The dictionary defines congruence as meaning: agreement, harmony, or aptitude.

That definition can also be used to define the ideal business, one where all parts of the business are in agreement, harmony, and/or fitness.

In that ideal business, all facets of the business fit together. Each part (department/function/activity/etc.) must complement the other, and all work together to build the whole. That means marketing makes the promises, production/fulfillment keeps those promises, and management manages it all. For example, if the marketing department was designing a promotion, all the elements—the message, the paper, the logo, the font, the look and feel, and the texture—should be consistent to maximize the effectiveness of the message. To illustrate my point, one would choose different fonts to advertise a circus versus a morgue.

Professionally produced marketing and advertising is often consistent, but DIYers often try to stretch their budget and the result is often incongruous.

Last week, I claimed to be the “Inconsistency Police” and found the following:

• A hair salon advertising expensive spa treatments and other luxuries through the use of an ugly, off-center, hand-drawn “magic marker” sign in the window. The sign promises luxury and beauty, but it’s so incongruous that I wonder if anyone bought the service. The Inconsistency Police have issued an infraction!
• An investment adviser sent invitations to a seminar with hand-cut coupons that looked like they had been cut by an eight-year-old. The coupons seemed so cheap and unattractive that one would wonder about the quality of his financial advice. The Inconsistency Police have issued an infraction!
• A car dealer uses the exact same photos in ads week after week…for months. Anyone reading those ads would wonder why those cars haven’t sold or if those particular vehicles were ever in dealer inventory to begin with. The Inconsistency Police have issued an infraction!
• A manufacturing company makes a high-quality, useful, durable, and productive product, but its parts department ships parts in three days, while its competition ships them the same day the customer places the order (if ordered sooner). from 2 p.m.). The Inconsistency Police have issued an infraction!
• A home cleaning company has vehicles with their slogan painted on them announcing “We’ll leave your home spotless.” However, those vehicles are dirty and you don’t want to look inside with fast food wrappers strewn about. The Inconsistency Police have issued an infraction!

Remember that the “Incongruity Police” are watching.