By Sam Martin
At one time, it was believed that all a business needed to succeed was a good idea, or a quality product. These remain valuable assets, but with changing consumer expectations, evolving market conditions, and greater competition than ever before, businesses must also continually evolve to prove their longevity.
Being agile, willing to change, and innovate has become crucial for businesses across all sectors, regardless of their size or industry. In the hospitality sector, for instance, it would be easy to assume that the tastiest food and drink would attract the most customers, yet the most successful food brands rely on constantly evolving branding, engaging loyalty programs, and changing menus that follow food trends to establish their status.
But why are agility and innovation so important for businesses? For one thing, being agile and adaptable enables businesses to respond quickly to changing market conditions, which has been proven essential by the unpredictability of market conditions in recent years.
So, what does it mean for a business to be agile?
Building a foundation of agility
Agility has become a critical element of a winning business model. Whether big or small, businesses need to be able to adapt quickly and effectively to changing market conditions and unforeseen challenges. The key to rolling with the punches is to foster a comprehensive culture of agility that is built around manageable goals, continuous improvement, and regular reviews of targets and processes.
The COVID-19 pandemic provided a vivid example of the importance of agility in business. While over 400,00 UK businesses went under in the space of just twelve months, some businesses were able to pivot successfully to the new normal.
Retail businesses that quickly shifted to ecommerce, offices that rapidly adopted remote working, and hospitality establishments that pivoted to takeaway and delivery services were better equipped to weather the storm and stay afloat. With The success of these businesses throughout the pandemic was largely determined by how well they adapted to their new ways of working.
In order to become an agile business, it is important to commit to continuous improvement, experiment and take calculated risks, and foster a culture that values innovation and collaboration. By creating that culture, businesses can respond quickly and effectively to new opportunities and challenges and achieve greater success.
Technology and innovation
Innovation allows businesses to continually evolve and improve, and embracing technology is a powerful tool to make this change possible.
The most fruitful avenue is data – all businesses generate some form of customer data, and analysing this data can reveal insights about users’ behavioural patterns. This data can be leveraged to create personalised promotions for loyal customers or even help dictate the direction of future campaigns.
Meanwhile, harnessing the data generated by a business’ own operations can also be helpful in identifying problem areas, minimising needless waste and increasing efficiencies.
Peckwater Brands uses data to analyse customers’ takeaway orders in specific areas to determine demand for food types that is being underserved, then select the optimal virtual food brand for a partner kitchen in that area to take advantage of that gap in the market.
Digital platforms are also important tools for businesses looking to increase revenue and growth. A robust digital ecosystem that can incorporate elements like loyalty programs, personalised payment solutions and ensure superior customer experience for end users can add value to a business’ offering.
Quick to change, quick to succeed
An agile business model empowers a business with the ability to continuously improve every element of its offering and overcome challenges. Ultimately, technology-driven innovation is the best means of fostering an agile culture and bringing about positive change.
No matter the sector, the customers, or the business – having both the willingness and capacity to adapt to whatever challenges or obstacles stand in your way is vital. At a time when consumer spending is down and many businesses are struggling, it is the most agile and innovative players in each sector who will find the ingenuity to overcome and succeed.
This article was originally published on May 14, 2023.
About the Author
Sam Martin is the co-founder and CEO of Peckwater Brands (PWB), the delivery franchising experts. PWB helps restaurants and kitchens of all sizes benefit from the fullest demands of the market by streamlining the process of embracing virtual brands and multiple-franchise solutions. Working with partners across the hospitality spectrum, they can transform any kitchen into a multi-franchise operation, integrating with their existing operations and opening them up to vastly increased demand across different brands and cuisines. Sam worked in executive positions at Uber and Amazon before co-founding PWB in 2019.
