Marketing can be a significant source of frustration for growing businesses. Often, they struggle to understand how it should contribute to their growth or how to allocate resources effectively to get the best return on investment.
Many assume it’s primarily about branding or digital efforts, which are important, but only part of a broader picture.
The core challenge for businesses is distinguishing between strategy and tactics. Investing in marketing without a strategy is like building a house without a foundation—it leads to fragmented, ad-hoc tactics that may hit the mark occasionally but often miss and, at worst, can be a costly misstep.
Understanding Strategy: The Foundation of Effective Marketing
Marketing involves many components: brand strategy, digital strategy, sales alignment, and understanding client needs. The key is pulling all these elements together into a cohesive marketing strategy that serves as a roadmap for growth.
Gap Analysis: Identifying What Works and What Doesn’t
- The first step in this process is a business briefing—a 60-minute deep dive into the company’s business plan. This stage is crucial because marketing investment should always be tied to clear business objectives, ensuring marketing efforts are results-driven and contribute to the company’s goals.
- After establishing these objectives, a gap analysis begins with getting your marketing score; a set of essential questions that every business should ask about its marketing. This self-assessment provides a baseline for understanding what’s working and what’s not. It’s a straightforward way to start a productive marketing conversation with the leadership team.
- Once the scores are in, the next step is a facilitated workshop where the leadership team reviews the results and works together to align on a cohesive marketing strategy. This session fosters collaboration, ensuring everyone understands marketing’s role in driving business outcomes. It also lays the groundwork for an actionable implementation plan.
- The final stage is presenting tailored recommendations for growth that align marketing efforts with business objectives. These insights, derived from the business briefing, marketing scores, and the facilitated workshop, form a clear, actionable roadmap for optimising marketing activities. This roadmap empowers businesses to move forward confidently, with clarity on how marketing will contribute to sustainable growth.
Top Three Marketing Tips to Share with Your Clients
- Marketing should deliver real business results. If marketing isn’t delivering measurable outcomes, something’s off. A well-executed strategy should always link back to tangible business growth.
- Strategy guides your investment. Without a strategy, marketing efforts lack focus. A strategy not only helps set priorities but also provides metrics to assess success, steering marketing tactics toward meaningful outcomes.
- Understand the difference between strategy and tactics. Businesses often invest in marketing but may not know if it’s working. Understanding the bigger picture—how tactics fit into an overarching strategy—makes all the difference.
Key Questions to Ask Your Clients
To kick-start productive conversations with clients, consider these questions:
- Do you know the results your marketing is delivering right now?
- Is your marketing team, whether internal or external, equipped for growth?
- Can you identify which parts of your marketing are successful and which are underperforming?
- Would external support help you refine your approach?
