The marketing process is a concept that encompasses the whole of a marketing campaign. There are many factors to a good process; a good process being defined by your overall goal. The steps within a marketing process include the mission, situation analysis, the marketing strategy, the marketing mix, and the implementation and control. Knowing the steps of the process is not enough.
A marketer must understand that a process is unique to themselves and their situation. Breaking down each key element will help us realize what the marketing process means to us.
The Mission
A mission is why a company was created and how it wants to help those who consume their product. The mission should already be evident to employees and consumers alike. If your mission statement isn’t clearly defined, it is very difficult to create a persona for your brand. A good mission statement outlines who the company is and how it wants to be perceived. Are we a landscaping company that will get down to the most specific details to satisfy your customers? Or are we a law firm that will fight tooth and nail for your rights? Clearly define how you want potential clients to see you, and make what’s seen desirable to the average consumer.
The Situation Analysis
The situation analysis step is a process that aids users in how to properly analyze the state of your business. Using the SWOT Analysis, businesses can identify their Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.
Where do we exceed or fail? Where can we find ways to succeed or improve? What could potentially stem our growth or hurt our current state? Keeping a constant awareness about the state of your business is crucial in exponential growth. For an in-depth video, check out Mind Tool’s video on the SWOT Analysis. Laying out these four concepts sets a clear goal to yourself and the team as to what needs to be improved, what we need to protect against, and what opportunities might help us grow.
The Marketing Strategy
Use the Analysis performed in the latter to come up with a good marketing strategy. This is where we come up with multiple marketing objectives that lead to our overall goal. Capitalize on our strengths and eliminate our weaknesses. Use every opportunity to its fullest capability and minimize threats to our overall success. Defining a target audience will also benefit our efforts in selling the product or service. A good strategy will help lead every project through the rest of the marketing process.
The Marketing Mix
The marketing mix relies on what is called the Four P’s: Product, price, promotion, and place. Our product (or service) and its integrity are the first things we need to take into account when we start this step. Next, we establish a price that holds close to our competition and is true to our product quality.
Promoting the product is the most crucial piece in selling the product. We brainstorm appropriate mediums that the target consumer uses. Knowing our customers and their tendencies will significantly increase our chance of selling successfully. Also, we use this step to establish a brand identity and what this product can do for our consumer.
Finally, the “place” step helps establish where we want to sell our product. Are we selling the latest fashion trend online or in a retail store? Is a mobile food truck better for our street tacos or do we want to capitalize on the brand identity and open a restaurant? The four p’s help keep the priorities of the campaign front and center. If a task that is being performed doesn’t embody the mission or help achieve any objectives, it shouldn’t be a part of the mix.
Marketing Process Wrap Up
Forming a good marketing campaign can be difficult. The overall goals and the steps to achieve it can be hard to put in perspective. But using the Marketing Process will help lay out the general ideas we want to solidify into a developed campaign. While each piece can seem very broad, every business must interpret each step and break it down so that it fits with their brand. Taking the time to analyze each step in the marketing process will help us mentally prepare for the marketing campaign.
