Don't Forget to Ask
the Cats
I read a great story about a cat food company
that decided to launch a new product. They did extensive research
on packaging, marketing, and advertising. They conducted focus
group surveys with cat owners and consulted with top cat food
nutritionist. They paid millions in advertising and positioning
the cat food in the grocery stores and pet food stores. In
the first six months, the food flew off the shelves. They
could not keep it stocked. Then something strange happened.
The sales stopped. No one could figure out why, so the company
started more research. They discovered that they had failed
to ask the most important participants in the market research.
The cats!
How often do we create a major change or a new
process revamp to find out that it does not work because we
did not consult the people most affected by the change? I
experienced this during a change in the programming of a company
I consult with. We created a whole new program adding additional
classes that needed to be led by trainers. We spent hours
creating a training schedule and with new trainer slotting.
When the schedule was presented to the trainers, there was
uproar. Although a lot of time and effort went into creating
a fabulous schedule, we missed out on one very important aspect.
We did not check to see if the trainers were available and
if the schedule met their needs. Due to the lack of availability
from the trainers, the schedule had to be completely reworked.
We could have saved time and money if we had asked the trainers
first.
Often, we get so caught up in the process that
we forget to include everyone that the change will affect.
No matter how good the new program, system, or whatever is,
it won't work if everyone involved isn't involved. When making
huge changes, make sure everyone affected by the change is
made aware of the change. Ask for input during all stages
of the planning and make sure everyone agrees to the change.
Nothing is worse than to spend time, money, and energy creating
an exciting new change only to realize that it doesn't work
for the people most affected.
Coach Rachelle Disbennett-Lee, PhD provides daily motivation,
information and inspiration to thousands of busy self development
enthusiast who want to stay focused and on track to their
goals through her award winning e-zine 365 Days of Coaching.
For a free report, "The Power of Daily Action - How to
create more Wealth, Health and Happiness by Tapping Into the
Power of Daily Action" go to http://www.365daysofcoaching.com/daily_action.htm.
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