What do you do if your brand strategy is failing and you want to learn from it?

I've faced my a few challenges over the years with brand strategies. When a strategy begins to falter, I take a step back to reassess. Firstly, I analyse the data and feedback to pinpoint where things went awry. Understanding the audience's response is crucial; perhaps the message didn't resonate or the platform wasn't right. I then engage with my network for insights, often turning to fellow LinkedIn professionals for advice. Learning from these experiences, I adapt and refine my approach, ensuring it aligns more closely with my target audience's needs and expectations. It's a continuous cycle of learning, adapting, and evolving.

This is very true. Developing valuable insights often requires looking at areas that are either unseen or not wanted to be seen. Usually this requires humble honesty and the best marketers I've worked with display this honesty to move things forward.

Assess Honestly, But Ruthlessly It's not just about being honest; it's about being ruthlessly honest. Most brands are too close to their vision, trapped in an echo chamber of self-admiration. Break the mirror. Question not just the viability of your objectives but their relevance. In today's dynamic marketplace, yesterday's innovative strategy could be today's outdated plan. It's not enough to differentiate; you need to resonate on a deeper, almost tribal level with your audience. Challenge every assumption, even the foundational ones. It's not about what you're selling; it's about the change you're advocating for in your customer's world.

Analyze what went wrong with your brand strategy by gathering comprehensive feedback from stakeholders and customers. Identify specific areas for improvement and conduct a competitive analysis to understand market positioning better. Use these insights to refine your strategy, focusing on differentiation and value proposition. View failure as a learning opportunity to build a more resilient and impactful brand strategy.

Gather Feedback, And Then Some Yes, gather feedback, but go beyond the usual suspects. Your current customers and stakeholders can provide comfort feedback, not necessarily growth feedback. Tap into the voices not singing your praises—the non-customers, the industry skeptics, the quiet observers. Their insights can often be the most piercing and transformative, highlighting blind spots in your appeal and reach. Use this feedback to not just adjust but pivot, if necessary, radically altering your brand's course to align with unmet needs and unvoiced desires.

Analyze Data, Then Act on It Audaciously Data is more than numbers; it's the story of your brand's impact—or lack thereof—in the real world. But here's where many get it wrong: they react, not act. Don't just tweak your strategies based on data; use it to leapfrog into new, uncharted territories. Identify not just the trends but the anomalies. Often, the most groundbreaking insights come from what doesn't fit rather than what does. Dare to follow these outliers to their logical (or illogical) conclusions. Your next big idea might be hidden in the data everyone else is overlooking.

Innovate Creatively, Disruptively True innovation doesn't come from following the playbook; it comes from rewriting it. It's not enough to think outside the box; you need to question why the box exists in the first place. Explore the intersections of technology, art, culture, and science for inspiration. Creative innovation isn't just about being different; it's about being profoundly relevant in a way no one else has dared to be. This might mean partnering with seemingly unrelated brands, tapping into emerging subcultures, or even challenging societal norms. Make your brand the one that didn't just change the game but created a whole new one.

Get inspired by your brand's journey so far. Consider what made it stand out initially and how you can recreate that magic in fresh, unexpected ways. Whether it's a daring redesign or a bold new product line, embracing creativity can breathe new life into your brand and ignite consumer interest. Think of it as a chance to rewrite the story of your brand's success, one innovative idea at a time.

Implement Changes, Courageously Implementation is where most strategies die, not because the ideas aren't brilliant, but because the commitment wavers at the first sign of resistance. Prepare to be misunderstood, criticized, and even resisted. The path of transformation is lonely and fraught with challenges. However, the brands that endure are those that not only embrace change but do so with unwavering conviction. This may mean overhauling your team, your processes, or your entire business model. The question isn't "Is this change necessary?" but "Are we brave enough to pursue it relentlessly?"

Stop analyzing. Start doing. Let me explain. Most strategies are high level enough that marketers can hardly mess it up. However, most brands fail to take action fast enough, quick enough, and agile enough to see results. Implement, and adjust is key to building long lasting, effective, and money making strategies.

Monitor Progress, Relentlessly Setting KPIs is one thing; living by them is another. The true measure of progress isn't just in numbers but in the narratives those numbers tell. Are you genuinely moving the needle, or just moving in circles? Be prepared to be unflinchingly honest with yourself and your team. The most successful brands are those that treat every setback as a setup for a comeback. This requires not just vigilance but a willingness to continually adapt, evolve, and, if necessary, pivot again. Your brand's journey is not a straight line but a series of calculated leaps into the unknown, with each landing point a launchpad for the next big jump.