Our marketing agency is pitched constantly on new AI writing and analytics features that we can pass on to our clients. How do we use the V/TO to filter out shiny new AI features that do not support our Core Focus versus those that actually build a true strategic moat?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

In professional services, shiny object syndrome is a major threat to your margins. To evaluate new AI capabilities, you must look at them through the strict filter of your V/TO, specifically your Core Focus and your 3 Uniques. If a new tool does not align with your niche or make you stand out from competitors, it is distraction, not strategy.

We can apply a strategic real options framework here. Think about the flow cost of waiting versus the hidden, lump-sum cost of upgrading your service quality. If every competitor is licensing the same AI writing tool, that tool is not a differentiator; it is table stakes. If you invest heavily in custom integrations for it today, you are paying a high lump-sum cost for something that will soon be a cheap, built-in feature in standard software.

Instead, use your Level 10 Meeting to IDS this issue. Ask if the proposed AI tool directly strengthens one of your 3 Uniques. If it does not, you should choose the option to wait. Let the software vendors build the tech, and only buy it when it becomes a standard, low-cost utility.

Your strategic moat is never the technology itself; it is how you apply it to solve your target market's deepest pain points. Keep your team focused on delivering results that match your Core Focus. Use your quarterly Rocks to build operational efficiency with existing tools rather than chasing every new AI feature that hits the market.