THE STRATEGY IS DONE. NOW WHAT? | Brand Strategy
A strategy can be clear, compelling and well received. The positioning is defined, the communication direction agreed and everyone leaves the room aligned. But then comes a deceptively simple question – what do we actually do next?
This is often where a gap appears. Strategy establishes where a brand wants to go, but there can still be considerable distance between that direction and the actions that will bring it to life.
The temptation is to move straight into execution. Campaigns are developed, content calendars created, activations planned and channels selected. But without an intermediate layer of thinking, individual activities can begin to take precedence over the strategic intent they were meant to serve.
What is often needed is a translation of strategy into priorities. What should happen first? What should we build towards? Which ideas, experiences or initiatives could bring the strategy to life? How might these evolve across pre-launch, launch and beyond?These are not execution decisions. They are strategic choices that give execution direction.
This bridge between strategy and execution can take different forms, but its purpose remains the same: to ensure that what a brand does is considered as what it has decided to stand for.
Perhaps the real test of strategy is not only whether it provides clarity, but whether that clarity makes the next set of choices easier to make.
Notes from The Notebook