Years ago, I worked with a large greeting card company on their annual catalog and DM program. During an annual kick-off meeting, where they shared goals and objectives for the year, they did something nothing short of brilliant.
First, they showed us their audacious financial growth target. Fairly intimidating, but we were used to it. Then came the brilliant part. They had distilled these objectives down to one simple step, “If each of our best customers buys just one more card this year than they did last year, we’ll reach our financial objectives.”
Okay, they had a lot of best customers. But that’s not the point. The point is how powerful it was to have that big, hairy, audacious goal condensed into a plausible transaction. Rather than facing a big blank canvas and 12 months yawning ahead of us with a financial target that felt as tangible as monopoly money, we had a singular purpose: to get the customer to take one small step; buy just one more card.
Since that day many years ago, I’ve used the OSSS (One Small Step Strategy) hundreds of times across as all kinds of brands, both B2B and B2C. Here’s why it works.
It meets your customer or prospect with relevant messaging.
Whether you have a single customer segment or multiples, the OSSS helps enforce a targeted marketing strategy. For example, what is your ask for a prospect vs. a best customer? For prospects, it might be to consider your brand. Just browse your website. Trial a product. For a best customer, you want them to do more of what they already do. Buy multiples. Purchase more frequently. Spend more money with you. When you consider specific, incremental asks rather than a blanket strategy for your whole audience, it will lead to a much more targeted, relevant message and marketing platform.
It helps define your contact strategy.
What to send and when to send it? Looking at a blank calendar can be daunting. But once you determine your specific ask, things can fall into place pretty quickly. For instance, in the case of the greeting card company, we sent a piece out monthly reminding customers to buy birthday cards for that month. (Just one more card, remember?) There are many factors that determine who, what and when to mail; but determining the small step can often guide the process.
It inspires your team.
When was the last time you listened to a recording of JFK’s famous “moon shot” speech? He challenged his administration to make it to the moon within his Presidency and the focus was so tight that they did it! It was super inspiring and got people behind him, supporting his dream. The OSSS can help rally your troops, give them a (tangible) goal and something to fight for together.
It makes for a great creative brief.
True story. Rather than putting creative in a tight box, the OSSS can be inspiring and even liberating for a creative team. You’ve seen the result of this on a large scale with Geico. Geico knew, historically, that once they got someone on the phone, they’d be able to sell insurance. So, their OSSS ask (by a gecko) was to give them just 15 minutes. How about Blue Diamond Almonds: a bunch of kitschy farmers in plaid shirts saying, “A can a week, that’s all we ask.” Who can resist? A singular purpose doesn’t dampen creativity, it lights it on fire.
So. Take the big hairy audacious goal and break it down. What does it mean for each customer segment? What is the one small step you need each of them to take to move your business forward?
Need help defining your one small step? Shoot for the moon! Give me a shout at mdrohan@jschmid.com
Tags: contact strategy, marketing strategy