Finish before you start

Strategy is the difference between random guesswork and intentional creativity.

Between ill-informed choices and deliberate innovation.

Between fractured decision making and focused planning. 

But above all, it is the difference between playing the game or transforming it.

In a world where information and instant communication are relentless components of business and life, marketing is no longer an afterthought, it is now critical. 

Recently I heard someone say that every company must become marketing company. 

I would go one step further and say that every company must be an exceptional marketing company.  If your marketing is not exceptional then you will not cut through,  you won’t get through the clutter, you will just add to it.

And here is where it gets interesting though.

People talk about being different. About being the next big thing.

But are they?

No! 

Exactly! 95% they talk a big game, and what they’re really doing is adding to the clutter, they’re wasting your time, they’re wasting your money, and completely failing to add value.

Let’s take a quick look at what strategy actually is. 

‘Strategy’ is one of the most overused and misunderstood terms around at the moment, but it is so important.

What isn’t it?

Strategy is not brand. It is not vision. It is not goals. It is not execution. It is not an action plan and it is not a plan for deliverables. 

Okay, so then what is it? 

It is a high-level roadmap. One that takes a birds-eye view and looks at everything holistically, from the big picture overview through to the small details of production. 

Strategy is an overarching game plan. An integrated set of smart decisions that will uniquely position your business or product in your marketplace. The reason it is so important is the quality of your strategy will determine the impact of your brand and of your marketing.

The ability to create high level strategy is a specialised area so understandably, most people approach external consultants to assist them with this.  It is not hard to find a strategist. What is hard? Finging a motherf**king good one. 

So, what constitutes a good strategist?

Well, if you want results that will absolutely hit out of the park every single time, you must working with someone who is in equal parts relentlessly innovative and strategically capable. 

Strategy and innovation appear to be wildly different because they are… But you’ve got to have both if you want a powerful brand, and powerful creative and powerful marketing. One without the other is not going to get you anywhere.

So why do you need both?

Well, strategy without innovation is repetitive, it’s boring and it will not cut through, it will not get attention. 

But, at the same time, innovation without strategy is fanciful, random, unstructured, unworkable in the corporate world. Every day you see exciting projects, products on Kickstarter, they look like they are going to change the world in a small way, big way, and then fail. They fail horribly, they fail publicly.

But, if you combine strategy with innovation you’ve got something special – you’ll be able to use it to strike a critical balance and achieve the strongest dynamic in your communication.

And that’s where you come in!

And you. All of us. My makeup is equal parts innovative and strategic so I chose this path early on. I’ve dedicated my entire career to mastering it.  I sought out a brilliant practical degree that focussed on using strategic and innovative thought to solve problems with visual solutions.

After learning everything I could from this training, I honed my skills further over the years in real world situations. I knew that it added significant value and success to our work with our clients but I was surprised at how few people were doing it.

Later on I realised it’s because the attributes belonging to skilled strategists in the area of brand and marketing are glaring contradictions. Very few people possess both.

It makes sense. Those that do are in equal parts innovative, on one hand, creative and original, on one hand, logical, analytical and critical.

Strategy is about real-world intellectualism, curiosity and imaginative yet decisive thinking. It makes perfect sense to me to be simultaneously innovative and strategic.  For me it is a way of life, like a giant chess board, pieces always shifting with consideration and intelligence. Always assessing new tactics, innovations and contingency plans in anticipation of the moves the completion will make.

This allows me to maintain control of a situation while maximising innovation and creative thinking. I analyse, I deconstruct, I rebuild every idea and system that I come in contact with to learn how it works, and how it can be improved.

I push change through insightful observations, original ideas and formidable logic. I believe that with effort, intelligence, consideration, nothing is impossible. 

My ability to provide creative and innovative ideas within the framework of a high level, functional strategy means that in my world, everything is open to questioning, to re-evaluation. I will always push the boundaries to achieve the best result I know and believe to be relevant. 

So, what’s the quick notes version of all this?

I don’t follow formulas or well-worn paths. 

I don’t copy trends. 

And I don’t impose limitations. 

If you’re looking for that… every other agency will do.

But if you want practical, realistic, effective and different, and you want to know that every idea has passed my ruthless and ever-present “Is this going to work?” filter then I’m your man.

When it is done properly, strategy creates a sustainable advantage in relation to your competition that you can’t afford to ignore. 

So there it is. Strategy + Innovation x Execution =  IMPACT 

Just remember to finish before you start.