As a business advisor, I always encourage my clients to approach their strategies with a clear hypothesis rather than relying on hope. The “hope” strategy is simply not effective and can lead to wasted time, resources, and disappointment. Instead, I advocate for the hypothesis strategy, which is a more scientific and methodical approach to achieving success.
For example, let’s consider the advertising aspect of a business. Under the “hope” strategy, let’s say a business is approached by a marketing company and encouraged to hastily put together a time-sensitive “special offer” online advertising plan, “hoping” that it will attract the right customers. This is not only risky but also lacks a clear objective.
In contrast, with the hypothesis strategy, businesses formulate concrete hypotheses about their target audience and their needs or frustrations. For instance, Hypothesis 1 could be that their current and potential customers research particular products and services. Hypothesis 2 could state that the headline of the advertisement should address their customers’ needs or frustrations and position the business as a solution.
To test these hypotheses, businesses can set up a unique domain name or phone number for the advertisement, redirecting interested customers to their website or offering a unique contact method. By monitoring analytics or tracking incoming calls, businesses can determine whether their hypotheses were true or false and, more importantly, if the advertisement was effective in driving sales.
The beauty of the hypothesis strategy lies in its flexibility. If the initial hypotheses do not yield the desired results, businesses can make adjustments and retest, focusing on one hypothesis at a time to increase their chances of success. Gathering feedback from current or potential customers beforehand can also greatly inform the hypotheses and increase the likelihood of achieving favourable outcomes.
It is crucial for businesses to adopt a mindset of learning and discovery when implementing the hypothesis strategy. By embracing this philosophy, they can avoid incorrect assumptions and make informed decisions based on concrete evidence. Ultimately, this approach empowers businesses to optimize their strategies, maximize their chances of success, and avoid relying on mere hope.
