Dynamic Times Require Agile Strategy

We have seen a a large rise of requests for our proprietary agile strategy methodology for brand strategy. More than ever, sudden market changes, disruptive business models, rapid-paced technology, and ever-evolving competition demand agility. As customers change, new competition enters and new categories emerge, so businesses must be able to flex and adapt with the times.

Without Agility, Less Impact

Agility is becoming more and more of an expectation. And being agile doesn’t mean being hasty or impulsive. In fact, it’s the opposite. Agile strategy should help businesses and brands make better, smarter decisions faster and enable teams to get to the heart of key business problems, prioritize goals, and stay true to their purpose.

High-growth companies who aren’t able to move fast and work in sprints face potential complications. Projects that get stalled lose impact. Slow deliberation leads to decision-paralysis and can deter leaders who simply need to put a stake in the ground and stick to it. And doing incremental parts of a strategy, over a long period of time, can render that strategy irrelevant by the time it’s actually brought to life. Agile strategy is all about quickly getting to the heart of the problem at hand, and creating smart, efficient, maximum-impact solutions.

Accelerating into Brand Strategy

High-growth companies need new ways to adapt their business, product, culture, and brand with an agile approach to brand strategy.

An Agile Approach to Brand Strategy

1. A Sprint Mindset

Framing brand strategy as a sprint allows a business to be more agile and able to effectively flex and adapt. There is great value in condensing what normally would occur over weeks or months into a single day or series of days. A sprint structure demands that everyone really focus and give their full attention. It allows people to really dive in and not be distracted.  Even if the strategy occurs over a longer period of time and takes multiple sprints, developing a sprint mindset can help people be more dedicated, focused, and productive.

2. Flexibility

Digital disruption and the fast pace of markets today requires a brand strategy that can flow and flex with change. An agile brand can’t be thought of as a logo or image – because it isn’t. It’s a system. It’s a way of living for your business and should be felt, understood, and brought to life by every member of the team. In order to be able to intelligently and powerfully adapt and flex, the strategy must be have a clear, directed brand purpose that allows for flexibility without losing clarity.

3. Collaboration

Agile brand strategy hinges on collaboration. And this often requires a mindset shift. People have to hold confidence in the idea that working together helps create better solutions faster. It requires being open, listening to new perspectives, taking outside advice, and coming together to be more imaginative, innovative, and creative in order to help your brand and business stand out in a competitive landscape.

Fast Forward

Last year, our agency honed in on how to solve our clients’ more pressing business challenges via an agile approach. We developed the Fast Forward program to empower learning and accelerate implementation – a much better approach for high-growth companies.

We also embraced the practice of working in sprints, both strategically and creatively. We found it encouraged a higher level of collaboration with our clients and enabled us to meet the many demands of leadership teams managing high-growth companies. We believe sustainable growth depends on this type of agile brand strategy. High-growth companies looking to succeed in 2017 will have to evaluate and learn to embrace agility, or face irrelevancy.

Visit our case studies to see how we put Fast Forward to work.

Emotive Brand is a San Francisco brand strategy and design agency.