"You are everywhere but you dont have to be. Strategy is a decision to take a path, to say no."
Kristina Halvorson
For two years in a row, over half of the more than 3,000 marketers responding to Marketing Week ‘s Career Survey identify STRATEGY as the most undervalued skill in marketing.
Having a well-defined strategy is essential for the success of any small business or solopreneur. Your strategy serves as a roadmap, providing clarity, focus, and direction and guiding your actions towards achieving long-term goals, and helping businesses of all size and scale navigate challenges and seize opportunities effectively.
In this post we'll cover how strategic thinking and planning is crucial for the long-term success and sustainability of marketing efforts, ensuring that teams can effectively plan, execute, and measure the key initiatives that drive meaningful business outcomes.
"Our goals can only be reached through the vehicle of a plan. There is no other route to success."
Pablo Picasso
The Yin vs Yang Approach
The importance of planning and strategy can't be understated. Rushing into execution without thorough planning and assessment leads to suboptimal results.
In Western cultures, there's a rush to act quickly—decide now, deal with consequences later. This trigger-happy, impatient approach often leads to chaos and inefficiency, backpddling to fix mistakes.
In contrast, the Eastern approach is about a slow start and quick finish. It involves blending lean methodologies, strategy with execution from the start:
thorough, thoughtful planning,
addressing potential problems early
resolving conflicts
aligning the team from the start
creating the right environment.
assessing potential gaps and weaknesses
The bottom line: If execution feels overly challenging, it's likely due to an underdeveloped strategy.
The Yang Approach: Plan (20%) --> Do (70%)--> Act (5%) --> Check (5%)
The Yin Approach Plan (55%) --> Do (15%) --> Act (15%) --> Check (15%)
It is estimated that only 8% of leaders excel at both strategy and execution? It’s surprisingly common for leaders to struggle with one (or both) of these critical aspects.
Problem 1: "Execution over Strategy" Focused on getting things done but lack a clear long-term vision to guide their actions.
Problem 2: "Strategy without Execution" Focused on creating a brilliant strategy but fail to turn it into meaningful, real-world outcomes.
The right approach? BALANCE. You need both—a strong strategic vision and the ability to execute it effectively.
Here’s how to bridge the gap between the two:
Commit to an Identity: Align your vision with your organization’s unique strengths.
Turn Strategy into Action: Ensure daily tasks support your long-term goals.
Leverage Culture: Build a culture that drives both strategy and execution.
Smart Resource Allocation: Prioritize the essentials by cutting unnecessary costs.
Shape the Future: Invest in developing the next generation of leaders.
Strategy vs Plan
Without a clear strategy to identify and mitigate these loopholes, efforts become reactive rather than proactive, causing inefficiencies, increased errors, and missed opportunities for improvement.
Effective planning is essential to ensure resources are utilized optimally, risks are minimized, and the desired outcomes are achieved with greater precision and success.
The differences between a plan and strategy are subtle
Business Plan: Outlines overall business strategy, goals, and action plan.
Marketing Strategy: Details how a business engages its audience, conveys value, and drives sales.
Marketing Plan: Tactical document outlining marketing tasks, schedules, and resources to achieve marketing goals. Types of marketing plans include:
Quarterly or Annual Marketing Plans: Align with fiscal quarters or yearly business objectives.
Content Marketing Plans: Focus on content creation and distribution to attract and engage a specific audience.
Social Media Marketing Plans: Communicate how to achieve marketing goals via social media.
Product Launch Marketing Plans: Tailored for introducing a new product, creating buzz, and driving initial sales.
Growth Marketing Plans: Use data-driven strategies and experiments to scale business growth.
Strategy is like an extensive spider-web or network of tree branches, each connecting to another. The best strategy is multi-facted and builds upon itself.
For example, You can't have a social strategy without first having a content strategy. And you can't have a content strategy if you don't first have a brand strategy.
And you can't have a brand strategy until you deeply understand your audience's preferences and behaviors. Your execution and tactics will only succeed if you’ve laid the correct foundations first.
Your strategy = Your Sustainability.
Why Strategy is Everything
Why is strategy so important? Because it PROTECTS you! It is both your Sword, and your Shield.
Your SWORD: Anchors and articulates your goals, plans and focus areas. It's your proactive agenda.
Your SHIELD: Guards against low-value work from creeping in. Without a strategy, you're either stabbing in the dark, triaging. or firefighting
Why do you need a well-crafted, well-defined, balanced and robust marketing, communications or business strategy and plan?
1. It Provides A Clear Vision, Focus and Direction
Outlines goals, strategies, and tactics to guide marketing activities.
Helps entrepreneurs and business owners make informed choices, ensuring that every decision aligns with the overall mission and vision of the business.
Offers an inspiring, visionary blueprint that enables businesses to navigate market challenges and seize opportunities proactively.
Provides a clear vision and direction for a business by outlining the goals and the steps needed to achieve them.
Ensures b usiness owners stay proactive (not reactive, or constantly shifting priorities without a cohesive plan)
Instills discipline, ensuring that the business stays focused on its long-term objectives.
"The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do."
Michael Porter
2. It Gives You The Competitive Edge Advantage
Allows businesses to identify their unique value proposition and differentiate themselves from competitors.
Reinforces an understanding of the market landscape, customer needs, and industry trends, in order to position their products or services more effectively.
Empowers business owners to shape their market position and drive sustainable growth.
Maintains consistency in brand voice and message across different channels.
Enables more targeted marketing by defining the audience to create personalized marketing campaigns.
Enables you to swiftly adapt to market changes and seize emerging opportunities, staying ahead of trends and effectively tackling high-stakes challenges.
"A world-class strategy is just a hallucination without world-class execution.”
Kevin Turner
3. It Helps You Allocate Your Precious Resources
Every decision in PR, Comms and Marketing carries weight. From choosing the wrong channels, targeting the wrong personas, to compromising.on key messaging, each choice can have significant costs.
Optimizes the use of resources by setting clear priorities, enhancing operational efficiency and productivity.
Helps business owners allocate resources—time, money, and human capital—more effectively, which is vital for maximizing efficiency and profitability.
Ensures that resources are invested in areas that align with the business's goals and have the highest potential for returns.
Ensures businesses don't spread themselves too thin, investing in initiatives that do not contribute to their long-term objectives.
HOT TIP: To mitigate these risks, employ data analytics to guide, adjust and refine your strategic decisions, ensure messaging resonate with targeted personas.
4. It Helps Your Mitigate and Manage Risk
Includes a risk management plan that identifies potential threats such as market volatility and operational challenges
Outlines mitigation measures and contingency plans for anticipated risks
Helps businesses navigate uncertainties more effectively and ensure business continuity and sustained resilience.
"Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing."
Warren Buffett
5. It Helps You Measure & Monitor Progress & Performance
Provides a framework for setting measurable goals and tracking progress
Establishes and defines benchmark metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) that allow business owners to monitor their achievements, measure sucess and make data-driven decisions.
Builds accountability by fostering a culture of continuous improvement, where successes are celebrated, and areas for growth are identified.
6. It Helps You Grow & Sustain for the Longterm
Fosters informed, data-driven decisions that are aligned with long-term business goals and objectives, promoting cross-functional collaboration and progress
Aligns organizational activities with stakeholder values and expectations, building trust and ensuring long-term success.
Helps identify unique value propositions and build a competitive advantage in the market.
Increases team member's engagement, motivation, morale, and satisfaction. This results in reduced turnover and a more satisfied, unified and committed workforce.
"The reality is a poorly executed good strategy is worse than no strategy."
Velocity Advisory Group
6 Key Phases of Strategic Planning & Execution
By following the steps below, organizations can ensure a structured approach to strategic planning and execution, leading to sustained success and continuous improvement.
ASSESS
Diagnose the current situation with a SWOT analysis
Seek input. Get feedback and buy-in from stakeholders and partners to inform your goals, approach and prioritization in the process.
2. VISION Where do we want to go?
Define the desired direction and outcomes
Align on goals, vision, values, and organizational culture.
HOT TIP: Set Goals! If these don't exist, everything becomes untethered and in question. We need both general goals, and specific goals. So work from the top down to identify and advance larger, overarching business goals to the smaller-scale marketing or communications goals.
3. PLAN: How do we get there? What are our strategies for success, and how do we measure that?
Develop a clear roadmap to achieve the defined goals.
Identify critical success factors and key performance indicators (KPIs).
Build a structured and clear outline or calendar of focus areas, messaging, actions, audience, channels, accountable tasks, targets and tactics.
Break down the strategy into specific actionable tasks, measurable milestones and deliverables with clear timelines, KPIs and the most responsible or involved parties
"You must be disciplined about what you get done and what you don't get done."
Jim Collins
Outline
Executive Summary: Quick overview of goals, target market, main strategies, and expected outcomes. Include basic business info, such as key points about the brand and what sets it apart, public perception, their mission, product offerings etc
Marketing Goals and KPIs: Use SMART framework to ensure goals are Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
Target Market and Buyer Personas: Conduct thorough market research to understand the target audience, including market size, opportunities, and mappgin and analysis of customer journey.
Competitors: Understand competitors’ and perform a SWOT analysis to assess Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats to identify established and new industry leaders, niche players, game changers.
Strategy Overview: Outline key tactics and channels/platforms to achieve marketing goals.
Branding: Brand voice, visual etc
Social media: Posting strategy and campaigns
Content marketing: Blogs, SEO
Email marketing: Newsletters and sales promotions
Community engagement: Events and partnerships
Paid advertising: Google Ads and social media ads
Budget: Allocate budget based on costs and expected ROI for various marketing initiatives.
Performance Tracking: Set metrics or KPIs, tracking approach/guidelines, and frequency.
Key Contributors: Highlight teams and individual leaders responsible for executing the plan and ensuring deliverables. The RACI matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed) is a tool used to clarify roles and responsibilities in project management and strategy execution.
Strategy is a Team Effort.
The Doers - Who is Responsible? Doing the actual work to complete the task or deliverable and achieve the strategy's objectives.
The Owner - Who is Accountable? The single most accountable person per task to avoid confusion, ensuring the task is completed on time and to standard, ensuring the successful execution
The Advisors - Who is Consulted? The experts or stakeholders whose opinions are sought to provide their expertise, input and feedback on the strategy, from beginning to end, from initual input to refinement.
The Audience - Who is Informed? The individuals, departments, partners or other external groups who need to be regularly kept up-to-date on progress status, development and decisions.
HOT TIP: Don't forget about Distribution & Promotion. Once finalized, share your plan widely. Take every opportunity to present to team members, key business partners, explaining and educating on the agreed approach. Listen carefully to others input and be open minded to the fact that others may see things much differently than you
4. EXECUTE: Making it happen.
Implement the strategic plan through concrete prioritization, implementation and actions.
Ensure clear communication, so that every team member understands the strategy and their role for accountability, follow-through etc
5. MEASURE: How did we do?
Assess the effectiveness of the executed plan.
Monitor and evaluate results
Continuously review progress and prepare to adapt to changes in the market environment.
6. OPTIMIZE: How can we improve?
Continuously improve the strategic plan based on regular reviews, feedback and results and market changes
Identify revisions or adjustments needed to enhance performance
Respond to changing conditions and new information.
"The best way to predict the future is to create it."
Peter Drucker
Strategy Simplified
In modern strategy, businesses must prioritize a clear, simplified framework to ensure success and sustainability. Technology and culture are woven into every pillar. Technology fuels profitability, drives efficiency, and shapes how business operates, while culture forms the foundation of the employee experience, influencing how people connect with their work and the company’s vision. Together, technology and culture create an environment where innovation, collaboration, and alignment thrive.
Product: Inspired by the 4Ps of marketing (Product, Place, Price, Promotion), this pillar focuses on creating value, meeting market needs, and balancing strategic marketing with growth.
People: A business thrives on its people. This pillar emphasizes attracting, recruiting, and retaining talent who not only excel in their roles but also align with the company’s values. Building a people-centric culture motivates employees, creating alignment and engagement that drive strategy forward.
Process: Successful strategy requires well-defined processes. The process pillar centers on efficiency, quality, and adaptability, enabling streamlined operations that minimize waste and respond quickly to change.
Profit: Profit is the lifeline of a business, encompassing financial health, revenue generation, and cost management. This pillar ensures the business model is sustainable, capable of supporting long-term growth and resilience.
Planet: As environmental issues grow more pressing, businesses must consider their impact. The Planet pillar pushes companies to adopt eco-conscious practices, reduce environmental harm, and contribute to a sustainable future.
In this model, each pillar is interdependent: a product won’t succeed without the right people, people need efficient processes to perform, and none of it matters without profitability to sustain the organization. But today, success also means including Planet as a core focus, ensuring that businesses thrive responsibly and sustainably.
3 Facets of Strategy
There are three layers to successful strategy implementation, and they each involve look forward, thinking deeply and asking key questions.
CORPORATE STRATEGY (STRATEGIC FORESIGHT - "THE WHY"):
This is about anticipating the future, shaing the overall mission, guiding the company’s growth, diversification, and investment decisions to create sustained value.
What trends could impact our industry or organization?
Why should we pursue markets, products, or services over others?
Is our current mission/vision relevant, and how does it need to evolve?
What risks or opportunities could arise, and how should we prepare for them?
2. BUSINESS STRATEGY (STRATEGIC THINKING - THE HOW):
Strategic thinking is about gaining a competitive edge by translating foresight into actionable strategies that define how the business will achieve its objectives.
How can we differentiate ourselves from competitors?
How will our strategies address changes in customer needs?
How do we leverage our strengths to capitalize on opportunities and respond to competitive threats?
How can we foster innovation to stay ahead in the marketplace?
How will you and the organization compete effectively in your markets?
3. FUNCTIONAL STRATEGY (STRATEGIC PLANNING - THE WHAT):
Strategic planning requires detailed planning in marketing, operations, and finance to ensure alignment with business objectives. It consists of specific activities, resources, and timelines to execute the business strategy.
What specific actions are needed to achieve our strategic objectives?
What resources are required to execute successfully?
What are the timelines and milestones needed to execute?
What metrics will we use to measure progress/success?
What contingencies are needed in case things don't go as planned?
A Word of Caution
Most strategy and implementation efforts mistakenly focus on analysis and planning rather than actual strategy, execution and implementation. What's the difference?
ANALYSIS involves data gathering and pattern detection to inform strategy, which is about creating unique and sustainable value for an organization.
PLANNING outlines the steps and resources needed to implement the strategy. Implementation encompasses activities to realize the strategy and support necessary changes.
Overemphasizing analysis and planning while neglecting true strategy and implementation is a recipe for inefficiency and wasted resources. Effective implementation involves ...
translating strategic plans into actionable steps
ensuring alignment among team members.
providing ongoing attention to detail
continuously monitoring and evaluating progress
making necessary adjustments based on real-time feedback.
So while planning is crucial, the success of strategy hinges on being continuously proactive and adaptable to ensure that plans are effectively turned into results.
Avoid these Common Pitfalls
Without a solid strategy, marketing initiatives can become disjointed and reactive, leading to wasted resources and missed opportunities. By undervaluing strategy, organizations risk failing to align their marketing activities with overarching business goals, resulting in inefficiencies and a lack of cohesive direction.
Even the best strategies can fail due to poor execution. To ensure effective execution, businesses should prioritize clear communication, set measurable initiatives, and regularly review and adapt their plans.
Lack of Clarity: Teams not understanding the strategy or their roles leads to poor execution. Everyone involved needs to have a clear purpose and direction
Unrealistic or Unmeasurable Goals: Setting ambitious goals without necessary resources results in failure. You need to make sure your team has the patience and stamina to see it through.
Absence of Accountability: Without clear ownership, strategies remain unimplemented.
"Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning."
Thomas Edison
Strategy Framework
The 3-30-300 process is a strategic delivery method, breaking down strategy execution into three stages.
First, create a 3-page summary of the 3P Framework to provide a high-level overview.:
Purpose
Principles
Priorities
Next, develop a 30-page detailed plan outlining execution mode: specific initiatives, milestones, and required resources.
Finally, produce a 300-page detailed specification assigning roles and responsibilities, ensuring every detail is covered.
This comprehensive approach offers a comprehensive strategy execution plan that is both visionary and actionable. It ensures clarity, alignment, and accountability, and can be scaled down for smaller companies.
"A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work."
Colin Powell
Your Unique Strategy for Success
Achieving the consistency and success you desire is not just about following another business and marketing strategy; it's about embodying the strategy itself.
Simply following any strategy, you may feel results but only with the hustle, grind and burnout.
The RIGHT strategy aligns with your authenticity, values, and unique energy. You can achieve success by being true to yourself, breaking free from the rules you thought you had to follow.
Stop Adapting to Others' Strategies: Don't try to fit yourself into someone else’s framework or follow what everyone else is doing, especially if it doesn’t feel right for you. Focusing too much on fixing perceived blocks may be dimming your unique qualities that attract clients, money, and freedom.
Align with Your Unique Design: Instead of seeking purpose and clarity externally, realize that your magnetism and the answers you seek lie within you. Get to know your unique gifts, superpowers, and what sets you apart. This knowledge makes you more attractive to your ideal clients and helps you build a brand that thrives on authenticity.
"Great success takes great effort. You can either do it, or sit around and talk about it."
Monte Pederson
A Final Word
Your job isn't done after you create your strategy- far from it. You're only at the beginning of a long journey!
It goes without saying, that ACTION is just as important as vision. We must give our attention and resources equally to both.
Achievements stem not from ideas but from hard work, focus, discipline and dedication to successful execution.
It's easy to get excited about our over-arching goals, but remember that truly sustainable success comes from a commitment to good strategy, consistent execution, and perseverance.
"Vision without execution is just hallucination."
Henry Ford
Wrapping It Up
Strategy is about offering longterm and meaningful VALUE. Without strategy, you just have a cost center, which is a fast way to lose authority, trust, budget and resources.
Marketers are Planners by nature. Your business and marketing strategy provides your well-defined, thought-out roadmap to sales and growth. It allows you to
strengthen brand presence
maintain customer loyalty
building customer trust
fostering meaningful relationships
make informed decisions
allocate resources effectively
stay ahead of the competition
drive business growth
adapting to market changes and trends
All of this takes TIME. It takes consistency, patience and persistence to engage with your target and adapt to trends that inevitably shift and evolve. Its a slow, intentional effort, which is not what CEO’s want to hear.
Having a strategy is crucial for the stability and sustainability of a business. It helps operate while minimizing waste, conserving energy, and ultimately contributing to sustained profitability and resilience in an ever-changing market.
By embracing strategic planning for marketing and operations, entrepreneurs can navigate the complexities of the business world with confidence. As you embark on your journey, remember that strategy is not just a plan—it's a path to creating a thriving and resilient business.
"Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat."
Sun Tzu
Erin Ratliff is a holistic business coach and organic growth & visibility consultant serving energy-sensitive, earth-loving, heart-led soul-preneurs, self-starters, and founders with the mission of personal and planetary healing.
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