Now, I realise that today I am going out on a limb and many, or most of you may, or may not agree with me. But, as we get nearer to Christmas, the same old, same old Christmas tunes start to flood the radio and are playing in the supermarkets. You know the ones, and they date back to the 1970s. Do I really have to listen to Slade yet again and all the rest? I have been listening to this music for long enough and I want to hear something new.

We seem to stream most of our music these days and it is certainly the best way I know to avoid overplayed music from the 1970s, 1980s etc. Some of it is good music but I have just heard it too many times. I want something new.

Speaking of supermarkets, do you find it frustrating when they keep moving things around? I always assumed it was to stop you from getting into a rut. It forces you to look at other shelves that you may have become accustomed to ignoring. It works! So, why do they play the same old, same old music in the store at Christmas? I suppose the answer will be that they perceive that this is what most people want to hear. I may just have to accept that I am in a minority. Possibly a very small one!

So, when was the last time you refreshed your website? Are you still using the same marketing materials you have used for the last umpteen years? I know you have a large stock but if it no longer works, it is so much scrap paper anyway. Is it time for a fresh new look?

Is this the reason for fashion? As people get fed up with the current styles, they look for something new. In our office, we dropped the dress code that required jackets and ties for men some time ago. But then we also embraced flexible working and remote working several years ago. We have also increased the holiday entitlement for our staff. We were always generous but then the statutory entitlement went up and came close to what we offered. So, we now give more.

We took a step back to consider what the norm had been and really whether we actually needed to maintain it or change it. We changed. For someone like me who has worn a tie all of my working life, it should have been difficult. But not so. I think it’s great. I do still wear a suit most days but open necked. Having lost a bit of weight I am now back in waistcoats and that combination of a 3 piece suit and an open neck shirt suits me very well. In my view, it is just the right balance for me and I am comfortable with that.

A number of years ago we embraced paperless working. It was quite a thought at the start but now I would never go back to paper files. Paperless is so much easier. Innovation!

So, are you stuck in your ways? The world is changing. Will you change it? After all the only constant is change. If you are not constantly revisiting your processes, marketing, target customers etc., will you get left behind? Will your competitors be perceived as more agile, switched on and ready to embrace new exciting developments, often linked to technology? How do your customers see you? When someone else comes along and points out improvements your customers can make, what will they think about you?

Innovation is exciting or scary depending upon your point of view. To me, innovation and in particular advances in technology are exciting and need to be embraced where they benefit either our clients or ourselves. It is usually both. What is good for one is generally good for the other.

When is a good time to change? In a year’s time, you will wish you had embraced the changes a year ago. So, what’s wrong with right now? You can come up with all sorts of reasons why you cannot do it now but, is that not just because change is uncomfortable? But it is necessary. Need to wait till after Christmas? Why?

So, when you listen to the radio or next visit the supermarket, how will you react to all that “old” music being dusted off and played yet again? Does it make you happy to hear all your old favourites or are you fed up with the sale old, sale old and are looking for something else?

Personally, it makes me want to leave the shop as soon as possible, and certainly not linger to look around and see what else they can tempt me to buy. That is probably the opposite of what the marketing department of the supermarket wants. So, are they just wrong don’t care or have not really considered it?

But you and I do care, so is it time to refresh your marketing, brighten up your website, and your message and innovate your processes?

Anyway, for now, Ba Humbug!

 

Alan E Long

The Long Partnership

07770 738770