Your people aren't your most valuable asset. Your brand is. A study of companies by BusinessWeek showed that “on average, brands account for more than one-third of shareholder value.” This is not, as you may immediately think, a figure for consumer brands; it’s a figure across both consumer and corporate brands.* Jan Lindermann, the former global GM [...]
The better we understand the problem, the better we'll understand the solution. This is the great discipline that engineering teaches us. We use the word problem loosely. Your business may face a challenge. A product may need to be launched. A perception may need correcting. No company invests a large amount of money and time [...]
If competitive advantage is the Holy Grail of business strategy, big ideas are the Holy Grail of brand development. On one side of the chasm is your business. On the other, the people you would like to do business with. Your business has a challenge which needs solving. The better the challenge is understood, the [...]
The deeper the problem you solve for people, the more they will value your business. These words are at the heart of strategy. Once again, we use problem loosely. A need, hope, difficulty, frustration, unanswered prayer. An itch which, often, people don't know they have until you come along and soothe it. Notice the alchemy. Intangible human [...]
Every day, business leaders need to realise the potential of their company. They need to grow its value, command healthy margins and gain loyal customers. They do the necessary. They develop their leadership, cut their costs, optimise their supply chains, improve their call-centres... But is it sufficient? How do they get their hands on 'a difference that matters'? How do they bring to [...]
Don't worry, we can't pronounce our name, either. We're a Johannesburg-based consultancy. The company was established in 2001. We help businesses develop: Business strategy Brand strategy Brand positioning Brand ideas Logo and brand identities Brand campaigns We work, as required, with website developers, social media experts, architects, internal architects and PR agencies. Mark Varder is a qualified civil engineer. [...]
There's no finer example than Johnnie Walker. In the 1990s, sales of Johnnie Walker whisky were declining. London ad agency BBH was appointed to develop “an enduring brand idea that could transcend borders and adapt to local as well as global business needs.” Yes, it mattered that Johnnie Walker had blended whiskies for almost [...]
Can you alone make your company wildly successful? Can you and your fellow directors, powered by your desire to make a dent in the universe, take your business up where it belongs? It’s the hard route to success, especially when you remember that there is an entire army of people, with a lot of pent-up [...]
