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Discuss running a business with any fellow entrepreneur, and it’s likely that at some point or other, you’ll talk about strategy. Every business mentoring session, every marketing course, every online seminar, emphasises the importance of planning. As the famous saying goes – fail to plan, and you’re only planning to fail!

In light of this, why is it that so many businesses still adopt the ‘wing it’ approach instead? If you’re currently operating without a solid marketing strategy, and are debating whether or not to invest the time and funds into developing one – here’s a few reasons why you really should.

Five Reasons to Invest in a Good Marketing Strategy

1. Goal creation. Many businesses report that they feel like they’re ‘fire-fighting’ on a daily basis – struggling to keep up with the everyday tasks of keeping the company afloat, without a clue as to what the future might hold. A good marketing strategy gives you something tangible to aim for, and better still, it shows you the steps you need to take to achieve it. This is about the best motivation you can get, in business terms!

2. Task delegation. If you’re a start-up or SME, it’s likely that you take on most, if not all of the business responsibilities yourself. You probably adopt this approach because you believe it will save the company money. However, the reality is, it may be limiting the growth of your business. Creating a marketing strategy allows you to see which tasks could be given to other employees, or outsourced to an external agency or freelancer.

3. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Creating a solid strategy also helps you to identify what’s important, and what’s not. For example, at present, you could be devoting a lot of time and effort into a Facebook campaign, even though it’s not delivering much in return. Your marketing strategy helps you to identify the key priorities – giving you renewed focus.

4. Step-by-step guide. So many business owners don’t know where to start when it comes to marketing. Well, here’s a useful tip – a marketing strategy tells you exactly where to begin, and also guides you through the steps you’ll need to take to achieve success.

5. Flexibility. Remember, a strategy isn’t set in stone. It’s a fluid entity, and can be adjusted and tweaked as and when required. Indeed, in order to be effective, it’s likely you’ll need to change your approach from time to time. However, it allows you to be a lot more organised with the process, rather than simply trying out new marketing ideas randomly without a real plan in place.

Creating a Marketing Strategy for Your Business

If you’ve got a marketing background, you may be able to create a suitable strategy yourself – and if this is the case, we recommend you do so. However, if your background is in a different industry, creating a strategy may seem a little daunting.

Shark Bait Studios offer a comprehensive marketing service, which also includes creating a marketing strategy for your business. If you’d like to find out more about how we can help you, simply get in touch with us today on 01748 900321.