Marketing strategy: a unique puzzle for every organisation

Do you enjoy jigsaw puzzles? Developing a marketing strategy is very similar to completing a mystery jigsaw puzzle - one of the newer style ones where there is no picture but clues of what it will be of.

I am very conscious that clients are placing huge trust in me to identify the strategies that will create business growth, develop markets and facilitate change. Which is why I need to get to know them before giving any advice.

I do this through a deep dive, asking lots of questions and meeting their team. Wherever possible, I’ll visit their premises and gain perspectives from different members of the team. If it’s a manufacturing company, I also like to have a tour round their production plant, understanding their set up, the flexibility of manufacturing lines, which parts are busy and the areas that need a sales boost. We discuss their business objectives, market conditions and competitors as well as identifying the products and services that boost cashflow, which ones are a drain on resources and hunt out the gems that deliver high margins giving profits a boost.

We also talk through their sales process and the marketing they have tried to date, identifying what has been working well to generate the leads from their ideal customers, which convert into sales of their most profitable products and services.

Having all this information helps me to understand the priorities, objectives and resources available. It’s like spreading all the pieces out on a table and working out the corners, sides and what the picture of their future marketing will look like.

Every organisation is unique and so their “picture” (strategy) will be different and tailored to their own journey. It will be tailored to their objectives and the people, time, resources and budget available, together with key performance indicators so they can track progress.

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I'm Hannah Welch, a marketing consultant based in NSW, Australia. I work with positive impact organisations, manufacturers and B2B companies to develop effective marketing strategies. The marketing advice I give is bespoke to each organisation, harnessing their knowledge and expertise so that their marketing continues to strengthen their brand and develop growth.

Image: this is a jigsaw puzzle of a New York street scene that my sister is currently working on!