Business Objectives – I want to be awesome, too, but… remember the difference between goals and objectives? Objectives should be measurable and objectives should be stated BEFORE anything is enacted. Your objectives define the desired future for your team, and create a vision everyone can work towards.

Business Constraints – I’d like to etch my likeness in the moon with a laser, too, but… Constraints can and should include budgets, timing, product availability, team availability, responsiveness, legal concerns, etc. Again, this should be understood, to your best ability, BEFORE anything is enacted.

Competitive Insights – I like to pretend I’m the only person in the world sometimes, too, but… The activities of your competitors matter; they’re seeking the same consideration, attention, and resources from your customers as you are. Look beyond numbers. Try to define their current strategy, its effectiveness, and how they’re accomplishing their objectives.

Consumer Insights – Sometimes I imagine myself as Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams, too, but… Just because you build it, create it, or advertise it, doesn’t mean they’ll come. Understanding where people are, how they spend their time, why they share information, and what motivates all of these behaviors is essential; and the more that this work is outsourced the more disservice is done to the organization.

I’m trying to convey something simple with this simple diagram – these are the ingredients you need before you can begin firing off missives to your internal and external teams. I wish this were more apparent to more companies.

There’s quite a bit that this diagram doesn’t communicate.

First, everything is interdependent. Objectives cannot be defined without an understanding of constraints, consumers, and your competitors, and your ability to dive deeply into insights is a factor of your time, money, and resources.

Second, this becomes a fluid process when you apply and enforce measurement. Strategies should only evolve once you have an understanding of their performance towards stated objectives.

Third and last of all, this kind of paradigm can produce a suite of strategies that can be tested, measured, refined, and eliminated as necessary.