A New Strategy For Managing Marketing Resources
(Business Strategy > Marketing Strategy > Resource Management)
Not too long ago, managing marketing resources was relatively easy. There were defined options, and those options remained constant. For example, the marketing resources (also called the marketing mix) included advertising, promotion, and public relations. Each of these had specific options. The options for advertising included TV, print, radio, and direct mail. Developing the marketing plan was a matter of selecting and balancing these options.
EXPANDING OPTIONS CREATE COMPLEXITY
Today those resources have expanded greatly. They continue to expand at a rapid rate and this creates complexity. For example, traditional advertising has been complemented with inbound or pull options. Traditional media has expanded to social media. Within each of these lies numerous activities: content development, keyword strategy, and link-building to name just a few.
WHERE TO BEGIN?
This has created a confusing picture for small and mid-size business owners who have few marketing resources, and who have little overall experience with marketing in the first place. Where do they begin to shape their marketing program?
The answer starts with stepping back from the overwhelming number of options and marketing tactics to consider. It begins by focusing on an overall approach which we call marketing strategy.
Here are 5 practical tips to drive your marketing strategy:
1. Drive your marketing startegy off of your business strategy. Set marketing objectives based on business objectives. This likely means you will set sales and customer objectives.
2. Identify the key components of your marketing strategy. List the different options available to you, then select the combination most likely to achieve your objectives. Marketing strategy options include both traditional and digital alternatives.
3. Select only those strategies you understand and whose performance you can monitor. Do not get swept away by popular topics such as social media without first understanding their true benefits and costs, and how they will generate results.
4. Consider using online resources rather than hiring personnel, agencies, or consultants. Everything that you need to know has already been written, blogged, and put into video form. It is a matter of sifting through the vast resources to find the most credible and the most relevant.
5. Draw parallels between traditional and new marketing to better understand your new options. For example, think of social media as relationship-building; think of keywords as targets for all your communication; and think of optimization as simply becoming both effective and efficient.
In summary, start with the big picture and work down to the small details.
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Here are some other ways to help you manage marketing resources:
Mission: To help small and mid-size businesses capture the power of big-picture marketing.