If there were ever two terms to confuse in the world of marketing they are strategy and plan. Too often will our fellow marketers use words like “strategize” and “plan” interchangeably. We can’t blame them, the English language is full of words that mean the exact same thing. But understanding the difference is crucial, especially when working with businesses who want and need results.
We’ll highlight the differences, show off the important aspects of both strategies and plans, talk about how they work together, offer some common mistakes with strategizing and planning, and how to avoid them. And yes, we offer a plug about our services because we know what the heck to do when creating a marketing strategy and a marketing plan.
Marketing Strategy vs. Plan
Marketing strategy is the big picture, the overarching direction guiding your marketing efforts. It’ll define things like your target audience and your unique value proposition (as we know the world is just chalk full of competition). It is the WHY behind you doing what you do.
A marketing plan is the detailed execution of your marketing strategy. Think about specific tactics, timelines, budgets, and performance metrics using actionable steps like content creation, social media campaigns, PPC campaigns, web design, and SEO to achieve them. This is HOW you’ll bring your strategy to life.
How a Marketing Plan and Strategy Work Together
Sure, these two terms have different definitions. Doesn’t mean they can’t work together. Here’s where we stand. Our marketing strategy serves as the overall blueprint, outlining higher level factors like target audience, value proposition, and competitive advantage. Our marketing plan translates that strategy into actionable steps. By aligning the target audience from the strategy with specific channels and messaging in the plan, businesses can effectively reach their desired customers. The plan also provides valuable data that can be used to refine and adjust the overall strategy.
If you build a successful strategy and plan, they’ll work in tandem to help achieve your business objectives and drive growth.
Common Mistakes in Strategy and Planning (Plus How to Avoid Them)
Developing a strong marketing strategy and plan is crucial for business success, but it’s easy to fall into common pitfalls. So don’t. Keep reading.
Strategy Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
- Mistake: Lacking a clear objective makes it difficult to create a focused strategy.
- How to Avoid: Clearly define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goals for your marketing strategy (more commonly known as SMART in corporate circles.)
- Mistake: Ignoring your target audience means you don’t fully understand your ideal customer.
- How to Avoid: Thoroughly research who you’re trying to target. They’re the ones who will ultimately pay you.
- Mistake: Overlooking your competition can make positioning for those top spots more difficult than it already is.
- How to Avoid: Check out the competition and see where you can do things differently, or dare we say, better.
Planning Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
- Mistake: Setting unrealistic goals can lead to frustration and feelings of failure when not achieved.
- How to Avoid: Realistic goals are not only attainable but you feel f*ing great after you’re done.
- Mistake: Ignoring measurable metrics makes it close to impossible to actually track progress.
- How to Avoid: Don’t fly blind. Incorporate the metrics important to you or your client and diligently track so you stay on target.
- Mistake: Lacking the proper execution of your plan essentially renders it useless.
- How to Avoid: Give a sh*t. Follow your plan and pivot if needed.
We Weren’t Lying
We told you at the top that we’d plug our services. If this subheader proves anything, it’s that we have personality. Don’t you want that for your brand? Schedule a call with us and we’ll get down to business (with some fun in the process).
