Aligning Proposals with Business Goals

"We don't have a marketing budget - we're open to your ideas!" Often, this statement translates to, "I don't know how to value our goals, so I'm unsure about what to spend to achieve them." Yet, 99% of agencies respond with, "No worries! We'll draft a proposal with various cost options." This approach is as ineffective as a chocolate fireguard. Instead, here's a more productive approach: ask the right questions upfront. When a brand says they don't have a budget, you might respond with: "Could you share the results you're aiming for?" They might say: "My boss wants us to gain 15,000 new customers in the next 12 months. Our average order value is about £90." You can then say: "Great! So, £90 x 15,000 new customers equals £1.35M in additional revenue. What do you think would be a realistic spend to achieve this in the next 12 months? Typically, investing 10-15% of the desired outcome is a good benchmark. So, a budget of £135,000 - £200,000 should give us a strong chance of hitting your targets. Does that sound fair?" If they reply: "That's more than we're willing to spend right now," You might respond with: "Our priority is your success. Would you be open to adjusting your targets? Spending 10-15% of the desired outcome is a realistic approach for potential returns." They might say: "I can get approval for £100,000, but I'll need to discuss lowering our target with my boss." And voilà! You've established a marketing budget. It might not be the ideal budget for the desired outcome, but at least you've had a mature discussion about expectations versus budget. Now, you can decide whether to work within that budget or help them understand the need for a larger investment. If you can't align, it's okay to walk away. But if they're open to discussing budget and setting achievable KPIs, proceed. This process doesn’t have to be complicated. Keep it simple and straightforward.

I spoke with a D2C brand that had skyrocketed its organic traffic yet their daily orders were still flat. They came to me expecting a quick SEO fix. But as I dug deeper, I realized what they needed was a strategic framework —an integrated set of choices that would drive not just visitors, but profitable orders. Initial Situation: ➜ 10x increase in daily clicks (from almost nothing to 2,000/day) ➜ Average Order Value (AOV) surprisingly low ➜ Order volume: virtually unchanged despite the traffic surge Problem Identification: Why wasn’t all that new traffic turning into sales? The brand had invested in SEO, yes—but without aligning content strategy with top-selling SKUs, profit margins, demographics, and their unique value proposition. ❌ They chased visibility, not viability. Process (Our Discovery Call): I asked questions like: ➜ Top-selling SKUs? ➜ High-margin categories? ➜ Core audience and demographics? ➜ Product Differentiators vs. competition? ➜ Customer repeat purchase cycles? By understanding these, I identified where intent-rich opportunities matched their strongest business levers. What We Did Next (The Proposal): I presented a tailored SEO program that went beyond “just more traffic.” It focused on: a) Where we choose to play: Pinpointing search opportunities that have a short time to value of results. b) How we choose to win: Mapping keywords to product categories with favourable Search Volume, Keyword Difficulty (KD), and Average Order Value. I presented them a scatter chart of commercial-intent keywords plotted by: ➜ Search Volume ➜ Keyword Difficulty ➜ Potential AOV Impact This instantly clarified the path forward. Instead of random traffic, we were going after the right traffic. The prospect’s reaction? He said no previous proposal had offered this level of strategic clarity. It’s easy to chase vanity metrics (traffic, rankings, clicks), but without aligning your SEO strategy to business goals, you’ll never see the revenue catch up. Stop treating SEO as a game of traffic. ➡️ Treat it as a strategic tool that positions you in front of high-intent audiences. ➡️ It’s not about playing everywhere—it’s about winning in the right places. If you’re looking to make strategic choices—on Google, Bing, or next-gen platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude —and you want to translate visibility into growth, let’s talk. I’d be excited to help you map your SEO opportunities to real business outcomes.

A product only scales when its strategy is tied directly to business goals. Otherwise, features become noise, and teams burn months on “nice to have” work that doesn’t move revenue, retention, or efficiency. Business alignment means: ✓ Every feature connects to metrics that matter ✓ Every design decision supports growth or cost optimization ✓ The roadmap speaks the same language as the leadership team. ⸻ Example: Healthcare Case I worked with a medical SaaS platform that had a backlog of 120+ features. Developers pushed new releases every two weeks, but churn was growing and revenue wasn’t scaling. I ran a UX–Business audit: — Mapped every feature to a business KPI — Cut 40% of backlog items that had zero business impact. — Rebuilt the roadmap so that every quarter focused on one clear business lever . Result after 3 months: ✓ Customer support tickets dropped by 22% ✓ Retention improved by 15% because patients were guided better through their journey. ✓ Leadership got visibility: for the first time, the roadmap was linked directly to revenue forecasts. ⸻ Example: Fintech Case In a fintech startup, leadership struggled to raise the next round because their pitch deck showed features, not impact. I restructured the product narrative: — Aligned UX flows with financial metrics: fewer failed transactions, faster onboarding, higher account activation. — Designed a demo around money saved and money earned, not UI screenshots. — Synced the product roadmap with the CFO’s model, so investors could see cause–effect clearly. The outcome: They closed a $7M round. Investors saw a product tied to growth levers, not just design polish. ⸻ My takeaway Business alignment is not paperwork. It’s the discipline of turning UX work into financial outcomes. When I step in, I translate design into numbers the boardroom understands — retention, efficiency, growth. That’s how design stops being a cost center and becomes a driver of business decisions. ⸻ I’ve spent over 8 years in UX and 7 years in branding, marketing, and PR. What I do is not just design — I architect clarity between product and business goals. That’s why my work stabilizes teams, speeds up decision-making, and helps products grow in markets under pressure. 

Less Federal Funding = More Competitive Grant Writing = Stronger Justification & Outcomes With federal and state funding becoming increasingly competitive, securing grants isn’t just about identifying a need—it’s about proving impact, justifying every dollar, and demonstrating long-term value. Funders are looking for investments that yield measurable results and financial accountability. To compete, organizations must go beyond writing strong proposals and focus on building data-driven, outcome-oriented programs that stand out in a crowded funding landscape. How to Strengthen Your Grant Strategy in 2025 1️⃣ Set SMART Goals That Prove Impact Funders want to know exactly how their investment will drive change. Set clear, outcome-based goals that align with their priorities. ✅ Specific – Clearly define what you’ll achieve (e.g., “Provide job training to 150 small business owners in 12 months”). 📊 Measurable – Quantify the expected impact (e.g., “Increase employment by 20%” or “Launch 50 new businesses”). 🎯 Achievable – Base targets on past performance and industry benchmarks. 🔗 Relevant – Align goals with funder priorities (e.g., workforce development, environmental resilience). ⏳ Time-Bound – Set a clear implementation and reporting timeline. 2️⃣ Use Data-Driven Storytelling Winning proposals blend compelling narratives with hard data. Funders need both the numbers and the human story to make informed decisions. 📌 Leverage national and local data to quantify the problem. 📌 Showcase past program success to demonstrate credibility and effectiveness. 📌 Incorporate real beneficiary stories to connect funders to the impact on a personal level. 3️⃣ Justify Every Dollar in Your Budget Funders scrutinize budgets for transparency and ROI. Tie every line item directly to measurable outcomes. Example: Instead of requesting a lump sum of “$500K for program expansion,” break it down: 💰 $200K for staff = 300 additional participants served. 💻 $150K for technology = 40% faster service delivery. 📢 $150K for outreach = 25% increase in community engagement. Funders will ask: Why this amount? Why this allocation? What’s the return on investment? 4️⃣ Demonstrate Sustainability & Scalability With fewer dollars available, funders prioritize projects that create long-term impact. Strengthen your case by showing: 🔄 Diverse funding sources (public-private partnerships, earned revenue). 📈 Scalability (how the project can expand or replicate). 💡 Federal and state dollars are shrinking, but outcome-driven, evidence-backed proposals will rise to the top. Winning grants in 2025 requires more than strong writing—it demands a strategic approach. The organizations that secure funding will be those that justify their requests, prove measurable impact, and design programs built for lasting change. #GrantWriting #FundingStrategy #SMARTGoals #Nonprofits #ImpactMeasurement #CompetitiveGrants

Your automation proposal will sit in a boardroom without you. Make sure it can speak for itself. I've seen brilliant automation ideas get shot down because the proposal focused on robot features instead of business impact. Your board doesn't care about the torch technology. They care about one thing: Will this generate solid returns? Here's what needs to be crystal clear in every proposal: 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 - Not just payback period, but actual annual returns 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 - How this fits your 3-5 year growth plan 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 - Can this grow with increased demand? 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝗠𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 - What happens if things don't go perfectly? The proposal that gets approved answers this question: "Does this achieve the objectives we set for this person?" If you can't clearly connect your automation project to measurable business outcomes, pause. Figure that out first. Because the board is rejecting unclear business cases, not automation. #manufacturing #automation #capitalprojects #leadership #roboticintegration

𝐄𝐀 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫: 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 Modern Enterprise Architecture goes well beyond documenting systems—it’s excels at 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭. To be effective, EA must 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲, so architecture decisions support business goals, competitive positioning, and innovation. 📌 𝟒 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐄𝐀 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 1 | 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧’𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐨𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝟑-𝟓 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬? → Understand leadership’s priorities—whether it’s market expansion, cost optimization, or digital transformation—to ensure EA is 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬. 2 | 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐀 𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬? → EA should provide 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, enabling 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫, 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐚-𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 on investments, risk management, and operational efficiency. 3 | 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐄𝐀 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞? → Instead of focusing on governance, 𝐭𝐢𝐞 𝐄𝐀 𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞—such as increased agility, cost reduction, faster time-to-market, and risk mitigation. 4 | 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐄𝐀 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞? → EA isn’t just about technology—it’s about enabling scalable, flexible architectures that 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, and 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 growth. 🔹 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲: 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐄𝐀 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐈𝐓 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 The key is embedding EA into 𝐂-𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝𝐦𝐚𝐩𝐬—so it becomes an active driver of business success. 📢 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐄𝐀 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬? Let’s discuss in the comments. 👇 ➕ Follow Kevin Donovan 🔔   👍 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞  |  ♻️ 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭   🚀 𝐉𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬' 𝐇𝐮𝐛!   Join our newsletter and connect with a community that understands. Enhance your skills, meet peers, and advance your career!   𝐒𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐞 👉 https://lnkd.in/dgmQqfu2

Aligning ITSM Strategy with Business Priorities No One Clearly Defines (Because “support the mission” isn’t a strategy.) You want to align ITSM with the business. Great. So… what are the business priorities? Crickets. Here’s what usually happens: IT builds workflows for the “goals” listed on the annual report Leadership assumes alignment means "respond faster" And no one defines what success actually looks like Here’s how to align anyway—without losing your mind: 1. Ask for Outcomes, Not Buzzwords ↳ “Student success” is vague. “Raise engagement by 10%” is usable. 2. Translate Priorities into Support Realities ↳ If “Innovation” is a goal, ITSM needs room to experiment—not just track tickets. 3. Create SLAs Around What Matters ↳ Align response times with impact, not org charts. 4. Show the Gap—Then Solve It ↳ Don’t say “we’re aligned.” Prove where you’re not, and fix it together. 5. Revisit Often. Business Moves Fast. ↳ Priorities shift. ITSM should flex without falling apart. 6. Speak Their Language ↳ Frame IT updates in terms they already care about—like cost, time, or risk. You can’t align to a moving target without asking where it's headed. What’s the weirdest “business priority” you’ve had to interpret? ♻️ Repost if you’ve ever chased alignment without a map. 🔔 Follow Bob Roark for real-world ITSM strategy that actually connects to business outcomes.

Scaling without financial alignment is growth in reverse. Here's how to optimize strategy, accelerate growth, and hit goals. As businesses scale, aligning financial strategy with short-term objectives and long-term vision is critical for sustainable growth. I've worked with many companies that was growing fast but struggling to keep financial goals in sync with their rapid pace. Here's how I’ve helped them recalibrate and accelerate growth:    1. Re-assessing the Budgeting Process: - We dive into their current budget - Identify inefficiencies, misallocated resources, and cash flow bottlenecks. By focusing on forecasting and creating more flexible budgets, we made sure the company could stay agile, even during rapid change.    2. Aligning Department Projects with ROI: Instead of treating each department's initiatives in isolation, we developed a framework that measured and tracked Return on Investment (ROI) for every key project. - Each department was aligned to strategic financial goals. - Projects that didn’t generate strong returns were optimized or postponed. - ROI prioritization became the backbone of decision-making.   3. Setting Clear KPIs and Milestones: - We defined key financial metrics for both short-term and long-term. - This allowed departments to align their actions with tangible outcomes. Knowing exactly how their work contributed to the broader financial goals, employees were on board, engaged, and proactive. Results: Cash Flow Improved by 25% in just 3 months Project ROI Increased by 30%, with higher returns on departmental investments Long-Term Financial Strategy now aligned with short-term operational goals The Takeaway: Financial alignment isn’t just about controlling costs—it’s about ensuring that every department, every project, and every dollar is pushing your business toward your ultimate goal. When you align your budget with ROI-focused projects, you achieve growth faster and smarter. If you need help developing and executing a financial strategy DM me Please share your thoughts in the comments Follow me, Beverly Davis for more finance insights  #FinanceStrategy #BusinessGrowth #ROI #Budgeting #FinancialGoals #StrategicPlanning #Founder #CEO