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Mobilise

April 20, 2021

Are you Ready to Mobilise?

Sally O’Rourke, Co-Founder at FRED LDN

10 years ago, during my time at the global forecasting company WGSN, one of the biggest marketing macro trends predicted was that of Hibernation and Nostalgia. My clever colleagues forecasted that by 2020 people would be nesting, retreating from the outside world and embracing the traditional values and traditions of their forbearers. They would also be taking up old-school hobbies such as knitting and arts & crafts.

And they were right! They went further, predicting that at times of extreme uncertainty and anxiety, people would respond inwards. Whilst they could never have anticipated the times that we are living in today, they certainly seem to have been on the nail in the way that people respond at challenging times. With the exception of a few sectors – tech, telco, e-comm – not only is every industry being negatively impacted but so are individuals in a way that has not been seen in modern history. Fear is nibbling away and with that comes the fight, flight… or freeze response.

Many businesses and would-be entrepreneurs are waiting for things to improve and become more certain. Risk-taking, once seen as brave and visionary can now be regarded as reckless. However, if you stay in a frozen state, you might not actually be ready to capitalise on your brilliant idea or be ready to take on a new client or seek investment for the next stage of your growth. Being in the frozen state… um.. freezes you. You need to mobilise. Many of the leaders that I work with have shifted their focus in the last 12 months, from seeking support with their teams or business challenge to a much more personal challenge; “how can I overcome this feeling of uncertainty and that of being in a frozen state and move forward?”

First coined by the United Nations’ Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, “Build Back Better”, has now been adopted by numerous global leaders including the PM of Japan stating, “The word of “Build Back Better” sounds like a new concept, but this is common sense to the Japanese people, coming from our historical experiences in recovering from disaster and preparing for the future…). If ever there was a time, it is now, we need to build back even better than pre-pandemic levels.

From the marketing macro trends, at Brand Love we have made a commitment to build back better than ever, we have mobilised. We are rebranding our business to become FRED Ldn (it does not need a big song a dance, we just did it!), launching a new Master Class series and we have filmed some of the most incredible people we know for our inspirational Fred Talks series. We’ve tightened up our strategic arm of the business to do what we do best: Help Businesses become Future Ready.

Please get in touch if you want to know how FRED Ldn can help leadership teams become Future Ready or to learn more about our Talk/Master Class series.

Further reading