Stay Ahead

Never before has rapid change and uncertainty had such an impact on businesses around the globe. Many companies are simply surviving, attempting to predict what a new normal may look like and desperately trying to establish the new order.

The toughest test now looms over business leaders — how can we bring our business back from crisis and ensure it remains relevant? What do we do next? 

As a company that is built on the ethos, imagine the impossible, our response to these questions is simple. Reimagine everything. 

Consumer attitudes are re-booting, behaviours are shifting, and a new paradigm is starting to emerge. This creates an opportunity to rethink and improve aspects of your business and develop a customer experience that helps build your brand. We’ve already seen brands demonstrate this over the last few months. From LVMH hand sanitizer to Dyson ventilators, brands are repurposing themselves overnight, to support the common interest. And, in doing so, they build brand equity and loyalty, but in an authentic way that feels true to the brand and its values.

Strategic design is a way of seeing the world; understanding behaviours, exploring new ideas and opportunities, creating solutions, and most of all, measuring success. It provides the opportunity to become more human-centred by exploring the profound challenges and frustrations that hold us back.

We believe three behaviours are vital at this time, to help you stay ahead in a challenging market. 

Assess the changes in your market, 
the key challenges for your brand, and the new possibilities for your customer in order to make decisions that drive value.

Whether it’s simply connecting with your customers or more in-depth research, getting an understanding of customer attitudes and behaviours is really important. It’s critical to understand any potential problems that may occur so you can address them quickly. It’s too easy to place blame for slow sales on a market downturn. Research is often seen as a cost and is culled in overhead reduction plans, but through a period of significant change, it is the vital instrument that helps navigate through a storm.

In an environment where most things are fluid, and changing on a daily basis, adaptive decision making is critical.

Using the insights from your research, identify any potential problems in the customer experience, and prioritise. Bring your teams together to explore new ideas that will move you forward in the marketplace. Don’t stop R&D budgets. The brands that aren’t innovating at this time will lose market share over the long-term. The brands that aren’t communicating, will lose share of voice. Both scenarios will result in competitors taking advantage.

The brands that thrive will activate new ideas that are meaningful and relevant to the customer and their needs.

From queuing outside supermarkets, working out in front of the TV, quarantinis, or meals delivered to our door, we’ve all been forced to do things differently over the last few months. Although most new habits will soon be forgotten when lock-down is over, some will last. Developing a brand and customer experience that is relevant has never been more important and the only way to thrive in the future. 

For more information about how we can help you stay ahead now, or in the future, please get in contact.