As Black Friday becomes a distant memory and the end of the year is almost upon us brands are faced with a perennial conundrum: how do they remain fresh, engaging and relevant in a landscape that is constantly shaped by the forces of digital consumer culture and technological advances?
Amid talk of disruptive innovation it is important to remember that not all competitive landscapes are remade overnight; obsolescence creeps up on brands as often as it springs upon them. But with an informed approach and the relevant market and customer data, the continual revamp of brand strategy should not scare companies nor their marketing departments.
Whilst many CMOs and CEOs may be kept awake at night by the risk of the unexpected, of an industry shock that could see their brand/business going the same way as the dinosaurs, the more likely scenario is that their companies will suffer the same fate at a more pedestrian pace.
Where innovation is driven by necessity, relevance is key. Brands stand the risk of simply ceasing to matter as cultures, trends and expectations shift across time.
If a brand goes stale, opportunities to keep pace with (or steal a march on), changing customer needs pass them by, the likelihood is they will simply disappear with more of a whimper than a big bang.
In the main, change is good. The same is true with product design, visual identity, communications and brand personality, and marketers need to make sure that these are up-to-date and relevant if their brands/companies are to remain relevant and thus, successful in 2016.
One of the pillars of brand strategy is staying ahead of trend and anticipating change: as consumers (and even companies), we admire trailblazers and trendsetters who are traditionally disruptive and ahead of the curve, such as Apple, Air BnB, and Uber – these companies have successfully transitioned, and completely embody the product/service that they provide.
For them, it’s not just about maintaining pace; it’s about being disruptive and setting behaviour that others want to follow and imitate. To do this, a company needs to make sure that it is relevant in the marketplace, and for marketers this means reflecting your offering in a way that customers need, but also want, without feeling ‘marketed to’.
Don’t drink the ‘Kool-Aid’: it’s hugely important that marketers don’t become hindered by the Hubris effect. In today’s arena, there is no such thing as permanence, and in general companies should maintain a continuous process of review, update and refresh.
Brand reviews can take different forms, but companies often have several resources available for determining what their customers are thinking (including but not limited to CRM, social media feeds, retail outlets and purchasing habits, market research, big data and analytics capabilities),. The importance is developing the time, understanding and expertise to decipher this insight to make strategic decisions.
Innovation is a constant process: successful brands (both B2B & B2C), are those that give new reasons to existing customers to come back, or which entice new target audiences to the brand. This calls for a dynamic culture of constant innovation that operates over the course of the year, not just at the start of each new one.
Be brave, take risks, and make mistakes - there’s always more that can be achieved: when you have a great brand or market offering the idea of changing it can seem jarring or unnecessary. However, not changing it (or at least not checking to see if it needs updating), should make marketers more fearful.
Look at it a bit like a new iOS update on your iPhone: the fact of the matter is, your phone will work perfectly well with the old operating system, but, it will work just that little bit better and be more functional and relevant with the new one.
Losing relevance is dangerous in a world where customer views and opinions are continually influenced by communications, experience, and social media. Treading water and complacency based on historical success does not guarantee future fortune.
To understand what relevance really is, companies must first understand what it is not. Ellen Degeneres's Samsung selfie at the Oscars and Oreo's Superbowl blackout tweet temporarily elevated the profiles of Samsung and Orea above the artists and athletes performing and competing. Relevance should not, in short, be confused with buzz. Whilst being talked about is necessary, it is not a prerequisite for success.
The essence of Strategy in 2016 will be relevance, and staying relevant will mean being diligent about understand and talking to customers and others about the quality of your product, and about creating a personal connection with your community and customers/consumers (be that in B2C or B2B spaces). Without this even the best ads or creative campaigns in the world will fall on deaf ears.
By Martin Tavener, CTO Engagement Solutions at IBM.
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