3 Essentials of Strategy

Strategy is often hard to define, which makes it all the more difficult to distinguish what actually constitutes a good strategy.

UPDATED: As of 4 May 2022

Unless you’ve been running your business under a rock, you would know that businesses today are operating in a VUCA environment. In this context, it’s the quick-thinking, action-oriented, and strategic organisations that win. Those that produce strategic documents and leave them in a bottom drawer — well, they come second or simply fail to finish.

Companies do not come to faster decisions by osmosis — it is always the result of a better decision-making framework.In agile organisations, the ability to make nimble decisions lead to 2.5x the growth, twice the profit, and a 30% higher ROI on investments.

How can you unlock your ability to make better, smarter decisions?

Learn about the scenario planning mistakes and how you can prevent them from misfiring your strategy so you can navigate complexity efficiently.

The more specific we can be about our category, the better chance we have to be remembered and related to by our customers. Are you in the right category?

The more specific we can be about our category, the better chance we have to be remembered and related to by our customers. Are you in the right category?

Many companies today are opting for procurement to manage their marketing spend. But marketers and agencies have always been at odds when it comes to procurement. Understanding the role that procurement plays and how it impacts marketing is crucial to not only save on costs but to pave the way for better alignment in achieving the brand’s vision.

Growing your business sustainably can be a tough egg to crack in our current condition. The slowing economic growth and faltering customer confidence mean business conditions are declining. One wrong move and you could end up wasting your money on initiatives that are bound to fail. 

The economic downturn and increasing digital disruption has led to some businesses and industries folding. We use the Step Change strategic lens to explore what businesses in a sunset industry can do to rise above.

The latest economic figures released by the Bureau of Statistics show that the Australian economy is slowing down. What can businesses do to thrive in a recession? We turn to one of history’s greatest strategists and a ruthless warrior, Genghis Khan.

Many Australian companies are complacent about the effect of disruption in their industries. But disruption today can displace market leaders, their products, and their services. Responding to disruption means businesses need to think fast and act fast.

With over 90% of a prospect’s buying decisions influenced by their subconscious mind, many leading companies are targeting the subconscious in their marketing campaigns. But how does this work, and does it really make a difference? 

In the race towards brand growth and relevance, leading FMCG businesses rely heavily on innovation. Those who rest on their laurels are finding themselves at the back of the pack. In this article, you will learn that with great innovation comes great marketing.

Value is in the eye of the beholder. In a world teeming with new product offerings, a critical question we need to ask today is: in a sea of undifferentiated offerings, how do we make our product or service stand out so people will buy from us?

There’s no getting around it. Today’s consumers hold the power to dictate business outcomes. But with more businesses struggling with their digital transformation initiatives, how can taking a customer-led approach to transformation lead to better results? 

It’s easy to say your business is customer-centric; in fact, many businesses would claim they are putting their customers at the heart of what they do. 

Are you a challenger brand looking for the right marketing strategy that can help you stand out from market leaders in your industry?  We take a look at challenger brand marketing and how adopting a challenger mindset in your category can set you up to win. 

Standing out as a brand in a noisy market is next to impossible. If you’re not Amazon or Google or Apple, then your brand could drown in the sea of brands trying to win the war for attention. That is unless you adopt the challenger mindset.

Challenger brands don’t spend the money that market leaders do for promotion, R&D, or operations. So how do successful challengers outperform market leaders even with scarce resources?

UPDATED as of 03 July 2020.

Boards are essential for strategic success, but for them to add greater value into your strategy, they need to be involved. That means going beyond the yearly off-site strategic planning.

How did Australia’s fastest-growing brands get to where they are? In this article, we look at some of today’s rising stars and the marketing strategy that helped drive them to the top.  

As your business strives for growth, having the right strategy in place paves the road to success. But what does it take to deliver the best strategy? And how do you ensure you create a strong strategic plan that you can fully implement from start to finish?

UPDATED: As of 25 August 2022

Should brands aim to be different or distinctive? What is the difference between the two, and how do these strategies add value to the branding equation? We take a closer look at shared evidence and form our own conclusions on why distinctiveness stumps differentiation.

Many brands aim for differentiation in their growth strategy. But is being different all it really takes to stand out?

Australian banks and financial institutions are losing the faith of the consumer. It isn’t a problem of regulation or profit alone. It’s a problem of public perception.

UPDATED as of 03 July 2020.

Whether it’s launching a new product line, executing a brand awareness or implementing your internal comms strategy, there is one thing we know that’s certain: collaboration and integration across multiple teams are keys to get the job done and get results. But this is not always easy.

UPDATED: As of 23 June 2022

Do you know how much your brand is worth? Although brand valuation can be difficult to measure, since a brand is an intangible asset, knowing its worth is useful not only for your business strategy but also in shaping your marketing strategy.

Customer lifetime value is a critical factor in business success, but not all companies are tracking it. Many companies do not measure it, do not know what it is, or choose to completely ignore it.