In the fast-moving world of branding and marketing, trends change like cricket scores in a T20 match.
One day it’s reels and retargeting; the next, it’s AI-generated funnels and chatbots.
But if there’s one principle that has never gone out of fashion, it’s this:
Know your user. Map their journey. Build from there.
This isn’t just a textbook line for me — it’s how we built the cricket brand FLX at Decathlon from the ground up.
From Grounds to Gullies: Where Our Brand Was Born
When we were shaping FLX, we didn’t rely on agency reports or third-party market research. We went straight to the pitch.
We spent weeks at:
- Local cricket grounds during morning practices
- Gully matches where kids made rules as they went
- Training nets with semi-pros fine-tuning their drives
- Decathlon stores, watching customers test gear with unspoken criteria
We weren’t just running surveys — we were absorbing behaviors, hearing frustrations firsthand, watching moments of delight when a bat felt just right.
This wasn’t passive observation. It was full-contact empathy.
Every sticker design, every grip thickness, every packaging detail was co-created with the user in mind.
Turning Insights into a 5-Year Brand Plan
That’s how the 5-Year Marketing Director Plan for FLX was born — not from guesswork or vanity metrics, but from real, on-ground insights.
We identified patterns across user types, behaviors, and emotional triggers and built a strategy that could evolve as our audience grew:
And this wasn’t a plan that sat in a folder.
It became the lens through which we built campaigns, shaped product packaging, defined brand values, and even set up in-store experiences.
Strategy and Content Direction with a Real-World Pulse
When your strategy comes from the ground up, content direction flows naturally.
Because you’re not inventing stories — you’re amplifying them.
We built:
- Campaigns featuring real players, not actors — because “aspiration” should feel achievable
- Social media content that mimicked how users already engaged with the game (think: reel-worthy moments, not ad-like scripts)
- Category-specific messaging — beginners, casual players, and semi-pros each had their own journey
- In-store storytelling that reflected our brand values and local language
And yes — all of it was backed by the same chai-fueled insights we noted on the sidelines.
“Chai ke saath baithke insight samajhna — that’s still more powerful than any dashboard.”
What is User Journey Mapping (Really)?
Forget the fancy jargon for a second.
User Journey Mapping is simply the act of understanding how your customer discovers, engages, and decides.
Think about it like cricket:
- The awareness stage is the toss.
- The consideration stage is your innings.
- The decision stage is when you either hit a six… or get bowled out.
And like cricket, if you don’t know your field conditions (aka your user’s world), you’re playing blind.
Here’s why user journey mapping matters — even more today:
What It Taught Me (And Why I Built The Marketing Playbook)
That experience changed how I approached every brand after FLX.
From luxury retail to alcohol marketing, I carried that same mindset forward:
📍 Go deep into user behavior.
📍 Map the journey.
📍 Build backwards from emotion, not vanity metrics.
It’s why I created the Marketing Playbook — a guided, no-fluff notebook that helps solopreneurs, founders, and marketers move from idea to action strategically.
If you’re someone who’s tired of “random posting” and guessing what your audience wants — this Playbook is your shortcut to clarity.
What’s Inside the Marketing Playbook?
- Audience behavior mapping frameworks
- Strategy worksheets for positioning, storytelling, and campaigns
- Templates to align your marketing with your brand values
- Campaign planning pages (with space to iterate and adapt)
- Prompts to trigger real insight — not just filler content
It’s everything I wish I had (and built from scratch) during FLX — packaged for anyone building a brand that matters.
Prebooking Open!
Download digital copy : https://apurvainkpactstudio.gumroad.com/l/marketingplaybook
Pre-book your copy at ₹1499 (first 50 copies only!): https://bit.ly/3GmO2hH
Final Thought
Brands aren’t built on trends.
They’re built on trust, timing, and tiny insights gathered over chai and conversation.
FLX wasn’t a product launch. It was a user-powered evolution — and that, I believe, is the only kind of marketing that truly works.
So whether you’re building a personal brand, an eComm product, or a multi-store strategy…
📍 Start where the user is.
📍 Map their world.
📍 Build something they can call their own.
Because once your customer feels seen, they don’t just buy.
They belong.
Ready to turn your strategy chaos into clarity?
Download digital notebook and start mapping your brand from the inside out.
Image courtesy – https://abhishekanupam.com/
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