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It’s happened so often that We’ve almost stopped being surprised by it, but we have to admit we’re intrigued by the number of businesses we have come across that don’t understand the power of a strong sales strategy.

The world of brands is changing fast – we’re living in a world that’s flattening at a rate we can hardly keep up with. In the ‘old days’, brand managers lived in a structured and seemingly predictable world – now, they have to cope with a loss of power, a massive amount of customer input, the need to be able to adapt constantly, and the need to put their trust in other people.

I doubt you’d find it surprising to hear that most companies cut back on marketing during the uncertainty of the last couple of years – and you probably wouldn’t be surprised to find out that now the pressure’s off a little, they’re starting to fund new initiatives again.

Smart marketers evolve their brands over time to keep them relevant. Some do it well, while others become the target of cynical bloggers.

We recently spoke to a group of young designers and was asked to give them some insights for their design future, which got us thinking about the qualities that we think are vital to being a great designer.

In today’s world of instant information and increasingly savvy consumers it’s easy for a business to lose its direction and get drowned out by the competition. If your business is going to stay afloat it needs to be guided by a strong brand strategy that permeates all levels of your organisation.

Today’s businesses need to get their stories straight so they can use their brand to build a competitive edge. They need to better understand, use and communicate their reason for existing, and they need to do it in a way that makes their customers take notice.

Language is a vital element of your brand identity, but it’s also the one that is most often neglected because most of us believe we can write!

A successful brand needs to be like bamboo – strong, flexible and resilient. But many brands are like broken branches – weak, inflexible and certain to wither and die.

There’s no doubt that technology has changed the way we do business, and while it has enabled consumers to seek out more brands than ever before, the other side of this double-edged sword is crippling the corporate-controlled message.

We often ask people what they think their most critical business tools are – and we have to admit to being surprised by how rarely ‘value proposition’ is on the list.

Building a strong brand identity and conveying it to the marketplace is a vital part of business success – but creating a strong employer brand is just as crucial.

Your branded environment can bring tangible benefits to your business in terms of customer loyalty, employee productivity and, ultimately, profit.

You’ve got an idea for a new business. You’re passionate about it and when it comes to your product or service, you really know your stuff. So you’ve got everything you need to succeed, right?

Not quite.