If you feel that your marketing strategy has been needing a refresh, the new year is a great time to start. Our first step in the marketing process for a new client is to conduct a full marketing audit. This is crucial to us all for the first stages of collaborating with a business.
WHAT IS A MARKETING AUDIT
A marketing audit is a comprehensive overview of a company’s previous marketing strategies and performance, both internal and external. This includes information on the business and economic climate, the market, the competition, performance of the current strategy and even budget.
You may be asking yourself if a marketing audit is necessary for your business. The answer is, yes. A well-conducted marketing audit will highlight strategies that are performing well, as well as those that are not. The purpose of a marketing audit is not to criticize strategies, but to point out any working methods that could be more effective and efficient. It will also provide an opportunity to reallocate parts of your budget that are dedicated to strategies that no longer work well for your business.
COMPONENTS
Step 1: GOALS
Create long-term and short-term goals for your company. Long-term goals should be listed in order of importance, over a two year term. Short-term goals should be within the mindset of less than one year. Keep in mind factors like budget, time and market trends.
Step 2: IDENTIFY YOUR CUSTOMER
Businesses that try to appeal to everyone end up appealing to no one. The better you know your target audience, the better you will connect with the people in it. . Think through details. What does your ideal customer wear? What kind of cell phone do they have? Get serious with your questions but have fun with it, maybe give your customer avatar a name.
Step 3: COMPETITION
Identify 3-5 businesses that are your competition. Take note of their website, the services they offer, their brand image and voice, as well as the places they advertise.
Step 4: ANALYSIS
Perform an in-depth analysis of previous and current marketing efforts. Check reports and implementations to see what has and has not been working. Start to build quarter over quarter and year over year reporting so that you have a solid frame of reference to identify success, failure and ever-changing marketing trends and mediums.
Step 5: STRATEGY
Customize a marketing strategy based on the previous steps. Your marketing strategy should start with addressing issues or areas of improvement discovered during the marketing analysis. Then focus on brand guidelines across advertising channels with your new marketing strategy.
Once you have completed these steps, you will have a solid foundation for your marketing audit and are in a place to move forward.
If you are looking for a marketing refresh, we can offer a marketing audit. Your expertise and inside knowledge of your business, however big or small, in combination with our marketing capabilities will kickstart a successful year. We believe in a unique and customized strategy for each client. We pride ourselves on being an extension of your team.