Is your brand relevant?

If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.

—General Eric Shinseki, former U.S. Army Chief of Staff

Being relevant is more important than being best or being biggest. Counterintuitive to such managerial concepts as relative market share or operational excellence, it is not enough to have an efficient organization or to be the biggest or best within a traditional market segment. Instead, you need to continuously scan the horizon and shift course to stay relevant. In fact, being biggest or best may be a hindrance, because it impedes your ability and inclination to adapt quickly.

See how the head of marketing at Accor is borrowing lessons learned during his tenure at McDonald’s to increase the hospitality brand’s relevance.

Via Skift:

Today, Champetier says much of what he achieved at McDonald’s also applies to Accor.

One example is the creation of a regional Chinese brand, the Grand Mercure Mei Jue, which attempts to combine Chinese tradition with French elegance specifically for Chinese travelers.

Guests are greeted by staff wearing traditional Chinese Qipao dresses and welcomed with macarons in their room.

“You have to keep the international powerful image of the brand, but you have to twist it a little bit to make it more relevant.”

‍

‍