Hornblower’s Lesson for Business Strategy

The COVID-19 lockdown gave us all time to re-read old books and re-watch old DVDs. Admittedly, it was an indulgence I enjoyed from time to time at the height of the isolation.

There is a great scene in the ITV Meridian television series “Hornblower” based on the books by CS Forester. In the last of the 8-program series, “Duty”, Admiral Pellew had just promoted Hornblower from Commander to Post Captain and, after listing Hornblower’s virtues, he went on:

Pellew:?“I only hope that one day, Hornblower, you’ll fight for more than England.”

Hornblower:?“What is there more than England?”[1]

I was working as Director of Marketing for ERA Technology at the time. The senior management team was talking about strategy and there was a light hearted exchange. I can’t remember the exact words used at the time but now, projecting my memory of the exchange onto a screen coloured by the Hornblower scene, I remember it like this:

Perks:?“The problem, Michael, is that you think the marketing strategy?is?the whole business strategy.”

Neale:?“What is there more than Marketing?”

There was a brief silence, not more than a second or two, as we both smiled. Nothing more was said. The conversation moved on – perhaps a little more customer focused.

Hornblower is totally dedicated to King and country and he takes action accordingly. The plot of this particular episode, through a sequence of “heroic” examples, demonstrates how Hornblower goes to exceptional lengths, often at great personal risk (and sometimes to the detriment of his relationships) to make his “duty” the purpose of all he does. Hornblower lives out his “duty” LITERALLY every day.

In a concession to my then boss now mentor, I acknowledge that a business needs a financial strategy, a human capital strategy, a technology strategy, and so on, to enable the business to achieve its purpose. In a concession to my position, Chris knew that my concept of the marketing strategy was understanding the fundamental “promise to the customer”; what makes a business BRILLIANT in their eyes, and making a plan to ensure the business delivers that promise LITERALLY every day.

Bringing together the promise and the plan to deliver it, is what gives a business purpose. This is the essence of top-level marketing strategy. Everything else is about enabling your business to deliver its purpose.

If your marketing strategy is all about understanding, communicating, and delivering your promise to customers…

…?What is there more than Marketing?

[1]?This quote was transcribed from the DVD of the final episode (Duty) in the ITV Meridian produced Hornblower series (from the second to last scene). The promotion of Hornblower from Commander to Post Captain features in the plot of the CS Forester book “Hornblower and the Hotspur” but this particular exchange does not take place. Please let me know if it appears in any of the original books.

About the Author

Michael Neale?is Managing Director and Principal Consultant at strategic marketing consulting firm?Literally Brilliant Pty Ltd. He is a writer, thinker and marketing consultant with 30 years’ experience. Michael sits on the advisory boards of a number of businesses and is Chair for several. He is also a Trustee of the?History Trust of South Australia, Chair of the iconic historic motoring event, the?Bay to Birdwood?and a Visiting Fellow at the?Adelaide Business School,?University of Adelaide.

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Literally Brilliant helps companies understand what makes them BRILLIANT in the eyes of their customers, what differentiates them from their competitors and how they add real value. We help them articulate this as a brand promise and then organise their business to deliver that promise LITERALLY every day. We call this the LITERALLY BRILLIANT? Process.?

To contact Literally Brilliant click here.