3 Trends, 4 Questions for Developing Innovative Strategies

Leadership Unlimited
A Monthly Column by Terry Wall
February 2012: 3 Trends, 4 Questions for Developing Innovative
Strategies

How do you develop innovative strategies that secure your
position and success in the market place?

You look at trends, and then ask questions about how
those trends, projected into the future, could affect your
business.

Many types of trends comprise the landscape, including
politics, geography, and the world order, just to name a few.
Here are three you might consider:

Demographics: The next decade promises massive growth of the
senior population. And, people are relocating much less than
before.

Technology: Mobile technology, and the blending of multiple
technologies for retrieving or disseminating information.

Society: In 1960, 72% of all adults ages 18 and older were
married; today just 51% are. (I’m in trouble if for
Valentine’s Day my wife signs me up for eharmony.com.)

Those are just three categories of trends. And I’ve identified
only one or two trends in each category. But you get the idea.
You have to determine which trends affect your business.

After looking at a trend, you ask 4 questions: 1) What affect
will this have on the products and services I produce? 2) What
affect will it have on how I deliver those products and
services? 3) What products and services should I develop for
the future? 4) What markets should I target?

Let’s look at two examples.

Large, international company: After looking at many global
trends, an international company is introducing a new product
this year. It’s been in the works for several years, and
they’ve invested millions of dollars in this product. It’s a
bold move in an innovative strategy, and they realize the risks
involved.

But the global landscape, and the changing trends that will
influence that landscape, require a bold move if they want to
maintain the top position in a very competitive industry.

Small Business: My friend Tom Falco is in the residential
construction industry. He scanned the industry landscape, and
saw that people aren’t buying new houses because they can’t
sell their existing homes because of falling home prices.

Or they don’t have money to buy a new house. Others, because
of the shaky, uncertain economy, don’t feel comfortable taking
the risk of buying a new house.

Regardless of why, they’re not buying new homes. That’s the
trend.

So Tom asked himself, “What can I do to get more business?” He
decided to focus on home improvement, and found that people who
can’t move at least want to improve the house they’re in.

Tom now focuses on remodeling existing houses—installing new
windows, putting that new roof on, or building a new
addition, of finishing that basement. It’s not the same as
building new houses, but it will do until the industry picks
up.

Look at trends, then ask the right questions.

What trends are you looking at? What innovative strategies
will you use to take advantage of those trends?

Until next edition, keep leading the way!

Copyright (C) 2012 by Terry Wall