To ensure your marketing strategy delivers the outcomes it promises to the business.
Every conversation I’ve had with a marketing leader over the last 12 months has uncovered the same tension. The role of the CMO has never been broader and the pressure to deliver has never been greater.
The complexity within which CMOs are operating is mind-blowing. Data and technology have fundamentally transformed the way that marketing is delivered, and many marketing functions which were designed against a rhythm of campaigns and seasons are trying desperately to deliver against an always-on, personalised, ever-changing, multi-platform, high-speed content world.
CMOs increasingly need to oversee and coordinate an ever more diverse set of resources and skillsets towards the achievement of marketing and commercial results. They need to ensure that working practices are integrated well across multiple areas and also aligned closely to the needs of the wider business. They must champion the value of marketing within the organisation, advocating for its impact on growth, customer loyalty, and competitive advantage.
The plethora of different ways to connect with customers, requires not only a visionary and strategic approach but also strong collaboration, coordination and communication skills to secure support and resources from stakeholders.
And, of course, juggling all these moving parts comes with the pressure to do more with less and the justification for every dollar invested. Without an operating system, the CMO will be hamstrung at best, and fail at worst.
What is a Marketing Operating System?
For all the talk of brilliant strategy and brilliant approaches to developing strategies, they are rendered irrelevant if companies are unable to pull their organisations together to deliver what customers want. A good marketing operating system is one that bridges the gap between strategy and execution.
It builds clear alignment on ‘The Why’ (the strategic vision or Purpose), ‘The What’ of marketing (i.e. strategy, creative, media, metrics) and ‘The How’ of marketing operating model, (i.e. people, partners, process, and platforms) to effectively implement the strategy.
Where do you start?
What I’m hearing repeatedly, however, is that most marketers don’t have the skills, time and resources to design, build and optimise an effective system.
Having worked in an agency, I understand the depths of these challenges and the importance of navigating them to achieve marketing’s goals.
We know clients need pragmatic advice that will crucially ensure efficiency whilst simultaneously improving effectiveness.
Too often it is efficiencies alone that are the focus as they are easier to spot and deliver. The harder part is designing a system that unleashes the potential of a great marketing strategy at the same time. This ensures that any changes don’t undermine the value marketing can bring to a business. This is the nirvana we aim for.
Our hope is that through our Marketing OS accelerator, we can help other marketers who are either already or about to embark on this journey to avoid rabbit holes and find ways to accelerate their plans.
Why work with us?
Traditional brand strategy follows a methodical, sequential process: discovery phase, market analysis, competitive positioning, audience research, testing concepts, and finally, after months of work -- articulating the brand vision and purpose.
What we're proposing is fundamentally different. We're inverting the process out of necessity.
Rather than spending months building up to a vision statement, we're starting by extracting the vision directly from the Founder or CEO - the North Star that will guide everything else - and working backwards from there. It's like capturing the destination first, then mapping the journey.
I'm calling this "StoryDoing" because it requires a more intuitive, conversational approach to draw out and crystallise what typically emerges at the end of a lengthy process.
The urgency and demands placed on CMOs simply doesn't allow for a traditional approach. We need organising principles now to guide immediate decisions about marketing investment and allocation. We'll refine and evolve this vision and roadmap over time, but we need the core essence immediately to maintain momentum.
Running this process with the involvement of key leaders builds alignment, ownership, better decisions and faster progress.
It will help to ensure your marketing strategy delivers the outcomes it promises to the business and the profession retains the respect and status it deserves.
If you'd like a copy of our framework and methodology, send me a DM and I'll share it with you.
