I’ve seen this before, the ability to only see something as literal. One dimension. A view that everything is a nail and considering the strategy as a hammer.
Yes, strategy should be clear – this not that, there not here – but it shouldn’t be thought of as a single answer to every question, not without taking context into consideration. Sometimes it’s implicit, a way to design behaviours or flows; sometimes it’s incredibly explicit and is the underlining of a campaign. It has it to flex within its constraint.
It’s like saying a brand colour must be applied to everything, liberally. No. It should be used to convey meaning, to highlight something that adds a conceptual layer to a message, or to point people towards a piece of specificity.
Choice. That’s what makes strategy work. The application. The execution.