Why look ahead?

Strategic futures: turn a long-term goal into an actionable strategy.

No-one can predict the future. But signals and clues can create a path ahead, and enable you to speculate and plan for the future.

There has never been a time so right for a long-term view on brand futures.

The competition is fierce
With the urgency of the day-to-day to deliver near-term products, it’s easy to get drawn in to going head-to-head with the competition. Although, it is not easy. In fact it’s really difficult because the factors in which to be competitive get narrower and narrower.

Thinking ahead
Now is the time to think ahead. All organisations face pressing environmental, social and governance goals, especially as we look towards the turn of the decade. This presents a prime opportunity for brands to reconsider their strategy, and how to reach their north star.

Clues and signals
Identifying signals and clues can inform possible and plausible brand depictions to action the strategy established. They can also inform a strategy, to ensure clear value is being pursued. Here’s an example of they might be identified:

1. Adjacent categories:
Looking to adjacent categories where movements and trends often cross-pollinate, can reveal clear connections and clues as to what might be next.

2. Trends:
Macro trends are forces that we can’t ignore, where all brands will be impacted to some degree by climate change, urbanisation, shifting economic status and technology, and its impact on society. They will all inform attitudes, behaviours and bring about both challenges and opportunities. The trick however, it to get ahead and have the foresight to consider the change ahead.

3. Expert engagement:
Exploring today’s attitudes and perspectives for innovation will rarely reveal a future view. Engaging with experts for knowledge can inform signals and drivers, revealing foresight for future direction.

4. Speculate the future:
Create a vision that depicts what’s possible. It doesn’t need to be right, but it helps to be believable (think concept car) to orient people around an idea and decide if this is a future they imagined they might head towards.

Backcasting from a vision

Clues and signals act as ingredients to depict a future possible world. This creates an ability to work backwards and connect to today, and create a roadmap that links the now, next and beyond.

No roadmap that looks to a 8-10 year horizon is watertight, as the market, the category and people’s attitudes can change quicker than expected. However, it creates a clear sense of direction and action on how a brand plans to evolve and think ahead, rather than look sideways.

In an uncontested market, where the world has never moved so fast, there is a real need to think ahead on what’s possible and make the relevant changes and investments in order to get there.