Strategy Is All About Focus
In 1519, the Spanish Conquistador Capitán Hernán Cortés landed in Veracruz.
His mission was to topple the Aztec Empire and capture their large lands for the Spanish empire.
He was aware that the task would not be an easy one and so he gave the order upon arriving for his men to burn the ships.
By removing the option to retreat he forced his men to focus on their task.
Whilst this is an extreme case, it does illustrate the idea that a key part of being a good strategist is being able to focus your efforts on what is most important.
Without strategy there is no focus. Without focus nothing can be accomplished.
It’s easy to get distracted by the latest new thing but what it’s important to remember is the things that don’t change.
As the advertising legend Bill Bernbach once remarked, “A good communicator must be concerned with the unchanging man - what compulsions drive him, what instincts dominate his every action.”
Good strategy works by focusing your resources on one, or few objectives.
These 4 tips will help you maintain focus and assist in leading to a favourable outcome:
1. Avoid short-term thinking
A great strategy builds a brand over time (e.g. Brands like Nike & Skittles who stick to the same strategy tend to outperform the ones that chop and change all the time).
A marketing strategy helps you build a brand which creates continued success and profit over the long-term. Always try to avoid measuring your performance on short-term metrics.
2. Outperform the competition
Marketing strategy is a process that is part art because it relies on creativity and intuition. And creativity is the most important tool we have when it comes to differentiating brands and businesses.
A great marketing strategy helps you to be effective with creativity, saving you both time and money on trying to outspend your competitors with media buying or having ‘always-on’ promotions.
3. Respond to changing consumer behaviour
Great marketing strategies evolve over time - there is no one way to do it, rather you’ll find yourself on a permanent learning curve.
They should be agile enough to understand and respond to changing behaviours and needs. As we know (and sometimes forget…), our consumers are people. People change. So should the way you execute your strategy.
4. Get internal alignment
Make the most of your resources by getting people across your business to work together - collaboration is essential to the effective rollout of any strategy. It’s difficult for any organisation to be effective without a clearly articulated strategy. Basically, everybody needs to be singing from the same hymn sheet.
Whether you’re wanting to get into a marketing strategy role or just want a better understanding of strategy as a whole, our Marketing Strategy course in collaboration with Cannes Lions and WARC is a fundamental guide to the principles of Marketing Strategy.
