Don’t get hung up on transparency.
‘We just need to make our business more transparent’.
Oh really? Why?
‘Well… it shows we’re an open and honest business’
…and why?
‘People will believe in us more’
… why would they do that?
‘…’
Transparency is raw. It’s down to the bone. It will take you way way out of your comfort zone. You’ll feel uncomfortable. Your finger will tremor over the ‘PUBLISH’ button as you consider the response.
Transparency is about the good. It’s about the bad.
It’s about sharing the good times ( beyond the results of your latest foosball competition ) with an audience that cares.
It’s about sharing your fears.
It’s about questioning what you think you know.
It’s about addressing your concerns.
It’s about showing people ( your audience ) what makes you tick.
For some, they operate in the grey area. The belief that transparency means ‘sharing perspective’. Openness in thought.
But, that’s not transparency. That’s insight. That’s a given.
Transparency is explaining to your core audience that you’ve just had a drab financial year and talking about how you’re going to rectify it.
Transparency is about replacing percentages (where we’re comfortable talking) with real numbers (where we’re not so comfortable).
Transparency is showing your paying customer how you spend their investment and how that impacts upon the growth of your business.
I try my best to not get hung up on buzzwords. Transparency is, well and truly, a buzzword.
But, it’s a vital buzzword.
It tells me how far you’re prepared to go. How far you’re prepared to open your doors.
It’s something you need to ask yourself. Where do you draw the line?
Do you want to get uncomfortable? Is there a purpose behind it? Will it bring you closer to your audience?
Make the call. Just don’t get hung up on it. Don’t feel that ‘because they’re showing their figures we have to too’.
Take the much publicised approach of Buffer. To share the salary of their staff. From the CEO to the starter.
That’s real transparency. That’s far beyond where 99% of businesses would draw the line. You?
Once you’ve opened your doors to the extent of your uttermost ‘secrets’ then every other aspect of business you share, it’s really quite easy.
There’s no ‘I’ll show you mine if you show me yours’ intent.
Transparency isn’t a form of competitive advantage. It’s not a USP. It’s not something you see your competitors doing which leaves you wondering how you could do that too.
It’s NOT something you talk about being. It’s something you are.
Becoming ‘more transparent’ isn’t a process. You’re not peeling your clothes off an item at a time and waiting to gauge response.
It’s not a tactic in the hands of a marketer, or a marketing department. It’s not a resolution: to BE more transparent. So don’t boast about transparency like it’s a new found glory.
Just get on with being the business you really are.
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