When it comes to creating a solid marketing strategy, you’ve likely heard you’ll need a CRM to manage emails, data, and generally all forms of customer interaction. But a marketing strategy is so much more than that—and when you don’t build and tailor it the right way, it can inhibit growth. Worse, it can keep you from reaching your goals.
As Provisions Group Chief Marketing Officer Kacy Maxwell says, the wrong marketing strategy can be like an anchor—keeping you stuck. (Check out his video, below.) A marketing decision is never just a marketing decision.
So where do you start? Here are four surprising keys to help you build a solid marketing strategy so you can set sail in the right direction.
Pick Your Focus
“It’s important to first ask yourself what is the one thing you want to focus on, or at least the one big thing you need or want to work toward,” says Provisions Group Vice President of Creative Services, Kevin Robinson. “Then the second and third things can fall in line.”
Maybe this one isn’t so surprising, but it’s often overlooked. Tackling a marketing strategy can feel overwhelming, and it’s common to try to do…everything. Honing in on your goals, however, allows you to not only have a better chance of achieving them, but in more impactful ways. For example, if your primary goal is to generate more brand awareness, you can formulate your entire strategy around that goal. You may want to look at incorporating more robust social media and SEO strategies, for example. These latter tactics can also generate growth and conversions, yet they fall in line with the primary goal.
Know Your Audience
“It’s important to truly know your customers,” Robinson says. “You want to know who they are talking to, and specifically—what industry and details such as, the type or size of the company or role.”
Understanding your customer’s specifics can help you more precisely target your efforts. It’s always helpful to think from their shoes, so you can truly understand and then determine how to best serve them.
Pick Your Emotions
“It’s important to understand what emotion you are trying to elicit,” Robinson says. “What pain are they solving for?”
Several studies have revealed that marketing and advertisements that tapped into human emotions showed greater results. In fact, according to a report by Nielson, ads that triggered human emotions increased sales volume by 23% vs. ads that did not.
While part of a marketing strategy involves knowing your goals, and your focus—understanding the humanity behind them can only make your efforts more effective. Not to mention impactful. It’s the feelings that stick.
Know Your Technology
“It’s probably the most overlooked key when it comes to marketing,” Maxwell says. “Technology and its role in marketing is so important.”
In fact, technology is so important for marketing, Provisions Group has built an entire marketing services offering around it. “Thinking about the implications of technology when building a marketing strategy can help prevent issues," Maxwell explains.
For example, the wrong tech in place at a company can sometimes block or outpace marketing efforts—or often, vice versa. It can also diverge with it. (It's common to get so excited about a marketing idea, the implications surrounding the needed or accompany tech don't get considered.) The key is to keep it aligned—so it can best help you.
Case in point: Properly integrating technology into your marketing strategy can handily boost your company’s growth. For example, you could have an integrated dashboard to not only consolidate data on customer interactions, but to help streamline your channel reporting as well—allowing you to make faster and more informed decisions. See how one company boosted their efficiency by 75% with a tailored dashboard and automations, here.
Incorporating the right tech into your marketing strategy can help you carry out your goals in a more efficient and often detailed way, so your creative ideas, tactics, and the emotions you want to elicit can impart an even bigger impact. (If you'd like help or a free marketing strategy consultation, visit us, here.)