What our government couldn’t achieve, your organisation can.
In these uncertain times, flooded with negative news, you should have only one rallying call for your organisation:
A STRONG AND STABLE BRAND FOR 2019.
Fear of uncertainty, stirred and exaggerated by the headline-hungry media, will cause inertia in many organisations – paralysed with doubt, anxiously watching to see what others will do first. The winning organisations in 2019 will be those which don’t just talk, and certainly don’t wait. The winners will be those who act, taking control of their market situation instead of being at the mercy of it.
The first step to taking effective action is to define your strategy. Even though you can’t anticipate all the changes ahead, you can get closer to anticipating what your customers pain and gain points will be. This awareness will strengthen the potential of your brand significantly, informing what to do next – just at a time when many of your competitors are cancelling or freezing projects.
History shows that putting plans on hold (the ‘inertia strategy’) never wins against an implemented strategy of action.
A stronger brand speaks to its customers in a way that supports them through change. Proactive planning ensures the brand is focussed on anticipating its customers’ needs, growing even stronger through times of change. The old saying, “when you don’t know what to do, do nothing” will prove disastrous to organisations which apply that to their brand and communications strategy in 2019. Get your strategy right, then invest in taking the right action.
The market maybe be uncertain, but you can make sure customers are certain about the role you’re playing to support them.
When the market’s uncertain budgets tighten, clients become cautious. Only brands, marketing plans and campaigns built on an incisive, customer-centric and results-focused strategy then succeed. By placing your brand and a strategic plan at the heart of your business, yours will be the organisation that thrives in 2019 while others struggle simply to survive.
Planning and actioning a clear brand strategy will:
- Make tighter budgets work harder – being more focussed on the right customers, proper segmentation, microtargeting, obsessively integrated, authentic and purpose-driven, and most of all clear, consistent and motivating ways that customers find exceptionally relevant
- Ensure accountability and deliver results – in uncertain times, we all need to provide more proof to show with absolute certainty that budgets have been used well, with everything aligned to deliver results with clear evaluation criteria and metrics in place.
Take the first step
The first step to taking effective action is evaluating how strong your brand is right now. CMDi’s Cut Through Test is a quick and simple online tool for assessing the strength of your brand that provides instant suggests on how to strengthen it further – based on years of proven experience.
So, don’t feel dismayed by the negative headlines and worry about what could go wrong. Start 2019 on a powerfully positive note – make one resolution to review your brand, strengthen it, and know you’ve taken the right action to thrive. Then think, what could possibly go right?
Dianne Lucas
Managing Director