I spent the morning trying to log in to Instagram, unable to airdrop anything on my computer, cleaning hot sauce off my phone, and changing my shirt after getting chocolate chia seed pudding all over it. I’m not just venting; I am going somewhere with this.
When faced with something not working, I’ve heard this voice in the back of my mind ask, ‘What if it’s not me? What if I’m not the problem?’
It’s like how any conversation about budgeting and the economy derails into me ranting about how the real problem is that billionaires need to pay taxes. I’m bringing this up because I’ve been doing a deep dive into the food industry, and I’m hearing some really wild things repeatedly about where the industry is going and its challenges.
If you’re feeling like things just aren’t getting the results you want, and you have this feeling it’s not you…you’re probably right. But before examining all your efforts, here’s how you can figure out if you’re the problem:
🍋 Talk to your peers and brands that seem to be killing it. You don’t need to request their industry secrets, but if you’re seeing the same challenges, like lack of sales or reduced social reach, then it’s not you.
🍋 Look at the last time your brand was killing it. What was the economy like? What were the trends? What was the landscape like? Your brand or marketing slowing down could be a natural evolution.
🍋 Are you doing the same things you were 2 years ago? If so, that’s likely a problem. You need to be constantly refining, changing, and testing. Your efforts are probably just stale.
🍋 Are you listening to your audience and experts? I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had brands come to us with a problem and when we point it out, they argue why it has to be done a certain way. Ok, no problem, but you’ll get the same results. You can’t expect a big change if you’re not willing to take the risk of changing.
And if after all this you decide it really isn’t you (and billionaires DO NEED TO PAY TAX) then it’s time to choose how you want to pivot, address, or re-align.