BOSTON—Welcome to the Five-Minute Marketing blog. Today, we are going to talk about why marketing often fails.
#1 – Loss of Momentum
When companies launch their marketing and business development campaigns, the energy is high. Within a few months, however, the excitement dwindles. There is hardly any traction, and the campaign comes to a standstill, or moves forward half-heartedly.
#2 – No Long-Term Plan
The high-energy momentum of the initial campaign fades because there is no solid long-term, one- or two-year plan, which is mapped out as a structured timeline—with date, content, channels and executors matched out completely. You should be able to visualize the plan: how, what, when, expected results, red flags or failure, and most importantly–corrections (if needed).
#3 – Changes in the Marketing Team
As a marketing campaign kicks off, sometimes a key member of the team (e.g. content creation, design, strategy, networking) leaves the team. A new person comes on board, with their own ideas, and they convince the team that their method is better. Sometimes, it is and should be incorporated into the marketing plan. But the original plan is now thrown into chaos, and everything must start all over again.
#4 – Pressure from the Top
As the marketing plan fails to yield the expected results and the budget is nearly spent, the pressure from the top starts building—and rightly so. A combination of dwindling budget, poor results and the building frustration cripples the entire campaign. Many times, the entire marketing campaign is abandoned until a new CEO or CMO realizes the importance of a solid marketing strategy and its precise execution.
#5 – Quick Results
Sometimes the marketing strategy yields immediate results—either by chance, coincidence, or a genuine market demand. This makes the marketing team lose sight of long-term goals. They slow down, believing the mission accomplished—until a client drops out or cuts it budget.
Successful marketing and business development is a 24/7 strategy. It must continue all the time—with same laser focus and tremendous enthusiasm—and keep the funnel of prospects growing.
(Upendra Mishra is the founder of Precise Marketing, an integrated marketing and business development company, whose four-step process—(1) Customer Identification and database creation, (2) Direct Engagement with prospects, (3) Multimedia Content creation, and (4) Targeted Media placement—has become a proven and revenue-driven marketing strategy. He writes about marketing, business development, mythology and gardening. You can reach him at [email protected])
