It’s hard to plan how to move forward if you don’t understand where you’ve been and have analyzed the mistakes and successes you’ve made and the opportunities you’ve lost in the past.

Introduction: 

Did you know that only about one-third of marketers have a documented marketing plan? It’s a staggering statistic, and it’s a situation that leaves many brands in the dark about the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. This lack of clarity can lead to frustration and missed growth opportunities. That’s where a Marketing Excellence Audit (MEA) comes into play. In this post, we’ll explore the benefits of a Marketing Excellence Audit and how it can be a game-changer for crafting an effective marketing plan.

The State of Marketing Plans:

Before we delve into the specifics of the Marketing Excellence Audit, let’s take a moment to understand the current landscape of marketing plans. According to Marketo, only around one-third of brands have a documented marketing plan. This lack of planning leaves most brands needing help to measure the success of their marketing efforts and make informed decisions about their future strategies.

This uncertainty about the effectiveness of marketing strategies can result in frustration and dissatisfaction with progress. Brands need a structured approach to marketing planning that can provide clarity and direction.

The Marketing Excellence Audit (MAE):

At our consulting firm, we recognize the importance of a well-defined marketing plan. That’s why we recommend our proprietary Marketing Excellence Audit (MEA) to our clients as the cornerstone of their marketing planning process. The MEA helps brands build and execute a strategic marketing plan that is data-driven, customer-focused and effective.

The Scope of the Marketing Excellence Audit: 

The MEA is a comprehensive process that begins with a deep dive into crucial stakeholder beliefs and perceptions. This phase includes:

  1. Unique Value Proposition and Brand Perceptions: Understanding your brand’s market perception and what makes it unique.
  2. Brand SWOT Analysis: Identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that impact your brand’s performance.
  3. Stakeholder Input: Gathering sales and brand building ideas and insights.

The Four “Blue Ocean Strategy” Stages:

After analyzing stakeholder beliefs and perceptions, we employ a “Blue Ocean Strategy” approach to help craft your marketing plan. This approach consists of four stages:

  1. Elimination Stage: Identifying factors to eliminate to reduce costs and streamline operations.
  2. Reduction Stage: Determining which factors should be reduced below industry standards to gain a competitive edge.
  3. Raise the Bar Stage: Identifying areas where your brand should excel and surpass industry standards.
  4. Creation Stage: Innovating by introducing factors the industry has never offered.

All four stages work in tandem to drive value innovation, increase profitability, create memorable customer experiences, reduce costs and waste, and generate repeat and referral business.

The Discovery Process:

To conduct the MAE, we employ an exhaustive and encompassing discovery process that includes:

  1. One-on-One and Group Interviews: Engage key stakeholders through in-person and remote interviews to gain insights into your brand’s challenges and goals.
  2. Surveys: Conduct online and in-person surveys to gather quantitative data on customer preferences and perceptions.
  3. Research: Analyze your brand, competitors, and industry to gain a comprehensive understanding of its market landscape. 

Our agile approach ensures that we interact with various stakeholders, such as management, sales, service teams, and customers, to develop a holistic view of your brand’s marketing needs.

Delivering Results:

After gathering research and completing our meetings, we typically deliver a comprehensive report and marketing plan within one month of our engagement agreement.

This plan addresses most of the essential marketing decisions and areas of concentration tailored to your brand’s unique needs.

Our Marketing Mix: The BrandMill 10-P’s of Marketing:

At BrandMill, we believe the traditional “4-P Marketing Mix” is limited in today’s dynamic marketplace. That’s why we’ve expanded it to the “BrandMill 10-P’s of Marketing.” This framework is the foundation for our Marketing Excellence Audit and helps us evaluate all marketing challenges, opportunities, and potential ideas for your marketing plan. Here’s an overview of the 10-P’s:

  1. Purposeful Promise
  2. Position
  3. People
  4. POW (UNIQUE WOW)
  5. Product
  6. Price (Value)
  7. Place/Proximity (Distribution)
  8. Promotion
  9. Pace/Process/Systems
  10. Performance (Proof, KPIs)

These 10 P’s provide a comprehensive framework to evaluate and improve every aspect of your brand’s marketing strategy, ensuring a holistic and data-driven approach.

The 7-Point Marketing Audit:

Our 7-point marketing audit outline, which covers various aspects of your marketing strategy,

  1. Marketing Macroenvironment Audit: Examine demographics, economics, technology, politics, and culture to understand the broader market context.
  2. Marketing Microenvironment Audit: Analyze markets, customers, competitors, distribution channels, suppliers, and marketing partners.
  3. Marketing Strategy Audit: Assess your business mission, marketing objectives, goals, and overall strategy.
  4. Marketing Organization Audit: Evaluate your formal structure, functional efficiency, and interface efficiency.
  5. Marketing Systems Audit: Examine marketing information systems, the tech stack, planning processes, and innovation efforts.
  6. Marketing Performance and Productivity Audit: Analyze profitability, cost-effectiveness, and resource allocation.
  7. Marketing Function Audit: Assess individual elements of your marketing mix, such as products, pricing, distribution, advertising, sales promotion, publicity, direct marketing, social media, video marketing, website, email marketing, and sales force.

Conclusion:

In the ever-evolving world of marketing, a well-documented and data-driven marketing plan is essential for success. A Marketing Excellence Audit (MEA) provides a structured and comprehensive approach to crafting an intelligent marketing plan. By leveraging the power of an MEA, your brand can gain clarity, direction, and a competitive edge in the marketplace.

If you’re ready to unlock the full potential of your marketing efforts, contact Managing Partner, Stephen Wayhart, at 412.401.0555 to explore how our Marketing Excellence Audit can help your brand increase sales and profitability. Don’t leave your marketing success to chance; make this the year of intelligent and effective marketing planning.