When I was in college, I used to watch MacGyver with my friends. It was entertaining. We’d heckle the screen and couldn’t wait to see how he got out of a jam using random objects at his disposal like say, a paperclip, Twinkie and a lighter. Mac was a cult hero and I thought his ‘use what you can grab, grit your teeth and hope for the best’ technique was hilarious and awesome all at the same time.
Advance a few decades and I’m still watching episodes of MacGyver with my colleagues but in a modern-day, life-imitating-art kind of way. Observing how some people try to MacGyver themselves out of an outgrown or ill-conceived web presence is downright painful. I do not cheer when they throw bad money after good. I do not hope when they tack on tactics they see other people using “just because.” I cringe because I know what’s coming next.
They weren’t able to get out of the jam. And now their situation is worse.
When business goals and objectives can no longer be met using the strategy in place, it is time to get out of the tunnel and re-evaluate strategy. The original website built in the start-up phase has done its job. It can’t take a company to the next level by simply tacking some SEO on here and some social media widgets there or perhaps just switching the look to something ‘cool.’ It needs a 360-degree approach to ensure that content is in concert with the push and pull mechanisms in order to have the target audience easily do that which is desired. And sometimes that means starting over.
I’m amazed at how passionate the entire Creative Department team is when it comes to helping our clients get out – and stay out – of the tunnel. Sure, it would be a lot easier to throw in some new features or redesign an existing website homepage and call it a day. Call us crazy, but we’d rather painstakingly go through the strategic bends and tap into the best thinking of the entire agency to strategically set up a website machine that will make a client’s life – and that of its audiences – productive. That’s our idea of fun.
It’s hard to tell someone that the best course of action would be to start over. It’s the last thing people really want to hear. Harder still is to watch someone flounder and get lost in their own tunnel vision and maze of awkward additions … without even a Twinkie to help ease the pain.
