This is an interesting topic simply because the business world seems to try on many levels to get you to give up your integrity.
It almost seems that lack of integrity is like a club that everyone wants you to join. “I joined, so it’s really important that you join.”
I see this so much that I sometimes wonder if I’m kidding myself. I wonder if having standards, values and ethics is an unrealistic way to run a business.
You hear people talk about integrity, quality, and ethics. But I wonder how many people actually adhere to them.
The problem with integrity is that it loses you partners, customers and money. It makes you stand up for things that others don’t want you to stand up for. Your values and integrity seem petty and unrealistic to others… especially if they want you to go against them.
Integrity and values wouldn’t be a topic at all if there weren’t penalties for not compromising them.
Let me give you some examples…
Here’s an easy one. We deliver work when we receive a signed contract and down payment. We’re actually very flexible with our contract. We mostly want someone to just agree to the work they agreed to. Not often, but every once in a while people go crazy over this. They don’t “do” down payments. They don’t sign contracts. They make us feel like we are asking for unheard of requirements.
Here’s another. A possible client will go with us if we just tell them what they want to hear. That we can guarantee doubling revenue. That we can guarantee they’ll get a top ranking for a specific key phrase. They’ll manipulate the conversation. They’ll twist our words… just so we’ll say it. It’s like they want to be lied to.
Or this. A potential client will go with us if we get involved in profit sharing. It’s what’s fair for everyone. This is a whole topic in itself because it’s the most gray. But let me say this, it’s not fair to anyone… mostly the client. A profit sharing search marketing agency only cares about getting you more sales. “Great,” you say. The problem with that is that they don’t care about ROI. They don’t care what you pay to get that sale, because they make the same amount. So, they will put you in the #1 position for many general phrases in the paid search engines (which you pay for) and drive as much traffic as possible to your web site. Increasing the total number of visitors to your site will eventually lead to more sales. But it won’t necessarily get you the best conversion rate. And it’s not fair to the marketer because there is absolutely no control. No control over the site, over the sales process, over the inventory, over the business.
These things and many others are hard to continually enforce. It’s hard because someone you may really like really wants you to do it. You want to make them happy and think highly of your business. It’s also hard because you are basically turning down money. So now you are making someone upset with you and you are losing money. …all because of values and integrity.
Would values and integrity, by themselves, be worth losing clients and money over? I would argue that values and integrity are intrinsically valuable. But that really doesn’t matter. Values and integrity give your business shape. They make you distinct. They give you your unique value proposition. Without them, you become one of just many other nondescript businesses.
Every dollar and client you lose because you stand up to your values and integrity are making you stronger and helping you align your company with who you really are. Ultimately, values and integrity make your stronger and better.
…at least that’s what I keep telling myself.