5. Determine Your Marketing Strategies

There’s a tendency among junior marketers and senior non-marketers to rush straight into channel mode. Why don’t we put together a Facebook ad campaign? We should be on Google! Let’s make a TV ad!! 

Your job is to get everyone to take a deep breath. Only once you have a comprehensive understanding of your customer and business data and have determined your unique place in the market, should you begin to craft an effective marketing plan.

According to Casey Carey,Director of Google Analytics Marketing, Google,

Establishing a clear linkage between marketing and its contribution to sales or revenue moves marketing from being a ‘discretionary expense’ to a strategic business driver. .. As a marketing leader, you should clearly establish line-of-sight between your plans and the priorities of the business. If you cannot, you may reconsider if it is part of your plan.

Your plan should outline each marketing tactic, what you expect each to deliver and how that activity will contribute to achieving company goals. 

If need be, conduct a competitor media activity SWOT analysis to determine where your key competitors are focusing their marketing tactics. This will help you make a call as to whether you want to meet them head-on in certain media (a typically pricier move) or move toward the gaps.

While we’re on tactics, have you considered your company blog or a broader content marketing strategy as an adjunct to your more traditional marketing tactics?

Educating and entertaining your audience via informative thought leadership content is a great way to build trust and play an ongoing role in your customers’ lives. If you need to regularly update content on your website, you may need to look into a more nimble content management system.