How to Write a Vision Statement for Your Company
Every businessman starts his business with a certain vision in mind. His vision statement can be said to be the backbone of the company as according to experts, it is based on this statement, that the business owner plans the future goals. Therefore, it can be said that it plays an instrumental role in shaping the future of the organization.
Writing it for the company can be a daunting task for the entrepreneur who has just entered the business world. It is one of the most important things in the office as it speaks volumes about the company. It should be captivating and not look like just another poster on the wall in your office. Therefore, if you are planning to open a business or start a new venture with a startup, take efforts to write a powerful statement for your organization.
Let us understand a bit more of the vision statement through this blog. We have covered the points given below in this article -
- What is a vision statement?
- Why is a vision statement considered to be important?
- What are the rules for creating a vision statement?
- Process: How to write a vision statement?
- What are the tips for crafting a vision statement?
- Conclusion
- Key Takeaways
What is a vision statement?
According to industry experts, this is a powerful statement for an organization. It is similar to the mission statement but has a much deeper impact on many individuals that are associated with the company. A vision statement imparts a concrete way for the stakeholders, particularly employees of the organization. It helps the workers understand the meaning and purpose of the business. This statement describes the who, what and why of a business which is necessary to understand the desired long-term results of the company’s efforts.
As per Katie Trauth Taylor, CEO of a writing consultant Untold Content, a company’s vision statement shows what a particular organization hopes for in future and what it wants to achieve in the long term. Also, it is known to serve a lofty purpose by telling the company’s foresight by a single impactful statement. For instance, as per the available data, an early Microsoft vision statement was to have a computer on every desk and in every home which is quite a reality in the present world.
Why is a vision statement considered to be important?
A business owner must have an impactful vision statement. As per a research, the employees who think their company’s foresight is powerful are known to have sixty eight per cent engagement levels in the organization which is around eighteen points above the average level. It is said the more engaged employees in a company are more productive and are known to be effective corporate ambassadors in the larger community.
The statement can have a deep impact on a company’s long term success. Hence, even if a business owner takes time to craft a powerful statement, it is considered to be completely okay in the industry. The main purpose of this sentence is to synthesize the company’s ambition and even give a push for mobilizing the staff.
What are the rules for creating a vision statement?
According to the available information on the internet, a business owner should follow some rules while creating his office revelation. These are the common rules that every employer must be aware about if he wants to make an impact on the employees. They are as follows:
1. It must be short and succinct: The vision statement must be of two sentences at the maximum. A business owner can have an expanded statement with additional details but the version should have catchy punchlines which makes it easily memorable for the employees, clients or other visitors of the office.
2. It should be specific: The statement must be specific to the business. It should portray that only your business is capable of providing a unique outcome that the customers are looking for. An industrialist must remember that generic statements will not have any impact on the employees and even customers. For instance, if a business owner uses “Our company vision is to make every brand more inspiring and the world more intelligent by 2023” , it is quite weird and confusing as to what he wants to convey through this statement.
3. Do not include words that give an explanation: A business owner must not include words that can be easily interpreted by the employees, stakeholders or even customers if he cannot specify what he actually wants to speak.
4. Simplicity is the key: The vision statement must be simple enough for employees, stakeholders, clients or even the customers to understand. You should not include technical jargon, popular business buzz-words or even metaphors in it.
5. It must be ambitious: The statement must be ambitious along with a certain timeframe. It will ensure the employer and employees will work achieving the goal. Let us consider an example. Assume that a business owner has written a vision statement in 2021 for a project to be completed by 2026. This deadline ensures that the project is ambitious and there is limited time to work for it to be completed around the year 2026. It makes sure that the employees in the organization will not lose faith and work towards the project with full dedication and commitment.
6. It must align with the company values: A vision statement of the organization should align with the company values that an employer wants his employees to exhibit at the workplace.
Process: How to write a vision statement?
There are numerous articles available on the internet today that give a brief how to go on for writing vision statement for your organization. These blogs also provide examples of good and bad statements as illustrations. However, most of them lack the process which will help the business owners have a complete idea about how to write them. We will discuss the methodology an entrepreneur must follow while writing them to have an impeccable impact on the employees and even the customers for better business profits.
Source: https://www.cascade.app/blog/write-good-vision-statement
If you are an employer who is struggling to write an income statement, you just need to follow the process given below -
1. Define your output: It is always a good idea to understand what your organization does to generate income. It will make sure that your income statement is output focused and not input focused. For instance, if you consider a bakery, its product is bread. The outcome of the bakery is it is enjoyed by the people by savouring multiple food dishes. Let us take another example. A consulting organization is the one where professionals give advice to their clients. The outcome of this process is the success of their clients on the basis of their advice.
Even if these processes are inherently understood by the customers, many few businesses demonstrate them in a formal written way. Now, there are multiple bakeries or consulting agencies in the world. If all these businesses would have the same vision statement, it would not inspire the customers. This implies it takes a long way in the creation of the same.
2. Define what is the unique twist your organization brings to the outcome: The products available in the market today are just a modified version or a reinvention of something that already existed earlier. The businesses just make them using a different approach to attract the target customers. If you are a small business owner ready to introduce an existing product in the market, you should at some point include its lifespan which will help others believe that your organization is successful while others have failed due to some reason.
For instance, in the example of bread stated above, the statement is as of now very general. The business owner needs to include a unique selling point (USP) that makes his bread popular as compared to the others in the vicinity. This could be premium quality and high grade ingredients or it is baked using a centuries old tradition that was passed in the family through generations down the line. A catchy USP should shine in your statement.
3. Apply some high level quantification: Numbers! Include them in the statement. An unrealistinc statement which has no possible end in sight can become a frustration even for the employees or make the customers turn their back against a once very popular product. Moreover, if a brand uses a statement that sparks debate among the masses of different cultures, it can even lead to cynicism amongst the employees.
Let us consider the bakery example. Even if you do not want to apply specific metrics, you can redefine the target audience by adding words that you want to highlight through the vision statement. A business owner who sells bakery products can use the line “every customer within walking distance of a store’. An industrialist must understand that his quantification should be industry specific while creating this statement. He should know whether he concentrating for B2B or B2C market while writing the same.
4. Include relevant real world aspects by using human emotions: Including a real world aspect that touches the lives of humans makes the vision statement even more memorable and ensures it sticks in the minds of the target audience. This assists to paint a solid mental image in their minds which makes them related with the brand with more ease. For instance, if the vision statement of Microsoft has an option -
a. A microsoft powered computer on every desk
or
b. Every working person must use Microsoft product
It is clear that when a reader reads the (a) he can more clearly visualize having a computed in his room kept on a wooden furniture. There is nothing wrong in the statement written in (b) but it is a bit tough for the reader to transform it into a mental picture.
Now let us consider the bakery example. If the business owner includes a line that portrays “To ensure every customer leaves our door smiling”, then it paints an image of cheerful and happy face in the mind of the person reading it. It compels a strong human emotion in his mind and even invokes his thought process which will make him take further actions to buy the bread from the bakery.
What are the tips for crafting a vision statement?
If you are a small business owner who has just initiated a startup in the industry, it is very important to know a few tips for creating it. This statement is used to stretch the imagination of the customers while offering sufficient guidance and clarity about the product. It helps the customer understand the company’s direction and even sets priorities for the employees which are useful in their growth.
The hardest part of creating a unique and captivating vision statement is coming up with the right wordings that give an appropriate value to it. It should shine the corporate identity in the respective business without being too vague for the customers. These are sentences that demonstrate how the world would be different with your business is in the concerned industry.
On the basis of advices from experts, here is a small guide on what should a business owner pay attention to while creating vision statement for his organization -
1. Project 5 to 10 years in the future
2. Focus on success while dreaming big
3. Make use of present tense in the sentence
4. Make use of clear, concise and easy-to-read language that all customers can understand
5. Infuse it with passion and it should be inspiring
6. Align the statement with business values and goals
7. Communicate the vision to the employees with proper planning
8. Be prepared to commit time and resources that a business owner has himself established for the customers
Conclusion
Writing a vision statement is not an easy task for any business owner if he has no idea about how to create a positive and inspiring sentence with no difficult words in the minimum. If he does not follow the directions of creating a succinct statement given in this blog, he would fail to appease the target audience and even motivate his employees to get maximum income to the organization.
Key Takeaways
1. A vision statement is a strong statement that has a deep impact on the employees, stakeholders and even customers of a business. It talks about the future insights of a business in a limited time.
2. This statement must be short and should not exceed more than two sentences if the business owner wants to capture the attention of the employees and target audience. ‘
3. He should use present tense while crafting this sentence. It should include powerful words, must be clear and succinct which is very easy to understand.
4. The business owner must avoid jargon or too technical content which no one will understand. Instead he should define what makes his business unique and different from the competitors in the same industry.
5. The business owner must focus on success while crafting the income statement and write it by keeping a timeframe of 5 to 10 years in focus. He should share it with his employees to motivate them work for the progress of the business.