Why ‘just’ marketing?
I recently delivered a strategy to a client who asked; “Why do you promote yourself as just marketing? You should promote yourself as a business analyst/consultant as this is a plan for the whole business.”
I totally understood what he was saying as my plan shaped his sales approach, pricing structure and product portfolio but my response was; “Marketing, when done properly and at a strategic level should inform the whole business.” I truly believe this but I find Marketing is often misunderstood and viewed simply as communications, promotion, branding and advertising.
This has often been a frustration throughout my career. I’ve been asked to create a marketing plan for product X launching in Y and this is exactly the wrong time to be engaging your Marketing Director! Strategic Marketing should inform the Product Development team and not the other way around. Sometimes products are developed because a competitor is doing it. But how do we know the competitor is seeing a return on their investment? Or, the product is being developed because someone thought it was a good idea and others on the board agreed. But has the data been analysed? Will it bring a return on investment?
But why does it matter? The main reason is that you could save heaps of both time and money! By bringing strategic marketing to the fore you will save time and money by;
Only developing products that your customers will actually want. It might seem like a good idea to you but have you spoken to customers to gain their thoughts? And even if they like it, are they willing to pay for it? and at what price point?
Giving focus to your sales and support teams. Working towards a common goal with regular updates on progress gives employees purpose and boosts engagement.
By having a defined target audience, broader than simply ‘customers’ or ‘prospects’, your promotional spend can be greatly reduced without impacting sales. Watch that RoI soar!
Marketing is the key to driving business growth and its what I’m truly passionate about. Marketing at a strategic level should determine the shape of your sales teams, product development pipeline and pricing. It should drive your internal communications and be the leading factor in employee engagement. It becomes the heartbeat of the business.
Marketing led organisations focus on the key initiatives that will sustain growth vs product led that rely on the quality and value of the product to drive growth. Product led organisations can work well… until your competitors come along with products equal to or better than yours.
Do you rely on your products to sell themselves or rely on your sales teams to drive growth? Sales teams are an important, but also expensive, resource. They require communications, a focus and detailed knowledge of the customer benefits (not product benefits!) to succeed.
Do you want to kick-start the heartbeat in your business? Get in touch to see how I can help you with my four step marketing plan.
