Here's how you can lead brand strategy initiatives during times of uncertainty with confidence.

Leading brand strategy initiatives during times of uncertainty involves maintaining core brand values to ensure stability and trust, staying informed about market trends and consumer behavior to adapt strategies swiftly, and enhancing digital presence to meet the growing demand for online engagement. By focusing on these areas, brands can navigate uncertainty with confidence and resilience.

Get certain on as much as you can. You won't ever have full control of everything in times of uncertainty. But the more you are aware of, the greater control you will have. And the more you'll be prepared for any scenario. So figure out what you're certain about. Figure out what is uncertain. Then, create multiple scenarios around the uncertainties to see all the possibilities that have the potential to happen. And come up with plans around those scenarios. So, if Scenario A happens, you'll already know how to respond. If Scenario B happens, you'll also know how to respond. This will put you ahead of the competition: they'll be figuring out how to respond when you already started responding.

Leading brand strategy initiatives during times of uncertainty requires a clear vision, adaptability, and strong communication. Start by reaffirming your brand's core values and mission to maintain consistency. Stay informed about market trends and consumer behavior to pivot effectively. Engage with your audience through transparent and empathetic communication. Foster a culture of innovation within your team to explore new opportunities. Lastly, monitor performance metrics closely to make data-driven decisions and adjust strategies as needed. Confidence comes from preparation, flexibility, and a steadfast commitment to your brand's principles.

The first risk assessment is to understand if your brand is pursuing growth with strategies aligned with evidence-based marketing; that is, planning for acquisition (vs. retention), prioritizing reach (vs. frequency), basing messages on CEPs (vs. brand features), and building distinctiveness (vs. constant rebranding), for example. All of these are good starting points and equally fundamental for both B2C and B2B brands.

It is important to be flexible and aware of your brand's needs, but evidence-based marketing focuses on two consistent tasks: (1) creating brand familiarity before consumers enter the category, and (2) making things easy to understand, find, and buy when they do. Since consumer relationships with brands rely on building and renewing memory structures, as highlighted by John Dawes' '95:5 rule', the majority of brand efforts yield results in the medium to long term. Therefore, consistency and scientific rigor are more valuable in times of uncertainty than flexibility.

Consumers are 'loyal switchers'. They have a limited repertoire of brands they purchase, depending on the consumption occasion, and switch between them based on their salience. You might expect extraordinary brand loyalty, but according to evidence-based marketing, loyalty is a variable of market penetration (Double Jeopardy Law) and behaves according to category averages (Law of Regression to the Mean).

When thinking about innovation, it is important to stay true to your brand’s essence. Don’t just open an account on every social media platform because everyone else is doing it. Stop and consider if it’s better to innovate within a channel where you already have content. Sometimes the biggest innovations come from using something old in a new way, rather than chasing the latest shiny new thing.

Set clear KPIs and use analytics tools to track your progress regularly. Adjust strategies based on data-driven insights. Use platforms like HubSpot or Salesforce for comprehensive monitoring and reporting.

It’s easy to become overwhelmed by the constant barrage of new information and the decisions you must make. The pressure makes it easy to fall into behavioral patterns and biases. The best way to reflect is to keep a daily journal. Using a journal allows you to set aside time from responding to people and critically evaluate how you handle the uncertainty. It also allows you to take on different points of view and see how other people would approach the situation, giving you a broader perspective. Finally, it will enable you to become emotionally detached and see the situation more objectively, which is crucial when trying to make sense of what’s really happening during a period of uncertainty.

Every new challenge is an opportunity to learn more about the specifics of your category. Evidence-based marketing operates on universal patterns (laws) that are replicable across all categories, prioritizing category averages as guidelines. Therefore, whenever possible, investigate methods and understand the appropriate measures for your situation based on the information you already have. This is a useful formula for drawing coherent insights.

Consider the long-term implications of your decisions on your brand’s reputation and values. Stay true to your brand’s core identity even as you adapt to changing circumstances. Also, don't underestimate the power of collaboration—partnering with other brands or influencers can provide new growth opportunities and insights.