A Powerful Kick-Start to Any Brand Transformation
In 2019, I began working with the company Søgemedier.
The company was the largest and leading part of a group of smaller Nordic digital marketing agencies in Denmark, Sweden, and Finland.
CEO Allan Damborg had read the book Hunger in Paradise more than once and was a strong advocate of the principles of fighting complacency.
As Sales Director at the company De Gule Sider (Yellow Pages), he had experienced firsthand the “sudden” self-inflicted downturn that can hit a business.
In fact, it was his experiences with conservatism at De Gule Sider that inspired him to found Søgemedier, with the aim of becoming the number one marketing partner for small Danish businesses.
Despite Søgemedier’s success, Allan was ready to challenge everything and everyone to keep momentum alive.
So, Allan and I started a strategic process with an expanded leadership team. The first task was to paint the ugly picture of the future.
We wanted to step into the role of devil’s advocates, urging the company’s leaders to focus on future markets, competitiveness, and expected growth.
The goal was to get all leaders to understand that it was time for a major brand transformation.
The Ugly Picture of the Future for Søgemedier
It was a unique experience for the leadership team to shift from running a successful business day-to-day to confronting the worst-case scenario.
But it worked and got all the leaders ready to make significant changes at Søgemedier.
Here are some of the insights and conclusions the leadership team came to:
An Unpredictable Market
New technologies like ML and AI would create more automated marketing solutions and processes, which could undercut some of Søgemedier’s business.
An Untrustworthy Industry
Only a PC, internet connection, and a quick SEO course are needed for anyone to pose as an online marketing expert. The digital marketing industry was becoming less trustworthy, and small businesses were becoming weary of salespeople promising them the world over the phone.
Clients Becoming More Skilled Themselves
Clients were clearly becoming more knowledgeable in marketing. In the future, they would be able to handle more tasks independently and demand greater documentation of business results from their marketing partner.
Declining Growth
While Søgemedier was delivering growth and good results, we took the critical view that growth was slightly tapering off in key, business-critical product areas.
A Risky Business Model
Søgemedier’s limited product portfolio would be risky in a market where digital media and marketing solutions were expected to develop significantly in the coming years.
Outdated and Generic Identity
Although Søgemedier was only around 10 years old, the organization felt the brand identity was somewhat outdated and generic.
Brand Transformation to Generaxion.digital
The ugly picture of the future was the exercise that truly sparked the idea of brand transformation at Søgemedier.
It became clear to everyone in the leadership team that it was critical to evolve into a company that was both innovative and dynamic, highly adaptable to rapid developments in digital technologies, media, and marketing solutions.
This idea led to the vision of always being “the new and the next generation of digital marketing people, tools, and services.”
Thus, the name Generaxion was born.
The “X” in the name represents the ability to create an “X factor” in clients’ marketing and to “multiply” clients’ demand through digital marketing.
Generaxion’s vision was clear and defined from the outset: Always the new and the next generation of marketing.
We launched the new name and brand identity at the height of COVID-19.
Just as we were planning a launch party, the virus interfered. We ended up doing an online presentation instead, though we’ve since had the chance to celebrate properly.
The brand transformation from Søgemedier to Generaxion has required ongoing implementation and innovation—here are the main initiatives:
A Significantly Expanded Service Platform
From a limited product offering to a one-stop-marketing-shop providing clients with all the marketing solutions they need to grow their business, from brand strategy and creative visuals like video and animation to specialized e-commerce solutions.
Culture Building Based on Strong Values
We developed and implemented a unique set of values to create a strong North European community at Generaxion:
STRAIGHTFORWARD AND SIMPLE
We build trust through open
and easy to understand communication.
AMBITIOUS BUT HUMAN
We’re driven by success,
but above all we’re caring
and respectful to everyone
we work with.
TOGETHER WE GO FAR
We nurture our partnerships and
community to thrive and grow by
learning and creating together.
COMMITED TO IMPACT
We strive to crate real and
lasting value in everything we do.
Generaxion.Anywhere
We created Generaxion.Anywhere as an offer for employees to experience life as digital nomads for extended periods. This form of employer branding has been a huge success.
Destinations so far have included Lisbon, Barcelona, Budapest, and Athens, where employees can stay for up to two months.
How to Paint the Dirty Picture of the Future
If you want to try taking on the role of devil’s advocate and prepare your organization for development and transformation, here are the precise questions we asked ourselves on the journey from Søgemedier to Generaxion:
- What does the entrepreneurial landscape look like in your business area and related fields?
- What external trends and technological developments are underway, and how could they impact your business?
- Are new providers emerging who could significantly reduce your competitiveness or relevance?
- Map your current growth curve—is growth declining or increasing, and why?
- Describe your unwavering success formula—which successful activities and practices do you blindly stick to?
- Outline your future growth curve in a worst-case scenario.
I’ll end with CEO Allan Damborg’s opening in the company’s “coffee table” strategy book, The Making of a New Generaxion:
“When you feel you’re already in paradise—when your business is at a peak and growth seems limitless—that’s when you need to be hungry for more.
The alternative is to be disrupted, to be outdone by competitors. Complacency will kill you. Generaxion is born to be hungry, to always think next, to push ourselves to build something truly outstanding.I don’t mean to sound ruthless—but if you strive to be globally unbeatable, if you dream to empower businesses to flourish at a whole new level, then relentless hunger is simply vital for success.”
Bon appetit.
