On Strategy

On [Marketing] Strategy…

A couple weeks back, I talked a bit about the difference between strategy and tactics.   I got going because of an article in Marketing News by Don Schultz about the tendency in marketers to confuse tactics with strategy.  This week they have an article where former CMO for McDonalds Larry Light bemoans the observation that marketers seem to be losing sight of the big picture while focusing on execution.

I’m starting to feel like less of a voice in the desert as I talk about the importance of marketing strategy, but it’s hard.  It’s hard to have a prospect tell you they’re not happy with their current marketer because their website seems undifferentiated and cookie cutter and, when you ask what their strategy is–how they are differentiated from their competition–you receive a blank stare.

It is sort of understandable, though.  When someone makes you a logo or revamps your website, you get something immediate and tangible–a shiny new logo or slick website–but if those tactics aren’t in support of a broader strategy they are just so much window dressing.   Developing a strategic marketing plan is slow and expensive.  And you may not see immediate results from it–or at least you may not understand the results you can get when you are talking about writing a big fat check.   But it is strategy that gives you direction and focus and helps you to understand why you should rework your website.  And how.

Well, the economy is picking up.  And thought leaders seem to be making a case for strategic marketing.  We’ll see if this gets decisionmakers to commit to a strategic mindset in their marketing efforts.