Brand, Branding, Business, Communications, Corporate Marketing, Marketing, Positioning, Strategy
In Advertising, Brand, Brand Relevance, Brand Strategy, Corporate Marketing, Marketing, Positioning, Strategy on September 30, 2009 at 9:42 am
“Procter & Gamble, the world’s largest consumer products company, has just announced a stunning new business strategy to jump-start growth. It begins in a startling, almost counterintuitive way — with company values and sense of purpose. Invoke the heart and care about human needs, the strategy seems to say, and the money will follow.” –HarvardBusiness.org, Sept. 2009
As the world economy emerges from recession, the corporate community is seeking new strategies to compete more effectively. Among them is a groundswell to (re)consider corporate values as a vital business tool that – when identified, articulated and communicated properly – can enhance economic value. To be sure, organizations aren’t examining their values solely out of a sense of altruism, community stewardship or to ‘feel good’ about themselves. Rather, this trend is emerging as a critical business strategy focused on boosting the bottom line.
In the second part of Cohesion’s white paper series titled, ‘The Fall of Incrementalism,’ we discuss the resurgence of corporate values as a catalyst for simulating relevant value – the reason why customers buy. We examine how the practice of incrementalism can be a barrier to such forward thinking, unless harnessed properly. When executed in the framework of a broader strategy, incremental moves can be a positive force for change. When they are not, the results can range from disappointing to disastrous.
To read the full white paper: The Fall of Incrementalism (Rediscovering Relevant Value), please click here. To read the first part in this series, please click here.
While I’m working on my next post, I hope you’ll read about how Cohesion helps organizations build stronger messaging to increase consistency, lower cost and drive growth, here.
Brand, Branding, Business, Communications, Corporate Marketing, Marketing, Positioning, Strategy
In Advertising, Brand, Brand Relevance, Brand Strategy, Corporate Marketing, Marketing, Positioning, Strategy on September 14, 2009 at 11:10 am
Cohesion, our brand and communications strategy firm, has just published a new white paper: ‘The Fall of Incrementalism. (And the case for bold, new thinking.)’ Here, we share a short excerpt from this new piece and offer the complete whitepaper, below:
In recent years, a growing trend has wound its way through every aspect of the business world, including marketing and marketing communications. The trend is incrementalism, the concept of making small changes that have broad appeal. Because they are purposely non-threatening, incremental changes can be easily adopted and institutionalized. On the surface, these appear to be positive changes that progress an agenda—however slight the perceived improvement might be. In marketing/communications however, the unfettered use of incrementalism can result in consequences that, while no doubt unintentional, too often move companies further behind than ahead.
The fundamental problem is this: Incrementalism, by its nature, works to replace bold and original thinking with simple, sometimes even rote, activity. People may look busy (and indeed they may be), but their work is often void of substance and direction. And that detracts from the purpose of marketing: to leverage a relevant point of value, different from your competitors’. Indeed, incrementalism drives everyone to think, look and sound the same.
To read the full white paper: The Fall of Incrementalism (and the case for bold new thinking), please click here.
While I’m working on my next post, I hope you’ll read about how Cohesion helps organizations build stronger messaging to increase consistency, lower cost and drive growth, here.
