08 Jul PESTEL the model that should have been used for Brexit

So we are 2 weeks on from #Brexit and the public spoke to come out of the EU. The Sterling dropped straight away, but soon showed signs of recovery. With media reports of large businesses announcing profit losses, job losses and relocation strategies, the statements being splattered all over the BBC news and Financial Times websites, and social media, injected fear into the country.

Because the general feeling was that we weren’t going to leave the EU, PESTEL could have been overlooked and Great Britain leaving the EU not taken seriously. Or on the flip side you may have implemented the result which showed good marketing by the business.

PESTEL the model that should have been used for Brexit

For those who are unaware of PESTEL it is a marketing model that is used to draw out any risks and opportunities that could affect an organisation. PESTEL is always changing and for a business to react to their advantage it should always be monitoring this.

So a quick lesson into basic marketing:

POLITICS –  Government party change or in this case the result of an EU referendum.

ECONOMICS – Inflation has a major impact on consumer buying behaviour and purchasing powers of companies, economies of scale.

SOCIAL-CULTURAL – Trends in demographics &  populations, what the culture is currently demanding and is responding to.

TECHNOLOGY – Social media being a major contributor to online sales, the use of mobile phones. Keeping up-to-date with the technological changes is key to being successful in your industry and markets.

ENVIRONMENT  – Weather or a natural disaster could influence how a business trades, for example a rainy summer, sales in suncream drop Hunters wellies increase in sales.

LEGAL / LAW – any new regulations external or internally that may affect a company.

Responding well and positively to the situation is what will make the stronger businesses stand out and this is where all businesses now need to start focusing; their clear communication plans.

Internal marketing should be addressed first, good leadership would always deliver a clear and positive message to reassure their employees that the company is more than fully prepared and prepped for any external change to the environment. I would say it is like a virus that spreads into every department in both ways, confidence within your market will be planted into employees minds, which will then in turn, filter out to their client base, offering certainty and trust of the brand.

If you don’t get the message across in a professional way, rumors of pay freezes, job losses and doubt in the future of the business not only seeps into your employees minds, but causes a ripple effect outside and into the customers’ minds.

Who wants to really do business with a scared and vulnerable business?!

Chris Brindley – Former MD of Metro Bank quoted “Develop your people, don’t slash the training budget!” This is where you may need to educate and train employees to do other tasks or roles in reaction to the outcome of Brexit.

From our point of view at Bluebell Web Solutions, to not acknowledge a potential risk on the vote would have been a bad move and shown that we do not practice what we preach. There is always an element of risk, in this case it is slightly larger, but from all risks there are always opportunity and this is time to start looking at SWOT models and producing a 5 year marketing plan.

Marketing plans do take some time, but they add structure, strategy and clear direction for your business to move forward. This isn’t something you can skip and dance around, this needs to be implemented as soon as possible, it will also make you stand out from your competition and add a clear advantage.

Use Brexit to your competitive advantage, I know we are…

As usual any questions about anything I have written feel free to contact me.