Today, I had to complete the May magazine for SCCDS while putting together an email blast and designing a revised event promotion. Of course, I wouldn't have had to revise that promotion at all if I hadn't asked a key question:
"Why are we doing this?"
It's a simple question but it's one that I think gets asked too infrequently in business. Let me give some backstory.
For years, SCCDS has welcomed new members with a "pizza party" and with a seperate "wine and cheese night." These events have been suffering declining attendance in recent years. Promotions for the events have always used the titles "New Member Pizza Luncheon" and "New Member Wine and Cheese Night." I was asked to add promos for the events to the latest issue of the magazine.
It occurred to me that the events may not be drawing attendance because perhaps the target audience isn't interested in pizza parties or wine and cheese nights. So, I asked our Executive Director "Why are we doing this?"
Everyone paused to consider.
I continued "Is the food the focus of the event? Or is it the services we can provide our new members?"
The answer was obvious, of course. But, the question afforded us the opportunity to reconsider the messaging and purpose of a long-standing event. In the end, we decided to change the event titles to "New Member Welcome Events". The promotions are now focused on explaining to new members what SCCDS can do for them and what they'll get by attending the events. No mention of pizza, wine or cheese.
How many business and personal practices can you improve by asking "Why are we doing this?"