Digital Brand Strategy

Too many leadership teams still treat digital marketing as a set of disconnected actions: a refreshed website, a burst of LinkedIn ads, maybe an email campaign when time allows. They tick boxes. But they don’t set direction. That’s because they confuse tactics with strategy. A strategy is the overarching plan that aligns digital activity with business objectives. It answers questions like: How will digital help us win the right type of clients? Where do we need visibility in the age of AI search? Which risks (compliance, reputation, migration) could undermine growth if left unchecked? Tactics, by contrast, are the specific tools: SEO, LinkedIn carousels, webinars, HubSpot nurture sequences. They’re essential, but without strategy, they’re just noise. Here’s the problem: when senior leaders conflate the two, three things happen: 1️⃣ Budgets get wasted — money poured into channels without clarity on ROI. 2️⃣ Teams get frustrated — they’re executing but not moving the needle. 3️⃣ Firms get exposed — missing compliance obligations, or losing visibility during platform changes. A proper digital strategy is not about doing more marketing. It’s about making informed marketing decisions, based on evidence, that align with the firm’s growth agenda. It’s the difference between: “Let’s post more often on LinkedIn” vs “Let’s use LinkedIn to shape our authority in professional negligence law, building trust with referral partners and clients.” Boards wouldn’t accept a financial plan built on ad hoc spending decisions. Why accept a digital approach that does the same? How does your firm draw the line between strategy and tactics?

shifting how we viewed digital took chubbies from an 8-figure, negative-profit ecommerce store to a 9-figure, profitable omnichannel brand as a digital-first brand believing DTC was the future, this was a tectonic shift we wish we realized it sooner...would have saved many a sleepless night so you don’t make the same mistakes we did, here’s 1) the mistakes 2) 3 lessons 3) 3 actions you can take today let's do it *the mistakes* at chubbies we built our ecommerce business to 8 figures of revenue before we really understood the role of digital for consumer brands for the first few years, we were fully bought into the ecommerce revolution we thought the role of digital was to offer a convenient place to purchase items you love without the hassle of going to a retail store we thought online retailers were competitors we wanted to own the transaction for brand control and support our ability to measure LTV: CAC since DR, discounts, ROAS and revenue mattered most at the time then we almost went out of business *3 lessons* 1) digital is not for transactions, it's for connections as we deconstructed our business to find scalable profitable growth, we realized the internet’s true value to brands it was not just a vehicle for transactions the value of the internet to consumer brands was that the internet had become the house of brand the internet became where consumers connect with brands across social networks, mailing lists, websites, etc the internet was the place consumers share their thoughts and emotions towards brands freely and openly in a way that billions of people could consume the internet was where consumers learned about their favorite brands, diving into the story and purpose our realization was that this basket of digital behaviors towards our brand was our brand 2) the best way to see the impact of brand was by being omnichannel truth be told, we couldn't make brand work the way we needed it to when DTC only only later did we learn that the measurable impact of "brand marketing" was far higher when we started to be available more broadly in retail compared to being DTC only ...but we had to get into retail (and show up the way we wanted) to make this possible 3) leaning into number 1 ALSO generated the retail demand that made number 2 possible (something we didn't fully realize the value of at the time) *3 actions you can take today* 1) take a hard look at the assumptions driving your view of digital DTC are they still correct? do they need to be reassessed? given where you are as a brand, what's the right strategic view for YOU 2) if the connection vs transaction view resonates, vet your internal capabilities to see if they match what's needed to build those connections put simply, do you have an internal content machine? 3) broaden the definition of 'customer' add the retail buyer into your filter when thinking about how to maximize desire for your brand hope this helps 

Most companies fail at brand strategy. They treat it like an art project. Your brand is not marketing fluff. It's a precise economic engine that blends expression with rigor, emotion with facts. And it's your biggest lever for profit. Master this system and you influence market perception and unlock value. Here's the Playbook for building a great brand: - Define The Economics: Widen the gap between what customer think your product is worth and what it costs you to produce it. This is the financial imperative. - Differentiate With Purpose: Claim the market whitespace. This is what your brand *is* and what your competitors are *not*. - Forge The Foundation: Build identity, prove benefits, sharpen positioning. This is the 'why' behind your company that must be relevant for your key consumers (and your to employees!). - Execute With Precision: Own your digital space and deliver tangible assets. This is how you sustain your brand and produce the reasons for people to believe in your brand. - Embrace Evolution: Deploy an intentional brand architecture, drive smart growth, and revitalize when necessary. Anchor in Analytics: The analyst is the objective guardian, fueling every step with data. Brand strategy is not art alone. It's disciplined science. Blend them to earn more profit. Art+Science Analytics Institute | University of Notre Dame | University of Notre Dame - Mendoza College of Business | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | University of Chicago | D'Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University | ELVTR | Grow with Google - Data Analytics #Analytics #DataStorytelling #Brand #BrandStrategy

“For any creative refresh to land with consumers and generate longer term growth, companies have to build on their original mission, make necessary improvements to their products and find the smoothest and most compelling ways to communicate those changes to new and existing customers.” Great take by Malique Morris for The Business of Fashion on how DTC brands should think about a rebrand. Yet, knowing you need to adapt your approach doesn’t tell you exactly what you should do or how to do it. A professor once told me, “There’s no point to revising your work if you don’t know what you’re trying to argue in the first place.” This lesson easily applies to fashion, luxury, and retail brands. Too many brands are rebranding or shifting creative directions without an actual content strategy behind it. This can result in inconsistent, inefficient brand storytelling and content across channels, which can stifle growth and confuse consumers. The current state of DTC brands is akin to what’s happening in luxury: too many brands, too many similar products, and too much same-feeling content. It’s hard to distinguish one brand from another. This is why brand strategy and content strategy are now more critical than ever for brands that want to achieve long-term growth. 🔹 Brand strategy is the “why” of what defines you as a brand; content strategy is all about “how” your brand communicates your why across digital and IRL touchpoints and connects with consumers. 🔹 A “new” brand strategy can only get you so far if you can’t communicate it consistently and authentically through content. In other words, content strategy is brand strategy in action. 🔹 Content is an everywhere thing for brands, not just a digital thing. To a large degree, every aspect of retail from the products themselves to digital content, clienteling and retail store operations, and marketing are all opportunities for brand storytelling and hence content. If any single touchpoint feels off, customers may notice or forget about you. For a concrete example, take Burberry. We all are rooting for the Burberry Forward rebrand but its new marketing push won’t translate into sales without a holistic overhaul of how it builds value for customers. In other words, convincing consumers that buying Burberry is a worthwhile, desired investment of their money, time, and attention. Having a good story won’t save your brand any more than the latest content marketing tactic or AI content tool will. It doesn’t matter how good your brand story is if you can’t communicate the value of your products and why they matter. To stay memorable and relevant, brands need narrative-driven holistic content strategy that connects corporate strategy to customer needs in a scalable, appropriate way backed by solid content operations. https://lnkd.in/eXd-Ftak #retail #ecommerce #brandstrategy #contentstrategy #luxury

Over the past decade, I’ve seen digital marketing evolve from basic banner ads and email blasts to a complex ecosystem of performance media, AI-powered personalization, and hyper-targeted storytelling. But regardless of the tools or platforms, one truth remains constant: 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀. Whether you're trying to: 👉 Launch a product 👉 Generate leads 👉 Build a personal brand 👉 Attract talent 👉 Drive thought leadership ...digital marketing can get you there. But only if done intentionally. Here’s what I’ve learned about making digital work for your goals: 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹. Don’t begin with, “We need a campaign.” Start with, “We need to increase demo bookings by 25%” or “We want to get 5,000 pre-orders.” Strategy begins with specificity. 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲. Understand their needs, pain points, behavior, and how they consume content. You’re not marketing to them, you’re marketing for them. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁. Great content in the wrong format or channel will fail. A 30-second vertical video might outperform a whitepaper in the right moment. Format matters. 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀. Vanity metrics (likes, impressions) can be distracting. Focus on metrics that drive action: cost per lead, conversion rate, and pipeline influence. 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆. SEO for visibility, LinkedIn for B2B trust, Meta for scale, YouTube for storytelling, influencers for social proof. Choose based on your goal and not what’s trending. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗳𝗹𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗹. Go beyond acquisition. Digital should also support retention, upselling, and advocacy. 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 > 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 Tools change. Strategy endures. Don’t chase platforms, chase outcomes. Digital marketing is not magic. But when aligned with clear goals, it becomes a powerful engine of momentum. Follow #socialJJ to read more of my posts. #personalbranding