Change can be tough for a lot of reasons. Changing can mean we have to endure some tedious tasks or dedicate time and resources already stressed thin. Change can also force us to acknowledge unchartered waters and force us to take those first wobbly steps before we can become more sure-footed and thus, more comfortable. Change presents the risk of error, embarrassment, or worse, failure.
Fear of the unknown – the unproven, unmeasured, and unmastered – can inhibit the flow of good ideas. It can waylay a company behind a pioneering competitor. It can give you justification for funneling attention on a “sure thing” project.
But no change nets you more of the same.
The same diet gets boring and unappealing after two days. Many people can’t bring themselves to read the same book or watch the same movie twice. The same fall wardrobe leaves you wanting a few pieces to bring it current and spice things up.
A little change now and again keeps everyone on their toes. Competitors become programmed to expect the unexpected. Employees appreciate the versatility that planned, intentional change brings. Customers come to expect new, more, and different.
US Army General and ex-Chief of Staff Eric Shinseki once said:
“If you don’t like change, you’ll like irrelevance even less.”
His words are among my favorite quotes, and make me think about the shift of power and control from brands with their mass communication methods toward consumers with the rights and tools of self-selection. When I apply them to managing a brand in an age of self-publication and instant gratification, steps like these emerge:
- Understand your customers’ needs. Research and listening fueled by a desire for the real deal make this more than a perfunctory effort.
- Define your business priorities. Everything’s important, and important to someone. Strip away the superfluous and the tangenteal and focus on the important core.
- Map customer needs to business priorities to pinpoint focal areas of critical proportions. This is a straight line, folks. No question if these activities will create value.
- Communicate your intentions and methods. Don’t wait for customers to circle back to you on their will. Inspire them with your commitment. Let everyone ackowledge your progress. Bumps may happen; its lost ground that’s often too difficult to make up.
- Check your report card. Find out what worked well and what didn’t. You want to know the ‘why’ behind both. You’ll get a chance to re-engineer some things and get insight into opportunities for enhancement.
- Keep on keeping on. Fold everything in, remedy what you need to, and forge ahead. Take no prisoners and be mindful of those who set off land minds before you.
I’m not advocating radical shifts in direction at every turn. Certainly, that’s no way to build equity in any brand or be a steward of the financials. What I’m suggesting is more of a continuous loop; while steadily shaping a cogent brand traversing multiple channels, take care to implement a team (or allocate some time) focused on innovation and evolution where work not only backfills key initiatives but can also be plugged in at cross sections when new data and insight can do the most good.
How do you think most companies feel about change? Is it someone’s job to think about what’s next or what should be? Are they comfortable exposing their weaknesses to their customers?
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Aug 22 in Business, Social Media
Written by: Heather Rast 
. Similarly, change can be resisted because it may force us to deal with sticky tangental issues – the defensive sourpuss standing in the way or the entrenched dogma. To change may even force us to eat a little crow, so….. Some persist in pursuing status quo while others frenetically seek shiny objects. Neither mindset really allows for growth, and neither will survive much external pressure.
Brand management is tricky that way: it’s about finding a balance beween “change for change’s sake” and strategic change. But you’re right: many companies resist change in any format, and that path doesn’t end well.
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