A marketing strategy is a comprehensive blueprint for driving business growth through marketing efforts. Here’s how.
The word ‘strategy’ sounds like a term you’d find a school kid using to solve a maths problem, or something you might see on a motivational poster, but have you considered what our lives would look like if we never used strategies?
Imagine this: no goals, no idea why we’re doing what we do, no devising use of our resources. We’d just get up in the morning and do whatever, spend whatever, and use all our time and energy putting out fires or addressing problems when they arise.
We’d be exhausted and broke, and one day we’d sit in our rocking chairs wondering, what have I done with my life?
If this has got you thinking a marketing strategy may be more useful than you’d thought, here’s precisely how having a marketing strategy helps you achieve your business goals.
What is a marketing strategy?
A marketing strategy is a comprehensive blueprint for driving business growth through marketing efforts.
It contains approaches to attract new customers, retain existing ones, increase their spending, and nurture long-term, sustainable growth.
Key components of a marketing strategy include strengthening your brand and value proposition, identifying target markets, and analysing the market along with your competitors.
Why is having a marketing strategy crucial?
Having a vision is great, but a business will never achieve its business goals without a solid strategy.
A marketing strategy is crucial because it helps you understand your customers’ needs and communicate your offerings more effectively. It also provides a clear direction for your marketing efforts and aligns your team toward a common goal.
A marketing strategy can also make you stand out from your competitors, many with substantially bigger marketing budgets.
The difference between a marketing plan and a marketing strategy
While they sound similar, a marketing strategy is not the same as a marketing plan.
A marketing strategy is a long-term, big-picture framework that ensures a company’s marketing activity supports its overall business goals.
A marketing plan, on the other hand, is a shorter-term, detailed document, that outlines specific marketing activities.
Here’s how a marketing strategy helps you achieve business goals
1. A marketing strategy maximises ROI
A marketing strategy ensures you get the biggest bang for your marketing buck, by making sure you invest in the marketing activities that help you reach your business goals. It’s about getting clear on your return on investment (ROI).
2. A marketing strategy increases profits
A marketing strategy drives business growth by acquiring new customers, retaining existing ones, and increasing customer lifetime value. A marketing strategy could, for example, contain a target of 10 per cent growth per year, along with ways this will be achieved.
3. A marketing strategy solidifies and energises your workforce
A marketing strategy ensures that your business goals, mission, and values are clear, and that every level of the organisation is working to the same outcomes and aspirations.
4. A marketing strategy helps define budgets
Once you know what marketing activities to invest in, budgeting becomes more focused.
For example, your research may show that your Instagram account is driving more people to your purchase pages, and so you assign greater advertising budget to that platform than others and cap it at a certain amount.
In doing so, the risks of going over budget are reduced, and you can be confident that marketing investments will deliver strong results.
5. A marketing strategy helps you better understand your customers
A marketing strategy contains evidence-based data about who your customers are, what they want, and why they choose you. This information will assist every level of your organisation, from customer service to the strategic leadership team.
6. A marketing strategy helps break habits and embrace new ideas
With a lack of strategic thinking, many companies fall back on the marketing activities they have always done to achieve their business goals. These might feel comfortable, but they may not be as effective as they could be.
A marketing strategy is results-based and encourages exploring new marketing ideas, including automation, personalisation, omni-channel marketing, and artificial intelligence (AI).
7. A marketing strategy codifies analysis and review
Analysing marketing results is often overlooked, which can be to the detriment of achieving business goals. The results of regular analysis and review should help inform future marketing activities.
A marketing strategy contains key metrics for review including ROI, conversion rates, customer lifetime value, customer acquisition cost, and brand awareness.
Speak to the marketing experts
Business goals are achieved more effectively and efficiently when they have a solid marketing strategy driving them – and the best marketing strategies are created by experts with experience and expertise to deliver the best.
Assemblo is a full-service marketing agency based in Melbourne, and we develop marketing strategies that help companies achieve their business goals.
To find out how we can help your business, give us a call on (03) 9079 2555 or send us a note via the contact form below.