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4 How many of your SEO recommendations get shipped?

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5 26.2% 27.3% 19.8% 26.7% 0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% <25% 25-50% 50-75% >75% How many of your SEO recommendations get shipped? n=172

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6 no shipping, no impact.

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7 no shipping, no impact. no impact, no purpose.

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8 no shipping, no impact. no impact, no purpose. no purpose, no job.

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9 #1 question: how do I get executive buy-in to ship my recommendations?

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11 01 Story vs. data 02 Goal vs. work 03 Shallow vs. deep

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12 1 Story-based pitching

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14 We make sense of things through stories. Executives just need to see the right data to say yes. Common assumption But actually…

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15 95% of all cognition occurs in the subconscious mind. - Harvard prof. Gerald Zaltman https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/the-subconscious-mind-of-the-consumer-and-how-to-reach-it

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16 45% of executives rely more on instinct than on facts and figures in running their businesses. - survey from May 2002 by executive search firm Christian & Timbers https://hbr.org/2003/05/dont-trust-your-gut

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17 So Kevin, how do I get this right?

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18 Tie recommendations to the company situation 1 - 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000 - 200,000 400,000 600,000 800,000 1,000,000 1,200,000 1,400,000 1,600,000 1,800,000 2,000,000 Accelerate Turn around

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19 Tie recommendations to the company situation 1 STARS - Company situations Start-up Get something new off the ground Turnaround Save the business Accelerate growth Manage a rapidly expanding business Realignment Re-energize a previously successful organization Sustain success Sustain the success of something that has been performing well Michael Watkins - The first 90 days

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20 Focus on stakes, not just gains 2 What leaders care about Money Revenue, profit, cost Michael Watkins - The first 90 days

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21 Focus on stakes, not just gains 2 What leaders care about Money Revenue, profit, cost Market Market share, time-to-market Michael Watkins - The first 90 days

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22 Focus on stakes, not just gains 2 What leaders care about Money Revenue, profit, cost Market Market share, time-to-market Exposure Retention, risk Michael Watkins - The first 90 days

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23 Focus on stakes, not just gains 2 Point of view (recommendation) + Stakes (result/consequences)

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24 Make it personal 3 How to address leaders Backchannel 1on1s before big presentation

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25 Make it personal 3 How to address leaders Backchannel 1on1s before big presentation Individual goals What do they optimize for?

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26 Make it personal 3 How to address leaders Backchannel 1on1s before big presentation Individual goals What do they optimize for? Wording Use their wording

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27 2 Starting with the goal

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29 Executives mostly care about hitting the goal. Executives want to scrutinize everything. Common assumption But actually…

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30 85% of leaders suffer from decision distress. - Study of 14,000 employees and leaders across 17 countries https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-study-70-of-business-leaders-would-prefer-a-robot-to-make-their-decisions-301799591.html

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31 72% admit the sheer volume of data and their lack of trust in data has stopped them from making any decision. - Study of 14,000 employees and leaders across 17 countries https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-study-70-of-business-leaders-would-prefer-a-robot-to-make-their-decisions-301799591.html

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32 How do you start with the goal?

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33 Work backwards 1 Headline Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Grab attention Define audience & problem you solve Describe benefits Provide FAQ

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34 Communicate in the “executive mind” 2 Goal Effort Time Responsibil.

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35 Ditch the details 3 Red Flags Unimportant details Big, weak claims Uncertainty, doubt, skepticism

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36 Ditch the details, bring the buckets 3 Red Flags Green Flags Unimportant details Revenue, market share, growth Big, weak claims Significant wins Uncertainty, doubt, skepticism Clearly articulated problems with solutions

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37 3 Deep recommendations

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39 Missing clarity makes it less likely for a team to pick up the work. Teams will figure out what we want. Common assumption But actually…

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40 86% of executives identify ineffective communication as a major cause of failure in business. - Study of 14,000 employees and leaders across 17 countries https://www.salesforce.com/ca/blog/how-soft-skills-are-crucial-to-your-business/

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41 How do you make things clearer?

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42 Understand the root cause of the issue 1 Outcome Symptom Root cause

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43 Understand the root cause of the issue 1 Outcome Symptom Root cause Rank drop 404 errors Database crash

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44 Get packaging right 2 Don’t Do Just describe the problem Provide context

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45 Get packaging right 2 Don’t Do Just describe the problem Provide context Assume they know what to do Split the task in sub-tasks

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46 Get packaging right 2 Don’t Do Just describe the problem Provide context Assume they know what to do Split the task in sub-tasks Be vague Be hyper-specific

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47 Get packaging right 2 Don’t Do Just describe the problem Provide context Assume they know what to do Split the task in sub-tasks Be vague Be hyper-specific Send a spreadsheet without clear instructions Bucket works into streams

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48 Describe the ideal outcome 3 Reasoning through ideal outcomes What number are you trying to move? Where should that number be? Why should it be there?

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49 Describe the ideal outcome 3 Reasoning through ideal outcomes What number are you trying to move? 404 errors in GSC Where should that number be? < 50 Why should it be there? 0 is unrealistic but we want to minimize

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50 Wrapping up

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51 1 Build a story You need data but it won’t resonate without a strong story. What does it take?

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52 1 Build a story You need data but it won’t resonate without a strong story. 2 “Exec speak” Decision makers think different and have short attention. 3 What does it take?

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53 1 Build a story You need data but it won’t resonate without a strong story. 2 “Exec speak” Decision makers think different and have short attention. 3 Make it easy Don’t make others go through discovery hoops What does it take?

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Thank You. www.growth-memo.com Kevin Indig