. Again, this will create a sense of ownership throughout your organization — and will almost certainly increase your team’s chances of achieving said goals.
It’s also important for your individual employees to truly internalize how their day-to-day efforts impact the team’s progress toward these long-term goals. From there, you can tie specific performance metrics to the “big picture,” in turn leading individuals to take ownership for their performance and development.
In addition to your employees, you should also look to your customers to help flesh out your long-term goals for your company. While you probably already have a pretty clear vision for your company’s future, you still want to involve your customers in the goal-setting process — for a few reasons.
For one, it will allow your customers to get involved in something bigger than themselves— and that will enable them to effect the changes they wish to see in the world.
(Check out our recent post on community marketing for more in this area.)
It also provides additional opportunities to learn more about your customers’ needs and expectations, and get with your brand. Similarly, the insights your customers bring to the table may actually help you see how much more your company and community can do for the world around you.
If your goal is to create a movement of any kind, you simply can’t do it alone.
Instead, work to deepen your employees’ and your customers’ involvement in the movement you wish to create. If you can get everyone headed in the right direction — and fully dedicated to reaching a common goal — your brand will easily become a driving force in your industry.
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Take a Holistic, Interconnected Approach
Though she doesn’t explicitly say it in her talk, Howe clearly lives by the idea that nothing happens in a vacuum.
Everything has a ripple effect on the world around us. Howe says recognizing, understanding, and embracing this interconnectedness is essential to creating positive change in the world around us.
In Howe’s case, her institution is responsible for building connections between entities operating within Wales’ social, economic, environmental and cultural sectors. She mentions, for example, an initiative in which the National Botanic Gardens teamed up with hospitals throughout the country to beautify the grounds in various ways.
Howe takes this all a step further, signaling the importance of working with “unusual suspects” to build interconnectedness. As Howe’s team faces evermore complex issues, she’s tasked with forging new connections between various entities to develop innovative solutions and effect positive outcomes for her nation.
See where we’re going with this?
There are tons of ways for your company to partner with other brands, organizations, and entities to make waves throughout the global community.
Target and UNICEF, for example, partnered up back in 2015 to create their Kid Power initiative — which is still active today. On top of monetary donations and food relief packages, Kid Power has helped educate over one million children on the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle.
To be sure, Target could have undertaken the initiative on its own — and likely would have had some kind of positive impact on the world. But, in forging a rather unlikely partnership with a trusted organization like UNICEF, Target has been consistently able to take its Kid Power initiative to the next level year after year.
The point is, you’ll be able to accomplish more f by bringing other socially responsible organizations into the fold. While your company’s mission and vision is unique, many other teams are likely headed in a similar direction — and you’ll both be able to accomplish more by coming together for a common cause.
Maximize Your Contribution to Well-Being
The most important part of Howe’s Talk comes right before the three-minute mark, where she advises leaders to
“Make it your mission to maximize your contribution to well-being.”
In her position, this involves making huge improvements throughout the sectors mentioned earlier — all without making decisions or taking actions that would inadvertently cause harm elsewhere.
For small business owners, the takeaway is this:
The existence of your company should only serve to improve the well-being of your customers, your team members, and the global community. Ethical operations, equitable treatment, and authentic dedication to global causes are all but essential by today’s standards.
Of course, this is a pretty tall order to fill — especially when many of the “big boys” don’t exactly play by the same rules.
But, as we said at the start, shirking these responsibilities will likely cause you to lose a ton of business — and cause your brand’s reputation to plummet.
Will it take more of an investment, and higher levels of dedication? Absolutely.
But, those that find a sustainable way to operate ethically and with universal well-being top-of-mind at all times will experience major success — in business and otherwise.
- Higher employee well-being leads to higher productivity levels and business performance
- 83% of teams that focus on the well-being of their customers see higher-than-average revenues
- Global executives attribute 63% of their company’s market value to their brand’s reputation
The best part?
The more successful your business, the more you’ll be able to invest into your team’s efforts to bring about change to the world. In turn, your company will always leave the world a better place with everything you do.