This is blog post number five in a seven-part series that unpacks the key questions we encourage brands to ask when evaluating their brand relevancy.

In this article, we address: “Which tactics should we implement first? Second? Third?”

One thing I love about cooking is following directions. When I have a recipe, even if I’m cooking it for the first time, I can feel confident that if I just follow steps 1, 2, and 3, everything should turn out just fine. So when I’m in charge of dinner, I get all my ingredients ready, put them in the right order, and go.

My 4-year-old, on the other hand, would prefer to make it up as she goes along. Given the same quality ingredients, the result of her night at the stove would be much less . . . well . . . edible. 

Marketing teams often struggle with the same core problem: all the right ingredients, but no recipe to follow. 

Companies will pour hours of great effort and thoughtful brainstorming into a set of marketing tactics they know they need to tackle. But when it comes to putting them into action in the right order, they tend to give it much less thought. 

But it’s as important as marinating the meat before you throw it on the grill. 

When it comes to marketing tactics, you must consider all three legs of the stool: is this the right action, at the right time, and in the right order?

Take, for example, the following tried-and-true tactics in every marketing team’s pantry:

• Brand Positioning 
• Website Refresh
• Email Engagement Program
• Social Media Engagement
• Content Marketing
• Paid Media/PPC
• Marketing Collateral Development
• Experiential Marketing 

Which comes first for a particular brand truly depends on that magic combination of their goals and what’s working in their favor already.

An established brand with strong organic website traffic who’s looking to engage a new audience can delay a focus on paid search and content and focus first on email and social engagement

A new company looking to launch in a crowded market should focus first on brand positioning and SEO strategy.

One thing we’ve learned in 30+ years working with brands is that it’s truly never the same recipe twice. When you’re staring at a whiteboard full of tactics, you might ask yourself a few of these questions:

• Which tactics really matter today and what can we slate for tomorrow?
• Are our campaign channels specific enough to target our ideal customer?
• Are the methods we’re using a complement to what we are known for best?

The answers will help you tackle the right tactics, in the right order: a recipe for lasting marketing success. 

Need help digging into these questions? We are experts in helping manufacturers put the right tactics on their roadmap to become more relevant to their customers. We’d love to talk.