The Art of Words: How to Write the Perfect Mission Statement

How to write the perfect mission statement

The most effective mission statements inspire and educate. While the result is a short, concise statement, the process of developing your mission statement can be anything but brief. You can choose to involve as many or as few collaborators as you’d like; however, the final message should resonate with everyone at your organization — from leadership to your frontline workers.

Follow these steps to craft an effective mission statement:

1. Incorporate three key elements.

Your mission statement should incorporate three things:

• Your company’s purpose and the unique service or product it provides — to your customers, the community and employees
• The industry your company serves
• Characteristics that set your business apart from others in the industry

By defining these three elements, you’ll understand the problems your business solves. You’ll also realize the customers you’re aiming to serve and how your business differs from your competitors. One way to do this concisely is to share what inspired you to launch your business. Origin stories are often compelling ways to effectively tell your story. Incorporating the main elements of yours into the mission statement celebrates your company history and future goals.

2. Be informative, yet keep it brief.

Think of your mission statement as your company’s elevator pitch. Aim for brevity — ideally under 30 words. The shorter and more focused your mission statement is, the more likely people are to remember and understand it.

3. Share, edit and refine.

Your mission statement needs to resonate with both internal and external audiences. Therefore, your mission statement creation process should include sharing your draft with applicable stakeholders — including some trusted customers, vendors and partners. This will ensure the message rings true across the business. Be open to customer feedback and tweak your messaging to ensure clarity.

A common way to ensure your mission statement aligns with all audiences is to develop one statement to share internally and another to share externally. From there, work to consolidate and polish your messaging so it applies to anyone who reads it.

The value of a mission statement

Many misunderstand the role of a mission statement. It is not a marketing slogan designed to grab attention, nor is it a vision statement outlining the organization’s future trajectory. Instead, it is a precise strategic tool.

“Your company’s mission statement is your opportunity to define the company’s goals, ethics, culture and norms for decision-making,” said entrepreneur Tim Berry. “The best mission statements define a company’s goals in at least three dimensions: What the company does for its customers, what it does for its employees, and what it does for its owners.” He added that there are also fourth and fifth dimensions in some cases: What the company does for the community and for the world. [Learn more about the keys to scaling your business.]

Because mission statements must convey complex ideas concisely, many end up vague or generic. However, if you look at successful companies, you’ll notice that their mission statements are well crafted and incredibly valuable.

So, what makes a mission statement work? Most experts agree that an effective mission statement answers several key questions:

• What opportunities or needs does our company address?
• How do we address these opportunities and needs?
• Who are we serving?
• What unique value do we provide customers?

This is an oversimplified look at the mission statement development process. But, you’ll notice that each of these questions is addressed (in one way or another) in quality mission statements.

Common characteristics of strong mission statements

Analyzing successful companies is the best way to grasp what makes a mission statement effective. Doing so can help you identify the common characteristics needed to develop your own.

Let’s look at three case studies and highlight a few of their commonalities. Consider these companies’ mission statements:

• Patagonia: “We’re in business to save our home planet.”
• Tesla: “Building a world of amazing abundance.”
• Warby Parker: “To inspire and impact the world with vision, purpose and style.”

These companies operate in vastly different sectors: outdoor apparel, electric vehicles and energy storage, and eyewear. However, each company does an effective job of revealing these common characteristics of a strong mission statement:

• It’s succinct. A good mission statement is typically between one and three sentences long. As you can see, the statements above are rather short, but they all fit this basic parameter. If the customer or employee wants to learn more about a particular aspect of the statement, they can find this information elsewhere. These mission statements prove that brevity can be powerful.
• It focuses on current objectives. The critical elements of a mission statement describe present goals. These statements effectively describe why these companies exist and whom they currently serve. They address today’s challenges while pointing toward action.
• It uses strong verbiage. Vague generalities don’t work in a mission statement. Your mission statement should rely on strong language to grab the reader’s attention, speak to your company’s true priorities and allow employees to prioritize tasks. Notice some of the words used in these examples: save, accelerate, transition, inspire and impact. These words create emotional impact and convey urgency.
• It’s unique. It can be tempting to look at your competitors’ statements to provide the framework for your own. However, it’s important for your mission statement to be distinct. These three mission statements are clearly one of a kind.
• It’s malleable. Contrary to popular belief, a mission statement isn’t some concrete element that holds true year after year. While your company vision may remain the same, your mission statement can shift. It shouldn’t be manipulated often, but it should reflect any new opportunities or company-wide goals that arise.
• It speaks to the “how.” Every mission statement pays respect to what a company stands for, but only the best mission statements touch on the “how” behind it. In other words, a strong mission statement doesn’t just list objectives; it indicates how these specific objectives are to be accomplished. [Discover the best tools for tracking your business’s key performance indicators (KPIs).]

Wendy Maynard, a business strategist, marketing consultant and business coach, challenges every company she works with to write a mission statement that’s actionable and quantifiable. It shouldn’t be sentimental or nebulous, as the former is the only way to extract real value.

“If you have an old, wonky mission statement that sounds like a corporate Hallmark card (you know what I’m talking about), then take it and rip it to shreds,” she said. “Then reflect on your true passions and values, and write a mission statement using the guidelines above that reflects the difference your business will make in the world.”

Connect the dots with a mission statement

Your mission statement connects the dots, uniting customers, employees and leaders under a shared definition of the business’s goals and ethics.

Don’t rush it. But, the sooner you find your mission statement, the sooner you’ll truly understand and be able to communicate the purpose of your business. Creating a mission statement that accurately reflects the passions and values of your business isn’t easy, but the rewards for doing so are great. Companies with well-defined mission statements often see higher levels of employee satisfaction, customer loyalty and overall business performance. Take the time to craft a mission statement that truly represents your company’s core purpose — it will serve as your North Star for years to come.

Kimberlee Leonard and Larry Alton contributed to the reporting and writing in this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.