As each year winds down, it’s always nice to take note of the memorable events, express gratitude for the people in our lives who have made a difference, and even take some time to look at those things that didn’t go so well so we can learn and help steer clear of any avoidable issues going forward. This post is from the perspective of MINDSCAPE.
Independence
It was exactly one year ago to the day that Paul and I bought out our partners of 7 years and set out on our independent journey once again. It was an excellent 7 year period for MINDSCAPE in which we experienced tremendous growth as a company, and as individuals. We are extremely grateful for everything we learned and gained through this partnership, and fortunately today we still have a positive relationship and have continued to work together.
With independence comes an entire new set of experiences and challenges. I look at it similarly to when I graduated high school and moved out on my own. The first day I arrived in my new place I was fist pumping and celebrating the independence. Shortly after this celebration, when I experienced my first setback, I remember realizing it was now up to me to figure it out because my Mom and Dad weren’t there to pick up the pieces. It was kind of unsettling at first, but that’s the way independence can be, but I quickly got acclimated and learned to handle challenges better.
Business partnerships certainly aren’t like a parent/child relationship, but when someone has “had your back” and then you wake up and realize they are no longer there, it brings about the same sort of feelings. But, just like when I set out on my own after school, we quickly got acclimated and got back in our groove.
Identity Crisis
Personally, I’ve felt like MINDSCAPE has had an identity crisis for our entire 14 year existence. When we first started, we made the decision to provide design, development and digital marketing services. We were set to be the “one stop shop.” This decision certainly shined a light on our naivety as business people as it’s much better to start a company being focused on one thing and going deep. Fortunately the fact we didn’t know this was the wrong way to do it, ended up helping differentiate us in the marketplace.
Differentiation is extremely important, but only if people know who you are and what you do. This always seemed to be a challenge as people either looked at us as the company that built websites or provided search engine optimization services. They had a hard time differentiating us from the other development or marketing firms because we did a horrible job telling our own story. I guess it’s kind of like the old “forest through the trees” analogy.
Finding Our True Identity
Early in 2015, we finally found our identity. Through our own strategy development, we focused on the fact we are very good at helping organizations generate more leads, more sales, and create much more profit through their digital efforts. It’s funny it took us so long to realize this since we’ve always published our case studies, and as we created them, they clearly told that story. Again, sometimes it’s challenging to look at your own situation objectively.
We’ve finally realized who we are. We are, and always have been, an Inbound Marketing agency with extremely talented team members who are passionate about creating results for the clients we are so honored to serve!
There were certainly some ups and downs in 2015, but as we reach the end of another successful year and continue on into MINDSCAPE’s 15th year in business, we are even more suited to help drive the tremendous results our clients have become accustomed to receiving by working with us. Our team is more focused than ever and are looking forward to an amazing 2016!
Happy Holidays
The entire MINDSCAPE team would like to wish you a Happy Holiday season, and let you know we are here to help you achieve all your goals for 2016! We hope you enjoy your families and take some time to reflect and recharge your batteries so you can hit the ground running in 2016!
How did your 2015 turn out?
We’d love to hear about your 2015. Feel free to share in the comments below.