Three Steps for Wellness Brands to Develop a Clear Path Forward

 
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Do you feel disoriented these days?

We have all - both as businesses and as individuals - been significantly disrupted over the past several months.
2020 wasn’t off to a great start, but the past few weeks have created additional stress for many.

 

Many wellness and beauty brands are finding themselves re-examining their path forward.
While some changes will be minor, others will require additional resources and time.

 

Disruptions are not new in business, and as a business leader, the role of leading in times of turmoil fall on your shoulders.
But it isn’t simply a matter of leading the way forward - business leaders that excel during unpredictable times not only weigh every decision carefully, but they also act fast.

 

As I work with wellness businesses going through change, the following are the three key strategies I encourage them to focus on to ensure that their company stays on track.

 

1. HAVE A CLEAR OBJECTIVE

When it comes to objectives, I encourage teams to have one singular objective. This doesn’t mean that you can’t work towards accomplishing multiple things - it simply means being able to focus you efforts to create synchronized progress. It also makes it easier for all team members to have a clear understanding of what outcomes they should be aiming for.  If you have identified multiple objectives, then either make sure you prioritize them or structure your objectives so that they are department-specific and ladder up to your business objective.

 

Here are examples of some business objectives:

  • Increase Net Sales Revenue to $50 million in 2021.

  • Expand into 3 new markets (Australia, Mexico and Singapore) by 2022.

  • Become a Top 5 seller in X category at ABC retailer.

 

 

2. RE-EVALUATE AND RE-ENGINEER WHAT’S IMPORTANT

Once you have a singular objective outlined, it’s time to “clean house”. This means identifying everything you need to “keep” and everything you are on the fence about. Notice I used the word “need” - it’s important to distinguish between elements you have a personal attachment to, and the elements that actually help you achieve your goals.

Food for thought: Sometimes you need to “re-engineer” a keeper, and sometimes a “maybe” becomes a keeper if you re-engineer it.

 

Here are areas to examine:

-Processes

-Staff roles

-Company values

-Brand point of difference

-Messaging

-Packaging

 

Note that some companies will have the talent/resources to make the necessary improvements, while others will not. For things beyond your teams’ experience, you may want to consult an expert.

 

3. HAVE AN ACTION PLAN

Creating an “Action plan” is easier said than done - but how often have you gotten excited about change, make plans….only for it to fall flat when it comes time to pulling the trigger?

 

Keep your eyes set on making progress.

This means that for every intention, you must attach an action.

 

By creating an action plan, this will ensure that you will continue to make progress and move the needle. One thing to keep in mind about action plans is that they often have to be updated. Sometimes this is a matter of adding new actions as progress is made, and other times pivoting becomes necessary when new information presents itself.

 
c okubo