Page 16 - AeM_August_2020

BEST
PRACTICES
&
STRATEGIES

Every crisis can be mastered

It is said for years that in 2020 vision-driven, future- force, it is time for agile design and agile manage-
oriented plans would be experienced and new growth ment of the brand. Branding must be understood as
markets be conquered. We wanted to be ideally a never-ending process and will always be the
positioned this year, mastering the next decade in a intersection of corporate identity and the target group
leading position. But then everything turned out world. If you bring both together and establish brand
differently and nobody got spared when COVID-19 management, the sustainable relevance and
made its appearance worldwide. Companies in the longevity of the brand is ensured. Impulses that
digital business arena had a clear advantage compared advance the brand can come from every department
to others, but it wasn’t easy for them either, since a of a company - and only must be listened to.
digital business strategy and agile corporate culture
alone are by no means a guarantee for relevant Whenever it is about change - and especially when
solutions that serve actual needs. But the following to- change determines everything, as in this pandemic - it
do list for crisis security is certainly useful for any is worth taking a closer look at what does not change –
company and brand and a crisis-proof source for what is permanent and immune. In the brand context.
successful transformation: That is the essence of a company: it describes the
reason for existence, the right to exist, the master plan.
• Service design: a purpose formulation should not It is the source of change, innovation, and disruption,
only sound good but must answer in a few words because it is independent of channels, products, and
why the company exists. Writing it down helps to contact points - and therefore crisis-proofed. Every
manifest the essence and quickly deploys new company has such an essence, found as a vision,
employees as brand ambassadors. mission, or purpose formulation. Purpose is trending for
the same reasons right now, too. Even if you have just
• Culture design: it is crucial that the purpose is heard and read the word a little too much in the brand
anchored in the workforce as a behavior-guiding tool. context, this trend is absolutely justified and should get
To do this, it must of course be accepted as such most attention in the business world. Important is to
and match the language of the corporate culture. In know how to use it correctly as it otherwise remains
other words, every department, every employee only a useless marketing humbug. ◊
must be able to understand the formulation.
By Daniela La Marca
• Agile brand design: when the wording is translated
into relevant solutions and anchored in the work-

August 2020: people-oriented communication strategies and social networks 16