The Beat - Fall 2018

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Fall 2018 INSIGHTS NEWS | REVIEWS | IDEAS | OPINION | STRATEGY » The Necessity of MARKETING PLANS Debbie Andrews has worked on more than 100 marketing plans over 20+ years of marketing and business development. She is founder and president of Marketri, a full-service strategic marketing consulting and fractional CMO company, and her specialties include working with accounting, engineering, investment banking, technology, and law firms. Recently, Andrews and George Jacob, a strategic marketing consultant at Marketri, shared the following advice with us on the necessity of marketing plans. 32% OF COMPANIES LACK A FORMAL MARKETING PLAN In mid-2017, Marketri conducted a survey to gain insight into whether companies have and use marketing plans. Of the respondents, 32 percent reported that their companies do not have formal marketing plans. Though it might seem like a low number, it’s actually a little shocking. It means nearly one-third of companies are essentially winging it with their marketing efforts. Respondents pointed to some difficult truths within their organizations with responses such as the following: • There is no marketing expertise. • Executives don’t believe in marketing and/or marketing plans. • There is a limited budget. • No one will be accountable for it. • Our company does not place a high value on marketing. • We are working on it but don’t have a clear road map to implement it. “These answers shine a spotlight on leadership and culture. If an organization’s culture isn’t supportive of marketing efforts, marketing cannot thrive,” explains Andrews. She goes on to say that even a great B2B marketing plan or a large marketing budget can easily go to waste without leadership support. And in situations like that, the issue isn’t as much about marketing planning as it is about aligning the organization with its goals. Marketri then looked at the 68 percent of companies who reported that they do have a marketing plan. They asked these respondents two questions: Does your company update the plan annually to align with strategic goals? Is the plan a living document that gets reviewed and updated throughout the year? Respondents answered these two questions in the exact same way: 91 percent said yes and 9 percent said no. That was a promising sign, according to Jacob. “If you are going to create any kind of a marketing plan, it needs to be looked at frequently,” he says. “Annual updates are great for bigger strategic changes or to accommodate refined company goals, while more frequent adjustments and reviews can assure traction.”
INSIGHTS Fall 2018 03 IT’S NOT HOW YOU START— IT’S HOW YOU FINISH Deeper into the study, Marketri discovered that 81 percent of respondents said they felt their marketing plans were effective in driving desired results. When asked how these companies knew this, the responses fit into two buckets. TRACKING METRICS AND DATA It appears those who responded with “tracking metrics and data” set up KPIs to track and measure their performance and progress. According to Andrews, meaningful measurements are those that show movement through the revenue funnel and include new contacts/leads tracked by source; changes in life cycle status, such as lead to sales-qualified lead (SQL); new opportunities that originated through marketing’s efforts; and closed business. COLLABORATION Those who responded with “collaboration” also appeared to be focused on effective cross-team collaboration, as demonstrated by IT working closely with marketing as it relates to technology and marketing plans being reviewed quarterly with executive teams. Unsurprisingly, ineffective plans occur in companies on the opposite end of the tracking-andcollaboration spectrum. Without strategic commitment and focus on driving specific numbers, it is difficult CHECK OUT “8 Marketing Plans to Ponder” on page 16 and download our Marketing Plan Template. to make real progress. Once again, these answers point to leadership and culture issues. Without leadership commitment and cultural focus on growth, there’s little context for marketing actions and cross-team collaboration. Alignment is critical to marketing effectiveness, making the difference between stagnancy and real revenue growth. THE TIME IS NOW While writing this article, it became abundantly clear that the new year is approaching at what feels like warp speed! According to both Andrews and Jacob, this is the ideal time to sit down and start asking questions such as the following: • What are the company’s strategic goals for 2019? • How should the marketing plan align with those goals? • How can a marketing plan help achieve the overall objectives? • When should this plan be rolled out so that everyone on the team (and perhaps within the company) knows the plan? • Where will the plan live? • How often will we review the plan? • What would constitute a good reason or reasons to modify this plan? All of these initial, up-front questions and planning will ensure that a company is wisely investing their time and efforts and are set up for marketing success. “But when the rubber meets the road, and all the planning is done and implementation has begun, an even more important question to ask is, How effective was our plan?” says Jacob. In practice, different types and scales of organizations need different types and scales of marketing plans. “Each plan can have a uniquely defined scope, time frame, purpose, channels, key outputs, and metrics,” explains Andrews. n 1 Debbie Andrews Shares 5 Common Marketing Plan Failures and How to Fix Them Failing to Start with a Go-to-Market Strategy Midmarket companies need a go-to-market strategy. Where are your best growth opportunities, based on current market penetration, unique capabilities, and competition? You need a well-defined strategy that spells out which segments present the best growth potential and which products and services will be promoted. Without this information, you will have disconnected activities, talent, and technologies. Not Aligning Your Marketing Plan with In-House Talent 2 Companies often attempt to deploy marketing tactics based on trends while failing to execute with experience and confidence. For example, if one of your goals is to grow digital marketing to better align outreach with how and where buyers engage and buy, you need to have talent knowledgeable about digital marketing approaches and technologies. Consider bolstering your resources with cost-effective outsourced talent to lead the implementation and to assist in-house staff in acquiring new skill sets through onthe-job training. 3Putting the Marketing Budget before the Plan In many cases, the finance department leads the budgeting process but is disconnected from the creation of the marketing plan, potentially causing critical parts of the plan to be underfunded. Finance should collaborate with marketing on a budget development timeline, allowing the proposed marketing plan to be created prior to the creation and approval of the budget. Lack of Coordination between Marketing and Sales Efforts 4 Buyers don’t distinguish between marketing and sales, and they are squarely in charge of their own buying journeys. Marketing and sales should plan together to align activities and campaigns for building awareness, gaining consideration, and engaging target audiences. Companies should consider a revenue plan that incorporates sales and marketing goals, activities, campaigns, and measures. Failure to Get Down to the Details 5 Marketing plans need to start big picture with goals and strategies but eventually flow down to the most granular level— who is going to do what and by when. When plans lack this level of specificity, the implementation lacks a healthy pace or veers off course. Marketers should ensure there is a three-month rolling time line throughout the year. The plan should break down larger projects into smaller milestones.
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The Beat - Fall 2018

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