Recently I quoted Stephen Joyce, the CEO of Dine Equity, the company that owns Applebee’s and IHOP. He said, “We forgot what the customer expects from us and got a wake-up call.” Both chains have had sales declines.
This month I’m quoting Kevin Ozan, Chief Financial Officer of McDonald’s, who said, “We took our eye off the ball on breakfast.” The results are no surprise: overall sales have weakened in the United States and market share has shrunk because mornings are the most profitable part of the day for McDonald’s. But, notes Ozan, “With everything else going on, we just lost a little focus on that breakfast day part.” (The italics are mine, and so is the forthcoming sarcasm.)
Umm, excuse me? With everything else going on you just happened to take your eyes off the most profitable part of your business? Wow.
I know associations aren’t restaurant chains. But I think we can learn from Applebee’s, IHOP, McDonald’s and any other enterprise that gets distracted. Here are my takeaways:
- Don’t take your eye off the ball. I learned this from my high school tennis coach, Phil Eschels. The lesson I learned on court has served me well off court. Thanks, Coach!
- Know what the most profitable part of your business is. Often, associations don’t think in terms of “profitability” and therefore they don’t know which part of their business keeps the boat afloat. Those that are thriving have a very clear picture of what drives membership and what keeps members coming back and they pay close attention to these things.
- Associations have a lot of “everything else going on.” There is always a board meeting to prepare for, an event on the horizon and/or a change in the competitive environment. Everything else going on can easily become an excuse. Don’t let it.
- Stay focused. Losing a little focus will lead to paying a big price. Focus is underrated and under appreciated, but it pays big dividends. Capitalize on it.
- Sometimes wake-up calls come too late. I know of a couple of associations for whom this is true. Why wait for one?
I’d love to hear what you and your association are doing to keep your eye on the ball. If I’m impressed, I’ll write about it here soon!