While some of the biggest brands in the world are successful ecosystems with big marketing budgets to match – think Nike, Apple, Amazon, LEGO – that doesn’t mean that smaller brands (and budgets) can’t take an ecosystem approach.

Why it matters

If businesses take a digital-first approach to ecosystem brand development, suddenly the possibilities become immense and within the reach of budgets of almost any kind of business – not just giants like Apple or Nike.

According to Remy Brooks, head of strategy at digital agency Future Platforms, the digital platform is the glue connecting diverse offerings of products and...