Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
Author: Andrea Stimac, odit.ch
English translation: Hannah Maurer
The world has changed many times and is changing again. We will all have to adapt to new ways of living and working and new relationships. Like all change, some will have lost more than others under the new circumstances, and some will find themselves.
Exactly a month ago I gave a couple of lectures at the Hult Business School on Driving Change With Management Innovation and Design Thinking for Social Impact, where I put an almost apocalyptic focus on uncertainty, which was a little weird at the time. Just two weeks later, countries started closing their borders, we were working from home, and going to the shops in masks. You know the rest… Uncertainty is now part of everyday life, which is why you should use this time to kickstart change in your agency, for your brand, and in your relationship towards work and your employees.
These days, we all want things to get back to normal quickly. What most of us probably haven’t realised is that they won’t go back to normal after a few weeks or even a few months – some things never will.
In advertising, we are going to see a process accelerate that some brands have already initiated: flexible investment in marketing communications and expanded marketing vis-à-vis digital business practices, new products, repurposing existing production capacity, technological innovation, and new business models. We are also seeing some brands adapt quickly to change and investing in new ways of doing business that take advantage of people being at home, talking to each other on digital technology, and using home deliveries like never before.
For sure, even those who have fallen behind in transforming their businesses, whether by introducing new technologies, using flexible contracts with employees, managing change and innovation, intergenerational management, or fostering remote working, will in the end embrace change and adopt the new mindset to apply innovative organisational models. My advice: it’s better to be ahead of the curve in implementation than a perfectionist.
I expect that overall investment in marketing will fall for a while, but that socially useful and purpose-driven marketing will actually pick up in the coming months. I also think brands that want to beat the situation will find it hard to do without investment and change management.
Right now, nobody can say what’s going to happen with any certainty. No matter what form the recession takes, consumer, entrepreneurial, and media demand patterns will certainly change, as internet and digital trends that started 10 or so years ago accelerate.
As we exit recession, traditional advertising, marketing, and brand positioning will be reinforced by investment in digital media, whether it’s additional or itself transferred from traditional forms. Consumers, agencies, brands, and media will accelerate business through new technology and new business models. This is a great opportunity for us to experiment with our business model in the advertising industry and with how we work:
- Accept uncertainty
- Be relevant now
- Start thinking long-term
- Foster instant innovations
- Promote forward-thinking and flexible working
- Be future-fit leaders
At a time like the present it can be easier to focus on uncertainty, difficulty, and the frightening things happening in the world. But it is also a chance for the advertising industry to be a source of inspiration and create new visions, push positive ideas, and join in creating new opportunities for various industries, and for humanity, however exaggerated that may sound right now.
Achieving that level of harmony and cooperation will make trust particularly important as we move forward. I optimistically believe the advertising and marketing industries will accept trust’s vital role and importance in how they conduct their operations, throughout all their segments, activities, and areas of expertise, and for forging new partnerships and succeeding in business under whatever new order emerges.
People and organisations across the world are trying to navigate these unprecedented times. Unprecedented times bring unexpected opportunities. So, if you are interested in navigating a radically different future, sign up for the virtual event Accelerate Change for Growth.
Now, find a quiet room, close the door, and stop fussing over the new dynamics of working from home, for which almost no one has any proper training. Interruptions and informalities are part of our new reality and today we are all Prof. Kelly, or BBC guy.
