Based on my last series of posts, “CPR for Marketing,” here are the five steps to effectively market marketing (or whatever your function):
- Understand your ‘product’ value
- Identify your target markets
- Establish your positioning
- Assess your communications opportunities
- Develop your resulting plan; then implement & monitor.
In the 1st step, you need to start with the ‘big picture’ in terms of what your value is to the organization; i.e., what is it you really bring to the table?
There are several ways you can get at this, including doing a “feature & benefits” analysis of your function or department. But my favorite starts with exploring the question “What if … ?”
What if marketing no longer existed in the organization? What would be the impact? (e.g., Would we be missed?)
You gotta be kidding
Granted these questions are not easy to answer. But you better get over your discomfort and deal with these questions before someone else does!
This is not meant to be a negative exercise. By taking the time to explore marketing’s value, you’ll build confidence in what you have to offer. And you’ll also get a good sense of how much (internal) marketing you need to do.
In my next post, I’ll continue with Steps 2 & 3.
One reply on “Marketing Marketing – Step 1”
Sybil – you have a wonderful style of making a very complex subject easy to understand. While the “what if” exercise may be frightening at first glance (will management think my job is unnecessary and will I be next on the unemployement line?), it sounds like a great way to actually build consensus for the long-run.