Over-Planning Causes Inaction

Last week I wrote this post sharing my social media strategy as it is today.  I received a ton of great feedback!  Thanks to everyone who commented on this blog and in the group discussions it was posted in.  One reader, Mike Y, left a comment offering to review my LinkedIn account and my website.  I accepted his offer and we continued our discussion via email.

I had mentioned that I plan to rebrand my website in a couple of months after revising my business plan.  His response was to "rebrand now, while it is ripe and your efforts don't go to waste, the investment is minimal."  This really got me thinking about my current approach.  Perhaps I spend too much time planning and not enough time acting.  Don't get me wrong, I still think business planning is critical (I've written about it here and here, plus it's a service I offer as a consultant).  I just think maybe I need to move through my planning process more swiftly.

Has anyone else found themselves having to choose between careful planning and swift action?  Which do you tend to lean towards?

Oh, and if anyone would like to see what other insights Mike has on e-Marketing check out his latest blog post below.  I've looked at a few of his other recent posts and it's pretty useful stuff!

http://diywebjem.com/blog/2010/03/30/maximize-your-linkedin-profile-and-expand-your-web-traffic-and-business/

Clients Don't Want Advice, They Want Results

In doing some research this weekend (the not so glamorous life of an MBA student) I came across an interesting bit of information about strategic consulting:

Recent trends have shown clients to be tired of strategy in itself.  They have become increasingly sophisticated consumers of strategy consulting services, and are looking for results that can be implemented quickly.  Clients have become more results-driven with the result being a greater desire for compensation to consultants being tied to these results.

The above is from the Business and Company Resource Center, a proprietary database that I can't paste a link to (check out your local library for access).  It's a short excerpt from a much broader industry analysis, but I think it makes two notable points:

•  Clients want to be able to implement changes quickly.  They have a problem, and they want to hire someone to fix it ASAP.

• Clients are more inclined to hire a consulting firm whose compensation is based on achievement of predetermined goals. 

Both of these points can be good for clients.  They force the client and consultant to determine what their objectives are up front, and they ensure that incentives are aligned accordingly.

However, both of these points have their drawbacks.  Being held to a rigid time-line and agenda limit a consulting firm's ability to advise.  Consultants that are paid to complete a specific task will complete it, even if it is not in the client's best interest.