As a small business owner, it can be easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and operations of running your business. But it’s important to take a step back on a regular basis and look at the bigger picture. Having a clear understanding of your business’s purpose, vision, and mission can help guide decision making, goal setting, and attracting customers.
One key component of this is having a unique value proposition (UVP). A UVP is a statement that clearly explains the value and benefits your business offers to its customers. It’s what sets you apart from your competitors and tells customers why they should choose your business over others.
Having a strong UVP is essential for small businesses because it helps attract and retain customers. If potential customers understand the value that your business offers, they are more likely to choose you over a competitor. It’s also important to regularly review and update your UVP to ensure that it accurately reflects the current offerings of your business.
In addition to a UVP, it’s important for small businesses to have a clear purpose, vision, and mission statement. These statements help to guide the direction of your business and serve as a roadmap for the future.
Your purpose statement should explain your ‘WHY’, the reason for your business’s existence. It should act as the guiding principle that drives everything you do.
Your vision statement should be a clear and inspiring description of what you want your business to achieve in the future. It should be aspirational and set the direction for your business.
Your mission statement should outline the specific actions and strategies that your business will take to achieve your vision. It should be a tangible plan for how you will achieve your goals.
Having a strong purpose, vision, and mission can help to focus your business’s efforts and rally your team behind a common goal. It can also help to attract customers and partners who share your values and are aligned with your business’s mission.
Equally as important as having a purpose, vision and mission, is making sure it’s communicated to and understood by your employees. It’s important for employees to understand the purpose, vision, and mission of a business because it helps them to understand their role within the company and how their work contributes to the overall goals of the business. This can be especially important for small businesses, where employees may be wearing multiple hats and working on a variety of tasks. It can also help to increase employee engagement and motivation, as employees are more likely to be invested in their work if they feel that it aligns with the values and goals of the company. Furthermore, a clear purpose, vision, and mission can help to foster a sense of community and teamwork among employees. When everyone is working towards a common goal, it can create a sense of solidarity and help to build strong relationships within the company.
Having a UVP and purpose, vision, and mission statements is essential for small businesses. It helps to attract and retain customers, guide decision making, set goals for the future and engage and motivate employees. It’s important to regularly review and update these statements to ensure that they accurately reflect the current offerings and direction of your business.
-Paige Sandvold is the Content Manager on the Brand and Digital Platforms Team at Directwest.
