In his book Brand Like A Rock Star that I am currently reading, Steve Jones is using ABBA as an example how important it is for a business to focus on their real strengths, to maintain and manage them and not to get distracted by nice opportunities that would in the long term only dilute your brand. (in fact Strategic Guideline No. 6, to stick with your strategy, is playing a role here as well). Jones explains why ABBA dismissed every request to go back on stage together. Rumours are that one offer was a billion USD for playing 100 concerts… He writes
ABBA did a wonderful job of selling to the world a brand that was young, exuberant, and full of energy and ambition. They made music that was unique and fresh. If they reunited today, could the sixty-five-year-old Ulvaeus lead the band with the same vigour? … ABBA can serve as a model for brands in terms of focus. ABBA remains focused on being the band that their fans remember, but many biuiinesses lack the commitment to focus on exactly what their customers want from them. … Logic seems to always lead us in the opposite direction. Wefocus on the areas of our business where we are weak instead of where we are strong. Rock star brands, like ABBA, focus on strengths. What do our fans think we are great at? What do we need to stop doing in order to be better at that?“
This is exactly what the Strategic Campaigning Guidelines No. 3, 4 and 6 demand from us: focus, build upon your strengths and stick with your strategy. Campaigning like Rock’n’Roll