A marketing strategy is an executable plan used by a company or organization to find, entice, and keep its target audience. Any effective marketing campaign is built on it, and it helps marketers accomplish their goals.
Determining the key elements, processes, and marketing strategies that work might be difficult when creating a successful marketing plan.
In this article, we define marketing strategy, discuss its relevance in business, and give a five-step procedure for creating one. Your business-specific marketing strategies will be created utilizing the examples and templates we provide.
What is a marketing strategy?
A marketing strategy is a written plan outlining how a company or organization will connect with and convey its value proposition to both current and future clients. It addresses the following topics:
- Marketing goals: The specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound (SMART) objectives that the marketing strategy aims to accomplish. For example, increasing brand awareness, generating leads, boosting sales, or improving customer loyalty.
- Target market: The segments of customers who share common characteristics, needs, wants, and behaviors that the business or organization aims to serve. For example, demographics, psychographics, geographics, or behavioral criteria.
- Market analysis: The external factors that affect the performance and success of the business or organization in the market. For example, market size, growth, trends, opportunities, threats, customer preferences, or competitor activities.
- Positioning and messaging: The way the business or organization differentiates itself from its competitors and communicates its unique value proposition to its target market. For example, a mission statement, vision statement, brand personality, tone of voice, or slogan.
- Marketing mix and tactics: The combination of product, price, place, and promotion (the four Ps) that the business or organization uses to deliver its value proposition to its target market. For example, product features, pricing strategy, distribution channels, or advertising methods.
Why is a marketing strategy important?
A marketing strategy is important because it helps the business or organization to:
- Align its marketing efforts with its business goals: A marketing plan ensures that promotional efforts align with the organization’s overall vision, purpose, and goals. It aids in efficient and effective resource allocation aimed at achieving the intended outcomes.
- Understand its target market and customers: A marketing strategy helps the business or organization identify and segment its potential and existing customers based on their characteristics and behaviors. It also helps to understand their needs, wants, pain points, motivations, and expectations. This enables the business or organization to tailor its products or services and communicate its value proposition in a way that resonates with them.
- Gain a competitive advantage: Using a marketing strategy, a company or organization may analyze the market and its rivals to determine its SWOT analysis—its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Also, it helps in developing distinctive positioning and messaging that sets it apart from rivals and emphasizes its benefits to its target audience.
- Measure and enhance its marketing performance: A marketing strategy aids in the establishment of SMART objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) that can be monitored and assessed over time. It also helps to keep track of, evaluate, and make necessary improvements to the marketing mix and approaches.
How to Create a Marketing Strategy in Five Steps
Developing a marketing plan may be difficult. However, if you follow these five stages, you may expedite the process and develop a thorough and successful marketing plan for your company or organization.
Step 1: Define your marketing goals
The first stage in developing a marketing plan is to identify your marketing objectives. These are the exact results you want to attain through your marketing activities. They should reflect your vision and objectives, as well as the goals of your firm.
Answering the following questions will help you identify your marketing objectives:
- What are the main challenges or problems that your business or organization is facing?
- What are the opportunities or solutions that your products or services can offer?
- What are the benefits or value that your products or services can deliver to your customers?
- How do you want your brand to be seen by your customers?
- How do you want your brand to be seen in the market?
- How will you assess your marketing success?
Your marketing objectives should be SMART, which means:
- Specific: They should describe precisely what you intend to achieve and why.
- Measurable: They must include quantitative indications that can be tracked and assessed.
- Achievable: They should be realistic and attainable within the time and resources available.
- Relevant: They should be in line with your company’s objectives and market circumstances.
- Time-bound: They should have a defined completion date or time period.
A SMART marketing objective would be something like:
- Increase website traffic by 50% in the next six months by applying SEO and content marketing tactics.
- Launch a referral program and an email marketing campaign to generate 100 qualified prospects each month.
- Increase sales by 20% in the following year by providing new clients with discounts and free trials.
Step 2: Identify your target market
The next stage in developing a marketing plan is to determine your target market. This is the type of consumer that is most likely to purchase and profit from your products or services. You must divide your target market into segments depending on their features and behaviors, such as:
- Demographics: Age, gender, income, education, employment, marital status, family size, and so on.
- Psychographics: Personality, lifestyle, values, attitudes, interests, hobbies, and so forth.
- Geographics: location, climate, culture, language, and so forth.
- Behavioural: Buying habits, frequency of use, loyalty, preferences, and so forth.
To determine your target market, you must answer the following questions:
- Who are your current clients?
- Who are your prospective clients?
- What are their requirements, desires, pain areas, motives, and expectations?
- How do they make purchasing decisions?
- Where do they look for answers or information?
- How do they interact with or consume your products or services?
- What advantages or value do they expect from your products or services?
You may gather and analyse data about your target market using a variety of approaches, including:
- surveys
- interviews
- focus groups
- observation,
- online analytics
- customer feedback
- market research reports.
Based on the data you acquire; you may create buyer personas that represent your ideal clients. Buyer personas are fake profiles that portray the demographic, psychographic, and behavioural aspects of your target market group. They help you better understand your customers and customise your marketing strategy accordingly.
For example, a customer persona for a fitness app may be:
Name: Sarah Age: 25 Gender: Female Income: Ksh50K Education: Bachelor’s degree Occupation: Accountant Location: Nairobi Personality: Ambitious, outgoing, adventurous Lifestyle: Busy, active, social Values: Health, wellness, fitness Interests: Music, hiking, travelling Pain points: Lack of time and motivation to exercise regularly Motivations: To stay fit and healthy, to reduce stress and anxiety, to have fun and meet new people Expectations: A fitness app that offers personalised workouts, flexible schedules, gamification features, and a supportive community Buying patterns: Researches online reviews and ratings before making a purchase decision; prefers monthly subscriptions over annual plans; uses mobile devices for online shopping Usage frequency: Uses the fitness app at least three times a week for 30 minutes each session Loyalty: Likely to recommend the fitness app to friends and family if satisfied with the results; likely to switch to another app if dissatisfied with the service or price
Step 3: Analyze your market and competitors
The third step in creating a marketing strategy is to analyze your market and competitors. This is the process of evaluating the external elements that influence your company’s or organization’s market performance. It assists you in identifying the opportunities and risks that your marketing strategy may utilise or overcome.
A SWOT analysis is required to analyse your market and rivals. A SWOT analysis is a framework for evaluating your company’s or organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in relation to its market and rivals.
To do a SWOT analysis, you must answer the following questions:
- What are your company’s or organization’s strengths? These are the internal variables that offer you a competitive advantage. For example, your distinct value proposition, devoted client base, solid brand reputation, or innovative goods or services.
- What are your company’s or organization’s weaknesses? These are the internal forces that restrict or obstruct your performance or development. For instance, your lack of resources, excessive expenses, limited market share, or bad customer service.
- What opportunities exist for your company or organization? These are the external elements that have the potential for growth or improvement. • A rising market need, a new technology, a societal trend, or a legislative reform, for example.
- What are the risks to your company or organization? These are the external elements that might jeopardize your success or survival. Strong competition, changing customer behavior, poor press, or a regulatory concern, for example.
You may obtain and analyze data about your market and rivals from a variety of sources, including:
- Online analytics
- Customer feedback
- Market research studies
- Industry publications
- Competitor websites
- Social media
Based on the information gathered, you may create a SWOT matrix to clarify your results and emphasize the major problems and possibilities for your marketing approach.
A SWOT matrix for a fitness app, for example, may look like this:
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
| Unique value Offer: personalised exercises, adaptable timetables, gamification tools, and a welcoming community | Lack of resources: A Constrained budget, employees, and time |
| Loyal customer base: high retention and referral rates | High costs: development, maintenance, and marketing expenses |
| Strong brand reputation: positive reviews and ratings online | Low market share: niche segment and low awareness |
| Opportunities | Risks |
| Growing market demand: increasing interest in health and wellness among consumers | Strong competition: many similar or substitute products or services in the market |
| New technology: artificial intelligence, virtual reality, wearable devices, etc. | Changing customer behavior: preferences, expectations, and loyalty |
| Social trends: fitness influencers, challenges, hashtags, etc. | Negative publicity: security breaches, data privacy issues, customer complaints, etc. |
| Legal change: favorable regulations or policies for fitness apps | Regulatory issue: unfavorable regulations or policies for fitness apps |
Step 4: Develop your positioning and messaging
Positioning and message are the fourth phases of marketing strategy. Define and communicate how you want your target market to see your brand and its value. It allows you to stand out from the crowd and develop your brand’s voice.
To design your positioning and messaging, you must first answer the following questions:
- What is your unique selling point? This is a synopsis of the advantages or value that your products or services provide to your customers.
- It should provide a response to the following question: Why should customers select you above your competitors?
- What is your company’s mission statement? This is the statement that describes the rationale for your company’s or organization’s existence. It should provide a response to the question, “What do you do and why do you do it?”
- What exactly is your vision statement? This is the statement that states the desired future condition or aim for your company or organisation. It should provide a response to the question, “What do you want to achieve, and how do you want to impact the world?”
- What is the personality of your brand? This is the set of features or characteristics that define your brand’s tone and style. It should represent your company’s beliefs, culture, and target audience. For instance, friendly, professional, humorous, or inventive.
- What is your company’s slogan? This is the memorable phrase or slogan that encapsulates your brand’s essence and value proposition. It should be memorable, engaging, and pertinent to your intended audience.
A fitness app’s positioning and messaging, for example, may be:
- Value proposition: A fitness software that adapts to your lifestyle and assists you in meeting your fitness objectives with personalised exercises, flexible timetables, gamification elements, and a supportive community.
- Mission statement: To use fitness to help people live healthier and happier lives.
- Vision statement: To be the premier fitness app that inspires and connects millions of people worldwide.
- Brand personality: friendly, motivating, entertaining, and inventive.
- The brand motto is “Fit for Life.”
Step 5: Determine your marketing strategy and methods.
The final stage in developing a marketing strategy is to select your marketing mix and techniques. This is the process of determining and executing the best product, pricing, location, and promotion tactics for your company or organisation. It aids in communicating your value proposition to your target market and achieving your marketing objectives.
The following questions can assist you in determining your marketing mix and tactics:
- What are the characteristics and advantages of your products or services? These are the qualities and benefits that your products and services offer to your customers. They should correspond to their requirements, desires, pain areas, motives, and expectations.
- What pricing approach do you employ? This is the strategy or approach you use to price your items or services. It should include information on your value offering, costs, demand, competitors, and target market.
- What are your routes of distribution? These are the channels or platforms via which you provide your items or services to clients. They should be convenient, accessible, and dependable for your intended audience.
- What are your marketing strategies? These are the methods or instruments you use to communicate your value proposition to your target audience. They should be consistent, compelling, and interesting to your target market.
You may choose and apply your marketing mix and techniques in a variety of ways, including:
- Marketing Research
- Marketing Strategy
- Marketing Budget
- Marketing Calendar
- Marketing Metrics
You may develop a marketing mix matrix based on the techniques you use to summarise your plans and activities for each of the four Ps.
A marketing mix matrix for a fitness app, for example, may look like this:
| Product | Price | Place | Promotion |
| Personalised workouts based on user preferences, goals, and fitness level | Freemium model: free basic features and premium features for a monthly subscription fee | Mobile app available on iOS and Android devices | SEO and content marketing: optimise website and blog for relevant keywords and create valuable content for the target audience |
| Flexible schedules that allow users to choose when and where to exercise | Discounted annual plans for loyal customers | An online community platform that connects users with fitness coaches and other users | Social media marketing: create and share engaging posts, stories, videos, etc. on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. |
| Gamification features that reward users with points, badges, achievements, etc. for completing workouts | A referral program that offers incentives for users who invite their friends and family to join the app | Partnerships with fitness influencers who endorse the app and offer exclusive workouts to their followers | Email marketing: send personalized newsletters, tips, offers, etc. to subscribers |
| A supportive community that encourages users to share their progress, feedback, questions, etc. with other users | Free trials that allow users to test the premium features for a limited time | Reviews and ratings on app stores that showcase user satisfaction and testimonials | Advertising: run paid ads on Google, Facebook, Instagram, etc. |
