Does your organization have a mission statement? If not, you should consider crafting one. And, as you create it, you should consider how it ties into your core values – and how that relates to your consumer finance offering.
Keep It Concise
You don’t need a lot of words to say something meaningful. Less is often more when it comes to mission statements, and there are a few good reasons for that.
First, if your mission statement is too long, you run the risk of “feature creep.” This term is used in software development to describe additional (often unnecessary) features being added to the scope of a project over time. It’s something to avoid on a software project, and it’s also something to avoid when it comes to your business’s mission. You can’t be both a jack of all trades and master of your vertical. It’s wise to narrow your scope and hone in on what your business truly does or wants to do.
Second, a short mission statement is more marketable, both internally and externally. This one speaks for itself – no one wants to read War and Peace in order to merely understand what your business does and why.
Finally, a concise mission statement allows for a bit of mystery; a bit of flexibility; a bit of openness. It allows for future possibilities, without hemming you in. It’s not that you couldn’t later change or rewrite your mission statement as needed – it’s more that a mission statement acts like a guiding light, and you don’t want your beam of light to be too narrow. You want to see what might be possible on the fringes of your mission.
Try writing a mission statement no longer than single sentence – and don’t be afraid to use a few commas.
For example: “The mission of this article is to tell business owners how to craft a concise mission statement that speaks to what their business does today, and encompasses what they plan to do tomorrow.”
Think About the Long Term
Create a mission statement that is not just concise, but also forward looking. While writing out your mission statement, dare to dream. Dare to imagine what your business could be tomorrow. For example, let’s say you don’t have a consumer finance program today, or you have one that doesn’t really live up to your expectations. Build into your mission statement the possibility that your consumer finance program could get a major glow up – with the addition of a particularly effective finance automation solution like FormPiper, let’s say.
Build In Your Business Model
Make your mission statement not only concise and future focused but also tailored to the way you actually do business or plan to. Do you have a consumer finance program today? Does it work well? Is it a key part of your business? How do you deliver on the core values and principles of your business? How are they reflected in your customer experience?
Your mission statement is not just a quick summary of your business, and it’s more than a guiding light – it is also a reflection of the way you operate, your industry, your parameters, and your ambitions. And, if you have a consumer finance program or wish to, it will hopefully be one that represents, if only tacitly, the immense value that FormPiper can bring to your customers, your employees, and your business.
